At 102, Littlehampton’s Evelyn shows how to age gracefully

All those sitting down to watch excited Evelyn Alexander celebrating her 102nd birthday would never have guessed she had reached such an impressive milestone.

Staff at the Regency Court Nursing Centre, in South Terrace, where Evelyn has been a resident for the past three years, said she was 
still as sprightly and cheeky as ever.

Janet Gordon, of the Bupa-run home, said: “Evelyn is remarkable for her age.

“She is still keeping well and bright and enjoys having people around.

“She is a much-loved woman and a real character at Regency Court.

“She still reads her newspaper, aloud, from front to back every day and watches television with the subtitles on.

“She is still very much with it.

“So it’s a pleasure for us to celebrate her 102nd birthday with her.”

Evelyn was born in Darlington, in 1911, and has seen the reigns of four monarchs.

During her youth, she trained as a district nurse in Darlington, eventually becoming matron of a cottage hospital.

She married when she was 40, becoming a step-mother of four children, before moving to Littlehampton about 20 years ago.

This is the third time widow Evelyn has received a message from the Queen, congratulating her on her longevity.

Janet added that Evelyn had hinted the secret to a long life was to keep up-to-date with what’s going on in the world.

Staff at the nursing home are now looking forward to celebrating Evelyn’s 103rd, on May 22, 2014.