By Mikayla van Loon
Making it to 100 years old is no small feat, especially when four people each celebrate their birthdays in the same month.
That’s why Kirkbrae Presbyterian Homes in Kilsyth hosted a high tea on Wednesday 5 July to wish Alfred, 104, Jim, 102, Vera, 100 and Frances, 100, a happy birthday.
Being Alfred’s actual birthday, he was the man of the moment basking in the well wishes and servings of tea and cake.
Born into good Irish and South African stock, Alfred’s daughter Annette said he comes from a line of family members living long, healthy lives.
“My father has an ancestor who was 105, he was Irish…his brother was 99 and six months when he died,” she said.
As a man of faith, something he has passed onto his children, Alfred said he puts his long life down to the fifth commandment of God, to “honour your father and mother, that your days may be long on the face of the earth”.
“I am one of nine children, the sixth out of nine and when I was a young man during the Great Depression dad was put out of work and it was a bad time, there were seven of us at the time and no money coming in,” Alfred said.
“I had to start work at the age of 14 and I had to give all that I could possibly give to support my parents.”
Alfred spent much of his life living in different parts of Victoria and South Australia as a lay preacher.
“At an early age I was introduced to preaching as a lay preacher and I first preached at a Presbyterian Church at the age of 18 in a little church in Ferntree Gully Road, Mount Waverley.
“After that I did a lot of preaching all around Victoria and in Penola in South Australia…I preached at 70 different Presbyterian churches which I believe is a record.”
Passing on his beliefs to his children, Annette said some of her best memories with her father come from time spent together discussing and talking about their faith.
“When I was a teenager, he took me to night Bible classes, twice a week sometimes, right through my high school years, just him and I,” she said.
Annette said as one of five children, her dad always made an effort to take them on family holidays.
“Every year Dad, he’d take us on holidays, all five children. We went to the Grampians, we went up to the snow at Falls Creek and he also took us up to my mother’s place in northern New South Wales, a place called Kempsey and the beach of course,” she said with a smile.
“He’d take us camping down the beach in the summer, for five weeks. He’d go back to work and leave my mum in a tent with five children.”
Up until the age of 96, Alfred was still playing golf regularly, a passion of his.
He is also the proud grandfather of 14 children and the great grandfather to 33 children.
Kirkbrae’s lifestyle manager Kiran Kaur said celebrating these remarkable milestones in four resident’s lives was important to recognise.
“This place has gone through a lot in Covid and they suffered a lot. Since we’ve recovered from that, we try each and every day to make it special for them,” she said.
“Because, of course, we can’t cover that gap, which we had at that time but now, we are making everyday special for them and to have four people either turning 100 or over 100 is unusual in the same month.”
For Vera, whose family mostly live in the UK, Kiran said being able to host a party for her meant she didn’t miss out on feeling celebrated.
“For the family members, because Vera’s family is not here, they’re overseas, they are in regular touch but still they are very appreciative that in their absence, we have made her milestone special.
“We got a letter from the governor and the King as well, hopefully before her birthday on the 29th we’ll get that letter.”
As for Jim, who came to Kirkbrae for palliative care, a year and a half on and at 102, he is still living a full life.
“Jim when he came he was palliative, now you will sit with him, talking to him and it’s very hard to stop him,” Kiran said.
Each term students from Gladesville Primary School go to Kirkbrae for an intergenerational session, something Kiran said always brings joy to the residents.
“Vera is the quiet one, she has quite a few health issues, but as soon as she sees the children, you see a smile, she’s happy.
“Jim also loves children every time the school children come, he doesn’t allow anyone to sit around him because that’s for the kids who are coming and they need to sit around him.”
Although Kiran plans and organises events of different kinds each month, like having a petting zoo, she said marking the centenaries of four residents, “that’s a different type of satisfaction”.
