A resident at Heather View celebrated her 100th birthday and revealed the secret to a long and happy life.
Birthday celebrations were in full swing at Heather View when resident Doreen ‘Joan’ Oram celebrated her birthday. Joan turned 100 years ‘young’ on 10th December, and claimed the secret to living to 100 is keeping active and busy.
Joan was joined by family, friends and residents to celebrate her milestone birthday for a party hosted by the team at the care home. Everyone toasted Joan’s good health and tucked into a slice of birthday cake.
Joan was born on 10th December 1918 in Eridge, where she lived in a cottage with her nine other siblings, including her twin sister. Growing up, she helped her father, master of the hunt in Eridge, to look after the hounds. She then went on to work as a housekeeper for Sir and Lady Greenfield, before meeting her husband George and having two sons, Brian and Barry.
Joan loves to take part in all activities at the home and especially enjoys knitting as she used to make socks for her husband – but animal therapy sessions and children’s visits as part of the ‘Young at Heart’ project, an intergenerational friendship initiative launched by Heather View and Artytime, is what Joan loves most of all.
Natasha King, home manager at Heather View, said: “We always like to throw a party for special celebrations, and Joan’s 100th birthday was no exception. Joan has made many friends at the home and likes to spend plenty of time with the people she loves, which we wholeheartedly support and encourage her to do.
“It was a pleasure to be able to join Joan and her family to celebrate such a wonderful occasion – I’m sure Joan’s birthday card from the Queen will be a topic of conversation for a long time to come as she was so overjoyed with it!”
