JACKSONVILLE — Residents from four area nursing homes reminisced about old times during a picnic at Nichols Green Monday to kick off nursing home week.

Gardendale Rehabilitation and Health Center, Bonner Place, Twin Oaks Health and Rehabilitation Center and Jacksonville Healthcare Center brought sack lunches to eat outside.

Peaches Clayborne, activity director for Bonner Place, said the day is an opportunity for residents from different facilities to meet and catch up on old times. She said the facilities meet up once a month for bingo, but other than that, they rarely get to meet with their friends living in different facilities.

“They really enjoy meeting up because they don't get to see each other but once a month,” she said. “Most of them lived in one facility and moved around so the are very familiar with one another.”

Jokes and laughter could be heard.

“There was a real bad accident at the nursing home,” joked Ronald Roach, a resident at Gardendale. “A hummingbird ran into the doorbell. It was a real hum-dinger.”

Jim Orr of Yesteryear out of Palestine, sang requested songs from George Jones, Elvis, Meryl Haggard and more.

Jacksonville Mayor Kennith Melvin stopped by to meet residents and issue an official proclamation commencing National Nursing Home week.

Nursing home officials said this is the only event all facilities celebrate together, and for the rest of the week, each facility has events planned for their residents.

Bonner Place will host a senior semi-formal, dancing with the stars with a dance preformance by Robbie Jackson. The facility will also host a T-ball game with residents competing against residents.

Gardendale will host casino days this week with craps, black jack and Texas hold'em. They will also host an “Are you smarter than a senior citizen?” game where men and women residents compete against each other in a battle of wits.

Senior Care will have a family night and celebrity bingo, where a different local celebrity will call out numbers to the residents.

Jacksonville Healthcare will have barbeques and snow cones and lots of Bingo.

“They love bingo,” said Lawayna Jett, activities director. “Every home I go to, they love bingo.”