Harrow care home resident shares secret to a long life on her 100th birthday

 

A resident at a care home in Harrow has celebrated her 100^th birthday with a very special celebration.

The team at Care UK’s Buchanan Court, on Sudbury Hill, pulled out all the stops for Ethel Luck who turned 100 years ‘young’ on 3^rd October. The home was decorated with balloons, banners and a special birthday cake made by the home’s Head Chef, which she enjoyed surrounded by her family and friends.

Commenting on her secret to reaching 100 years old, Ethel said: “Get active and stay positive!”

Ethel was born at home in a basement flat in 1924 in Agar Grove – behind St Pancras Station, where her father worked. During World War Two, when she was 15, Ethel was evacuated to Western-super-Mare with her three younger brothers to avoid the bombings in Camden.

When she returned to London she trained as a shorthand typist and worked at the British Drug Company until the war ended. Ethel then went on to work KIGU, producing jewellery and compacts. 

While working at KIGU, Ethel met Harry Luck, a cabinet maker, and they hit it off – quickly becoming an item. The pair got married on Christmas Eve in 1949 at St Paul’s Church. Over the next six years, the couple lived in three attic rooms all in West Hampstead, before moving into their first flat in Harlsean. Eventually, the couple settled in a house in Barnet, where they raised their two children, Anne and Jackie.

Ethel has always been very active, taking up ballroom dancing and ice skating in her younger years, she also has a passion for swimming, but only in the sea, never indoors. Keen to spend time near the coast, her family often travelled to Herne Bay in Kent so she could swim in the sea. Once Ethel and Harry moved into their house, she picked up gardening as well as baking, particularly enjoying baking scones and fruitcake for her grandchildren.

Esther Oluwatosin Adams, Home Manager at Buchanan Court, said: “Ethel is a much-loved resident at Buchanan Court, and it was fantastic to help her celebrate this incredible milestone with her friends and family. 

“Here at Buchanan Court, we are committed to helping residents live active and fulfilling lives, so we love to celebrate incredible milestones – and Ethel’s 100^th birthday is no exception. It was lovely to raise a glass together on her special day with her extended family here at Buchanan Court. Happy birthday Ethel!”

Buchanan Court provides full-time residential and dementia care, as well as short-term respite care. Designed to enable its residents to live enjoyable and fulfilling lives, the care home has its very own bar and hair salon, and there is plenty of space both in and outdoors for relaxation and recreation.