Chateau du Lac residents and staff partook in holiday meals, activities and cheer at the 14th annual Christmas Celebration hosted by Phillips 66 Lake Charles Manufacturing Complex on Wednesday.

Phillips 66 volunteers — joined by LaGrange High School students, Santa Claus and Elvis — took time out of their day to celebrate the holidays with these residents. This annual event aims to bring elderly and disabled residents from Southwest Louisiana Christmas joy and community support through “general good will and community outreach,” according to Elizabeth Eustis with Phillips 66.

She said the Christmas Celebration is a charitable event that they look forward to every year. “We enjoy bringing these folks joy and cheer during the holidays,” she said.

This event aligns with Phillips 66’s principles, she continued.

“One of our core values is ‘improving lives’ and events like this are one example of how our employees give back to the communities we live in.”

Scot Tyler, Phillips 66 general manager, agreed that their Holiday visit to Chateau du Lac is a treasured event for the volunteers.

“This is the 14th year we’ve been able to celebrate Christmas with our friends at Chateau du Lac,” he said. “Our employees were excited to come back and look forward to continuing the tradition of spreading some Christmas cheer, fun and fellowship with the residents.”

Partygoers didn’t have to put out milk and cookies for Santa this year. He came on his own with plenty of gifts in tow. All residents were given rechargeable lanterns by the elves, LaGrange students.

“This is something they can use in their homes or in emergency preparedness kits, like for power outages, etc.,” said Eustis.

There were also plenty of door prizes handed out, including electric blankets, foot spas, crockpots and more. Everything gifted was selected with the needs of the residents in mind.

Their holiday meal consisted of ham, dressing, slices of various holiday pies and the sweetest tea. Along with their meal, residents and staff were entertained by an old-time rock and roll performance from a local Elvis impersonator.

For hundreds of Chateau du Lac residents, this celebration provided a season’s worth of holiday cheer. But for the volunteers, this event is a breath of fresh air. “It’s nice to be able to lift their spirits and share a meal at this special time of year,” said Tyler.