An Eden man who has just celebrated his 100th birthday puts his long life down to a positive outlook, a sense of humour, good food and exercise and keeping an interest in current affairs.
To help celebrate his milestone, Alan Kershaw invited family, friends and neighbours to lunch at the Sandford Arms, near Appleby, on Saturday.
After the meal, Alan spoke for 40 minutes without any notes on his life experiences.
Born in Nottingham on October 6, 1922, he was the third child of Nellie and Horace Kershaw. Two more children followed. Bringing up a family in the Depression of the 1930s was hard for his parents, and when they could not afford to pay the rent, his grandparents helped to find them another home.
Alan was educated at High Pavement School in Nottingham, and, after moving to Derby, he won a scholarship to Bemrose School. His first employment was with the London Midland Scottish Railway company as a goods clerk, but just as he was offered promotion, he signed up to join the Royal Navy on his 18th birthday in 1940.
Alan trained to be a telegraphist air gunner in the Fleet Air Arm, and while at St Mirren, Cornwall, he took his first flight in a Fairey Swordfish, an open cockpit biplane nicknamed Stringbag.
Of all the planes in which he flew, the Fairey Swordfish holds a special affection in his heart. In 1945, Alan flew in an Avenger aircraft from the aircraft carrier, HMS Trumpeter, escorting the Arctic convoys to Murmansk. He took part in Operation Judgment Day, the final airstrike of the European war, on 4th May.
Recently, Alan was awarded the Ushakov Medal by the Russian government for his service to the Russian Arctic convoys. In 1947, while he was stationed at HMS Daedalus at Lee-on-Solent, Alan met a local girl, Peggy. They married and subsequently had two children, spending 58 years together, before she died in 2006.
They made their home in Derby, where Alan joined the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. At each promotion there was a move to a new town, and from Derby the family moved to Preston.
In 1969, Alan was moved to the newly formed North Pennines Rural Development Board, the office of which was in the old fever hospital at Ormside (now Wild Rose Caravan Park). Alan and Peggy made their home in Orton.
When the NPRDB was disbanded, Alan became the egg marketing inspector for Cumberland and Westmorland and visited many egg packing stations which no longer exist today.
His final promotion necessitated a move to Bristol, and, on retirement, he and Peggy sold their house, bought a new car and a caravan, and spent 18 months touring North America. They spent 11 years altogether living in a caravan, spending winters in Spain and Portugal, and summers in England. Five years ago, Alan moved to Brough to live closer to his family.
During the afternoon, a short video with photos of Alan and recorded messages from his sister, niece and nephews in Canada, relatives in Australia and his great-grandchildren was shown.
Due to the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Buckingham Palace is not sending out any congratulatory messages from the King at the moment. However, a message of congratulations on his 100th birthday, sent by the Russian ambassador, was read out.
