Special guests help 'lucky lady' Nellie from Dunstable celebrate her 100th birthday

In addition to congratulations from her family, she also received warm wishes from Cynthia Gresham DL, who presented her with a card from the Queen, and Dunstable’s deputy mayor Cllr Lisa Bird.

Her two VIP visitors stayed to chat and were enchanted to hear about Nellie’s long life and in particular her work as a volunteer at Oxfam and the L&D Hospital.

When she was well into her 90s, Birmingham-born Nellie received an award from the L&D recognising her 15 years of volunteering.

in her teens, she was actively involved in local church youth associations where she made a number of life-long friends.

After the war broke out she worked for Vickers Armstrong in Castle Bromwich where Spitfires were made.

And during the evenings Nellie played her part in keeping Birmingham safe by volunteering at a fire look-out post.

She says: “To this day I still shiver when I hear the sound of an air raid siren.”

Nellie married Luton lad Harold, who was with the RAF, in 1943 and they settled in Luton two years later. They moved to Evelyn Road in Dunstable where they brought up their two sons.

Harold was a specialist electrician and Nellie had several part-time clerical jobs. She attended evening classes at Dunstable College to learn to operate an early version of the calculator, known as a comptometer. She also worked at the College as an assistant in the training department.

When Harold retired they relocated to the Midlands so Nellie could be near some of her childhood friends. But when he died, Nellie returned to Dunstable to be closer to her growing family.

As well as her volunteering, she became an active member of Dunstable U3A.

Just before the pandemic, Nellie had a fall at home. She was in hospital for a couple of weeks and then moved to Dukeminster Court where she’s been for the last two years.

After her 100th birthday celebrations there, she was whisked away for a surprise party with three generations of her family and many of her friends.

She said: “I had a wonderful day and everybody looked after me so well. I feel like a very lucky lady.”