Agathe Bastien

How did you hear about the Les Blouses Roses organization, and can you tell us a little about it?

I learned about the organization through a friend who spoke to me about it with great enthusiasm; she joined after retiring a few years ago, eager to dedicate herself to a meaningful cause. We’ve discussed it several times, and I’m interested in and moved by their very positive work, which focuses on helping sick people who are often confined to hospitals for long periods.

The association Les Blouses Roses organizes fun, creative, and artistic activities to entertain and comfort patients and their loved ones in hospitals and nursing homes. It’s also a way to build connections between the staff and the patients, among the patients themselves, and to facilitate interactions with their loved ones.

Can you tell us about the project and why you support it?

This “gardening as it used to be” project involves redesigning a therapeutic garden with height-adjustable planters on wheels to make it accessible to the 230 elderly residents—many of whom have limited mobility—in the geriatric ward at Lille’s Hôpital des Bateliers.

Beyond the goal of medical rehabilitation through sensory stimulation, memory exercises tied to the seasons, and more, this year-round garden will be a welcoming space that promotes mobility. Activities will be held there to foster social connections and bring a sense of well-being and cheer to an environment that can sometimes feel a bit gloomy.

Can you describe your experience in a few words?

Bringing nature and its benefits into the hospital, providing moments of joy: this superb project with its many virtues is rich in meaning and values shared by On seniors’side. I am extremely happy to be able, thanks to the foundation, to support the volunteers’ efforts, and the association joins me in saying a big THANK YOU!