Sheila Turns 100!

Sheila celebrated her 100th birthday with a huge party at Elmhurst Short Stay. Singing songs from the 50s and 60s, Divas in Denial generously provided the entertainment for free and afternoon tea was enjoyed by all, including the borough mayor, Sandra Walmsley. 

The mayor said: “We are delighted to be here this afternoon to celebrate Sheila’s 100th birthday with you all.

I did ask her what the secret was to such longevity, and she wouldn’t tell me so its top secret.

It’s wonderful to see everyone here to celebrate with Sheila.

On behalf of the metropolitan borough of Bury, I want to wish you many happy returns and on behalf of the King, I’m presenting you with the birthday card from him.”

Kim Taylor, activities coordinator, organised the party and said: “This is the first 100th birthday we’ve done, the past three days have just been non-stop planning this party.

It’s been really lovely and Sheila’s amazing, she’s been with us for a long time, she was at Spurr House, but they closed down and she’s the only full-time resident here as this is only a short stay service.

This party was a complete surprise to her, she knew she was having a bit of a do but didn’t know any of her friends were coming, but it’s been nice, and all the hard work has paid off."

Thank you to Zara Cakes for creating and donating a beautiful birthday cake.

Sheila has lived in Bury since she was young and was married to her husband Derek for 44 years until he sadly passed away a few years ago. They got married at Wood Street Methodist Church. She is a former women's air force member and has also worked in a Bury-based factory, creating felt hats.

Lots of her friends came to her birthday celebrations, who she and Derek used to go to Church with, and we heard from her friend Philip who said: "We were pleased that Sheila could spend some quality time with her family and friends in the conservatory before the main event began. We could see from how lovely the room looked, with the balloon and banners etc, that Kim had put in a lot of effort. Thank you to the cooks and catering staff for putting on a most excellent afternoon tea ‘feast’ of sandwiches and cakes, we really appreciated seeing and using the vintage crockery and cake stands. And thank you to Sheila’s fellow residents for accommodating the party of family and friends at your lunchtime and for joining in with the event and thanks to all the cleaning and caring staff for always keeping the home so clean and pleasant for Sheila and the other residents.

Happy Birthday Sheila!

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