AHOSKIE – Singing, dancing, and a variety of other talents. All were on display here Oct 18 at Accordius Health at Creekside Care during a talent show bringing together the residents and the community.

“We are so excited to finally be having our second annual talent show,” said Activities Director Carolyn Pierce as she welcomed the crowd Thursday evening. “We thank you for all of you who have been patient.”

The talent show was twice rescheduled because of Hurricanes Florence and Michael, but as the old saying goes: “the show must go on.” Many of the nursing home residents and local community members still turned out for the performances despite the chilly October temperatures. A total of 13 performers took the stage—three Creekside residents and 10 from the local area.

The Creekside residents performed first, showing off their singing and dancing talents. John Conroy sang an acapella version of “Amazing Grace.” Monnie Parker strummed his guitar and sang another gospel favorite entitled “Who am I.”

The most energetic resident performance came from “Curtis and his Creekside Angels.” The group—composed of residents Curtis Futrell, Joseph Lee, Charlene Hodges, and Celestine Vaughan—danced on stage to the “Cupid Shuffle” while clad in white clothes and sparkly halos and angel wings. They had worked to learn their dance moves with the facility’s therapy team.

The rest of the performances came from community locals ready to share their own special talents.

“We truly would like to thank each person from our community that signed up for our talent show. We thank you for giving us your time and talent to put smiles on our residents’ faces,” said Karlene Todd, Creekside Admissions Coordinator who served as the host and announcer for the evening.

Many performers showed off their vocal talents including CJ Clark, Christopher Pierce, and AJ Denson. Each singer had different levels of experience—Clark is a long-time singer/guitarist, Pierce a high school student, and Denson a bright-eyed three-year-old—but each singer impressed the judges with their songs.

Josie Joyner, who makes backpack puppets for missionaries, also incorporated singing into her original puppetry act. Dressed as Dolly Parton, she sang her hit “Coat of Many Colors.”

Other performers showed their amazing dance ability. The Heavenly Praise Dancers of Second Baptist St. John Church did a group performance, clad in white dresses and blue shawls. The girls of that group ranged in age from 6 to 14 years old. Tanezia Elley and Dayshia Sutton, both young high school students, also put their heart and soul into solo praise dance performances.

Chloe Rose, a Ridgecroft middle schooler, performed a violin solo written by her instructor. Evan Wise, a Bearfield Primary student, showed off the karate skills which earned him the rank of purple belt.

The last performance of the night came from Shirley Williams. She asked her father, earlier talent show performer Monnie Parker, to accompany her with his guitar. They sang “Amazing Grace” together.

“You never know what tomorrow holds,” Williams said before the duo began to perform. “So this is a memory me and Daddy are going to make together. It ain’t about talent. It ain’t about winning money. It’s about making a memory with my daddy.”

Sweet family moments like that are why the nursing home facility decided to host this annual event. Carolyn Pierce explained the idea for the talent show was originally conceived by Creekside Administrator Lori Imler as a way to connect the residents of the nursing home with the outside community. It’s a fun event to bring everyone closer together.

Pierce noted that the whole facility worked together to put on the show. The Activities and Maintenance divisions were the main coordinators of the production, but she recognized the whole staff helped out. Even the “pre-show” entertainment was provided by the “Of One Accord” Creekside Choir, composed of both staff and residents.

“We’re one big team,” she said. “We couldn’t do it without the whole family.”

The judges for the talent show were also staff members. The panel was composed of Staff Coordinator Dawn Faison, Admissions Director Amanda Flythe, Rehab Director Dr. Waquita Holloman, and Director of Social Services Consuela Mabine.

At the end of the night, the winners were announced. Among the residents, John Conroy took home third place while Monnie Parker won second. “Curtis and his Creekside Angels” received the first place prize.

In the community category, Evan Wise received an honorable mention. Chloe Rose was awarded third place, and Dayshia Sutton received second. The top honor went to Christopher Pierce.

The talent show was an entertaining night, recognizing a variety of skills from people both young and old, and the connections between Creekside and the community became stronger than ever.