Fareham care home resident reveals secret to a long life on his 102nd birthday

 

A 102-year-old Fareham care home resident has revealed his secret to living a long and happy life – “Keep fit and be thankful.”

Jeffrey Broadhurst is a resident at Care UK’s Parker Meadows on Redlands Lane and has shared his wisdom to mark his 102^nd birthday, while celebrating with those nearest and dearest to him.  

To mark Jeffrey’s milestone birthday, a special celebration was organised by the team at Parker Meadows, complete with a visit from the Collingwood royal marine band who played for him at the home, along with 10 veterans who stayed for an afternoon tea prepared by the home’s head chef. 

Jeffrey was born on 7^th January 1923 in Abertysswg, Monmouthshire, and grew up in Wolverhampton. Throughout his life, Jeffrey ventured into multiple careers after leaving school at 14 and having a short spell doing office work. He initially trained in butchery, before joining the army commando during WWII, where he then transferred to the Royal Marines when 40 Commando formed, and was active in operations in Italy, the Greek Islands and Albania.

After the war, Jeffrey entered agricultural college and pursued a career in dairy and pig farming, progressing to positions of farm manager and partner.. 

Jeffrey met his wife Dorothy in 1944 at a dance in Bournemouth and they married a year later, during the war, meaning that when he popped the question, he had to send her platinum diamond engagement ring through the post! Together, the pair had two children, Kay and Roy, who went on to bring three grandchildren into the family, and they all visit Jeffrey often at Parker Meadows. Jeffrey and Dorothy celebrated both their diamond and platinum wedding anniversaries.

In his spare time, Jeffrey was very active and enjoyed playing sports like water polo, cricket, football, and going swimming. He was also an avid reader, gardener, and would enjoy watching sports on the TV – something he still enjoys today! 

Jeffrey has lived at Parker Meadows since September 2016 and enjoys various activities in the home, including dancing and curling, and loves listening to audio books. 

He was thrilled to be surrounded by friends, family, and team members as they came together to celebrate his momentous birthday, and when asked for his advice on living a long and happy life, Jeffrey said it was all about “keeping fit” and “being thankful.”

Guy Morgan, Operations Support Manager at Parker Meadows, added: “We were so excited to celebrate such a joyous day with Jeffrey. As a much-loved resident at Parker Meadows, it was amazing to mark this tremendous milestone with him and hear his very good advice for living a long and happy life.

“Here at Parker Meadows, we centre everything we do around our ethos of ensuring residents live active and fulfilling lives – and Jeffrey’s 102^nd birthday celebration was no exception. It was lovely to see how happy he was to be surrounded by those closest to him on the day.

Designed to enable residents to live active and fulfilled lives, while also promoting independence, Parker Meadows incorporates plenty of space for hobby and leisure activities. The home provides full-time residential care, nursing care, dementia care and respite care, in addition to independent living bungalows on-site. The layout of the building is configured into a series of individual suites, each having a dedicated lounge and dining room to help facilitate the creation of close-knit communities.