19 May 2025 is a red letter day for St John’s Home (SJH). On this day our patron, Madam Halimah Yacob, honoured us by graciously inaugurating our new sensory garden. Her support is doubly meaningful as generous funding from the 2023 President’s Challenge made our sensory garden possible. Mr Alex Yeo, MP for Potong Pasir, also honoured us with his presence.

Why create a sensory garden? As our Chairman, Mr Andrew Lioe said in his welcome address, nature is important for creating a nurturing and tranquil environment that promotes the holistic well-being of residents. SJH’s sensory garden brings this vision to life. It is a concrete expression of SJH’s commitment to providing holistic care for its residents now and as SJH transforms itself into a nursing home.

Want to know more about the benefits of sensory gardens?  Click here

Madam Halimah toured the sensory garden after the inaugural cake-cutting ceremony. She thrilled and delighted our residents by joining them for a floral arrangement workshop after her tour. Our residents made the most of their chance to interact with her.

Conversation with Madam Halimah 

Madam Halimah said that SJH’s approach of enabling seniors to have contact with nature is good. Research has shown that such contact improves a person’s mental and physical well-being. Elder care is too segmented sometimes. Good eldercare is not just about providing medical care and food. It is about meeting psychological and emotional needs as well. She is glad that SJH focuses on providing such holistic care.

Madam Halimah commended SJH for ensuring that residents have easy access to the sensory garden. She hopes that useful plants like ginger, chillies and herbs will be grown. Noting how important herbal gardens are in Asian culture, she believes that the smell of aromatic plants used in Asian cooking will evoke memories in our elders.

Madam Halimah hopes that our residents and their families will fully harness the benefits of our sensory garden. These benefits go beyond improving our residents’ physical and mental well-being to strengthening their connections to their families. Family visits are often passive with little interaction between the elders and their families. But what our residents and their families see and experience in the sensory garden during their visits there can generate topics for conversation. Give points of connection between our residents and their families. For instance, the durian tree can be the starting point for our residents to share their past with their grandchildren, as many of them would have grown up in kampungs with durian trees. Building these intergenerational connections adds value to the lives of our residents.

Madam Halimah stressed that enabling elders to age well involves more than providing food and medical care. It is about enabling them to make connections, build relationships and live meaningfully, in short, improving and enhancing their quality of life.

Impressions from Mr Alex Yeo

Mr Yeo found the garden beautiful. He thought that it was well conceived and well thought out. For example, the exercise equipment is suitable for residents in wheelchairs. He believes that the sensory garden will add to the physical and mental well-being of our residents.

Mr Yeo looks forward to working with SJH as it transits to being a nursing home. There is a growing need for more nursing home places. He looks forward to the additional 174 places that SJH will provide when it completes its transition.

Reaction from resident Madam Soo Yan Ning

Madam Soo enjoys being in the sensory garden and goes there every morning and evening. She likes looking at the many different flowers in the beautiful garden and enjoys their refreshing fragrance. Staying active is much more convenient after the creation of the sensory garden.

Click here to see Madam Soo’s full story

A peek at our sensory and roof top gardens

Let’s take a peek at the sensory and rooftop gardens. The sensory garden offers a riot of colours and scents for sensory stimulation, a calming koi pond, an exercise area surrounded by soothing greenery and a multitude of fruit trees.

In our roof top garden, edibles and herbs, like pumpkin, sweet potato, curry leaves and basil, are the stars. Residents can plant their own patch too! Residents enjoy panoramic views from the roof top, while savouring the scent of various herbs.

Interested in gardening? Want to share your knowledge and skills?

Get in touch! Contact us at progvm@stjohneldershome.org.sg or 6285 4446.

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          Look out for our next newsletter. We will be sharing more exciting initiatives with you.