Since this June, the Social Affairs Bureau of the Taichung City Government has authorized Hondao Senior Citizen’s Welfare Foundation to organize the Mayor’s Manor into a composite functional exhibition hall and restaurant called “Bulao 125” with the form of operate-transfer (OT). The place was officially opened on November 13th and it hired eight chefs and waiters with the average age of 66, allowing seniors to continue their careers and providing them with social participation opportunities.

November 13th, 2006 is the day when the “Grandriders” departed from Taichung to fulfill their dream of circling Taiwan on motorcycles. 10 years later, Taiwan’s first “Bulao 125” was officially opened on this meaningful day. Mayor Lin Chia-lung, Director Lue Jen-der of the Social Affairs Bureau, Legislator Hung Tzu-yung, City Council Representative Fan Sung-yu, representative from the office of City Council Representative Chen Cheng-hsien, Chairman Wang Nai-hung of Hondao Senior Citizen’s Welfare Foundation, first Grandriders Chang Hung-tao and his wife Chen Ying-mei all participated the opening press conference.

Mayor Lin stated that he is happy to cooperate with Hondao Senior Citizen’s Welfare Foundation in fulfilling his dream of transforming the Mayor’s Manor into a space where citizens can utilize. Inside Bulao 125, it exhibits stories such as the Grandriders who rode their motorcycles around Taiwan, seniors’ baseball and other stories, and presenting the living experience of the seniors. He expected that these senior dreams would inspire other seniors to have a young mindset and continue to learn and thrive despite of age.

Mayor Lin also sliced Chinese radishes with two grandmothers at the press conference, experienced the making of a traditional pickled gourmet of pickled radish and tasted traditional savory rice pudding. He said that experiencing the stories of Taichung through the great taste of “traditional flavor” encourages grandfathers and grandmothers to share their stories. In addition, the city government is now promoting a “Senior Expert Hall” with the expectation that seniors can pass on their life experiences and skills, and provide seniors with a versatile living style.

Chairman Wang of Hondao Senior Citizen’s Welfare Foundation stated that he is grateful for the city government on its promotion of the senior projects, long-term care 2.0 and other related measures. Hondao Senior Citizen’s Welfare Foundation has dedicated itself in the promotion of enriching seniors’ lives for 21 years and it expects that, through versatile activities, seniors will be able to walk out of their homes and have a seniors’ life of their own. He hoped that, in the future, social resources could continue to be contributed in building an outstanding social environment for the seniors.

The Social Affairs Bureau stated that Bulao 125 is organized as a dream base for the seniors and will be open from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm daily from Tuesday to Sunday. Besides the permanent exhibitions of several seniors’ dreams, a six-month “Grandriders 10 Year Anniversary Exhibition” will also be released. Real-life library will be held during weekends and in it, visitors will be introduced to the special life stories of seniors. Additionally, the outdoor space of “Bulao Cafeteria” that provides foods and drinks will also demonstrate the process of making traditional pickled gourmets and release innovative dishes designed by senior chefs. We expect this place to become a future attraction and promote the seniors’ dreams to demonstrate the values of the seniors’ lives.

Bulao 125 also hired eight senior chefs and senior waiters with an average age of 66, allowing them to continue their career and providing them with social participation opportunities. With the cooperation of young people and seniors, wisdom of life and sparkles of creativity can be agitated. Among them, the 76-year-old Lai Li-hsueh is the oldest senior waitress. She used to participate in community activities. When she heard that “Bulao 125” was recruiting people, she applied for it aggressively. During her training, she challenged herself to use POS devices and could finally handle waitress work after training and hard work.