Centenarians of McKenzie

We are honoured to have many Centenarians living in McKenzie homes right now. Could McKenzie be holding the fountain of youth?

It is a momentous occasion when any person reaches the great 100-year milestone. It is usually followed by parties, gifts, flowers and of course a letter from the Queen.

Gwen at our Bribie Cove home (Bongaree), celebrated her 109th birthday late last year. Gwen was born and grew up in Wales, moving to Australia at the age of 60.

In her younger years, she worked in a television studio. Here at Bribie Cove, Gwen enjoys living ‘the simple life’, looking forward to visits from her daughters, Jill and Joan, going for outdoor walks, enjoying a McDonald’s ice cream, attending church services and the weekly trivia activities. Don’t let her age fool you though, Gwen is still as sharp as a tack! It’s an honour to know and have the oldest Bribie Island resident live with us at Bribie Cove.

We have three other ladies residing at the home in their early 100’s. Maybe it is the easy going, relaxed island life that has our residents growing to such a golden age.

At CapellaBay (Capalaba), Ron is about to celebrate his 101st birthday this month. Ron has achieved a great deal in his life, with much travel behind him. In 2015, Ron was the eldest Australian to attend the dawn service at the Centenary Service of the ANZAC Campaign. With his daughter and two grandsons, he then followed on to the Western Front, and onwards to Villers Bretonneux, finishing in the UK. He walked and walked, and at the age of 95 he was the envy of many he travelled with.

In 2017 Ron was awarded The Medal of The Order of Australia (OAM) for his voluntary services to lawn bowls, umpiring for 45 years. He previously umpired VFL football for 20 years, umpiring an amazing 400 games!

Ron is joined by 4 other centenarians at CapellaBay, including Beryl, one of our newer residents.

Beryl and her late husband Don, had 4 children together, which has now grown into a family of 11 grandchildren, 40 great grandchildren and 5 great-great grandchildren. Her favourite activity has always been sewing. When Beryl left school, she became a qualified dressmaker and was always making clothing to be sold at church stalls and for the Pleasantville Ladies Auxiliary. She worked in the canteen at Pleasantville raising funds for the elderly up until her 95th year!

It’s a privilege to hear these stories from our McKenzie residents and being able to share their journey with our community.