103-year-old Market Harborough care home resident shares secret to long life

A 103-year-old resident at a Market Harborough care home has shared her tips for living a long and happy life.

 

Margery Jacobs, who lives at Care UK’s Oat Hill Mews on Leicester Road, gave her words of wisdom while marking the latest milestone of her centenarian status.

In honour of Margery’s special day, a lively celebration with balloons, banners and delicious cake was organised by her family and team members at the home.

Thrilled to be surrounded by those nearest and dearest to her, when asked what her secret to living a long life was, Margery said: “It’s important to always have a positive mental attitude and to care for others more than yourself. 

“Also, enjoy lots of red wine and fresh air!”

Margery was born on 1^st June 1922, the youngest of five children and mostly raised by her eldest sister. After leaving secondary school, she worked as a clerical assistant during the second world war.

Later, Margery met Ronald and they went on to marry and enjoy many happy decades together. The couple moved around a lot and lived in various places including Eastbourne, Harrogate, Solihull and Henley-in-Arden – with friends all around the country. They also raised two children together, with Margery now cherishing time with her two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Having lived independently in her own home until August last year, Margery now happily resides at Oat Hill Mews. She is a huge fan of literature and poetry, including Shakespeare and John Betjeman, and loves spending time outside in the garden.

Susanne Stevens, Home Manager at Oat Hill Mews, said: “Margery is a very intelligent lady with lots of interesting stories to tell.

“As a much-loved resident, it was wonderful to mark this amazing milestone with her and hear her memorable advice for living a long and happy life.

“Everything we do is centred around our ethos of ensuring residents live active and fulfilling lives – and Margery’s 103^rd birthday celebration was no exception. It was lovely to see how happy she was on the day and we wish her many more joyful years to come.”

Designed to enable residents to live active and fulfilling lives, while also promoting independence, Oat Hill Mews incorporates plenty of space for leisure activities and hobbies, and has its own cinema, hair and beauty salon and pub. The highly skilled team provides full-time residential and dementia care, as well as short-term respite care. The layout of the building is configured into a series of individual suites, each having a dedicated lounge/dining room to facilitate the creation of close-knit communities.