Senior citizens residing in the Golden Age Home were thrilled to receive a visit from Their Majesties King Abdullah and Queen Rania on Tuesday, saying it filled their hearts with happiness.

Hajj Nashaat, who has been at the home for four years, said the visit lifted him out of a state of depression he has been living through since his wife left him.

"Almost four years ago, my wife took all my daughters and went abroad, where to, I do not know. After that I lived with my mother for a while, but decided to come to the society to preserve my honour. Since that time I have been in a state of depression, but the King and the Queen's visit made me happy and I feel much better now,” 54-year-old Nashaat told The Jordan Times.

Another guest at the centre, Fathiyah Abdullah, had a request for the King: To give her grandson, who scored high marks in the Tawjihi exam, a job in the Public Security Department.

The 70-year-old has been a resident at the home for 10 years after she lost her husband and daughter when their house burnt to the ground. She told The Jordan Times she has a son who visits her once a month, adding that his wife prevented him from hosting her in their home.

After touring the home, run by the White Beds Society, King Abdullah instructed the concerned authorities to carry out maintenance work on the facility, which was established in 1971.

Haifa Bashir, president of the society, said today's Royal visit boosted the morale of the residents and caregivers at the home.

Built on 27 dunums of forestland in the Jweideh area south of the capital, the Golden Age Home houses 120 senior citizens.

Besides food and lodging, the residents receive medical care and social activities are organized for them, Bashir said.

The Social Development Ministry pays JD120 per month for each of the 84 residents it referred to the society. But Bashir said the money was insufficient as the society spends about JD300 per month on each resident.

She said the society would ask the ministry to increase the payment, in order to plug the deficit in its budget, which stood at JD90,000 in 2005.

The remaining guests are supported by their families, she added.

Bashir also referred to the society's plans to establish an 800-square-metre senior citizens club inside a public park located in the capital's Um Al Summaq area.

Bashir said the society recently initiated a campaign to raise money for the club, projected to cost JD350,000 and had managed to collect JD40,000 so far.

In addition, the society plans to establish 14 units, each housing six residents and a supervisor. She said the units would be built next to the Golden Age Home so the inhabitants could benefit from the home's catering, kitchen, laundry and administration services.

Funding for the units, estimated at JD90,000 each, would be provided by benefactors, she added.

The Jordan Times