An Encore Care Homes resident has danced her way into the ‘Hamble Heights Hundred Club’ as she celebrated her milestone 100th birthday.
Joan Mackenzie, who lives at Hamble Heights in Fareham, which is part of the Encore Care Homes family, became the first member of this year’s ‘Hamble Heights Hundred Club.’ Joan enjoyed dancing to a live musician with her fellow friends at the care home with a backdrop of a huge Happy 100 Birthday banner, followed by tea and cake with her son, Stuar,t and daughter, Gill.
Joan lived in her own home until she turned 99 when her family decided that she deserved to put her feet up and receive some TLC from the Hamble Heights team. Joan was 17 when she joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) and worked her work up to becoming a sergeant in the army. She remembers taking a group of her junior colleagues to a dance where the late performer Glen Miller was playing.
Joan later became a senior lecturer at college where she taught business studies. She has also travelled widely, with time spent living in Cairo, Austria, and Madrid as well as visiting her brother who lived in Sydney. Joan is a cherished grandmother to three grandchildren and three great-children. Despite being a centenarian, she still loves to exercise, enjoys choosing her clothing each day, and likes listening to talking books provided by the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) as she experiences some macular degeneration which affects her eyesight.
Vanessa Duggan, wellbeing manager at Hamble Heights, said: “We were absolutely thrilled to help our oldest resident, Joan, to celebrate her 100th birthday as the first of three residents who will join our Hamble Heights Hundred Club this year.
Vanessa added: “We are so lucky to have Joan at Hamble Heights as she is a fabulous friend to so many residents and our care staff. It was heart-warming to see Joan get on her feet and dance with the other residents who love the parties and events that we organise, as it’s a chance to get together and have some fun.”
