A former nurse and charity volunteer, Penrith’s Celia Cooper hit a special milestone this week when she celebrated her 100th birthday with family, friends and neighbours.
Celia, who now lives in Penrith, was a resident of Melmerby for about 20 years and the village holds a special place in her heart.
It was in the village hall at Melmerby that former neighbours and friends were set to gather with Celia’s family on Saturday (22nd) to mark her special day.
Born in 1924 in Fraserburgh, north east Scotland, Celia was in her teens when war broke out, and she went to train as a nurse in Aberdeen.
Her future husband, Jonathan (known as Jan), was in the Parachute Regiment and was injured in the days following the D-Day landings, as he and his platoon defended Pegasus Bridge.
He was sent to Aberdeen to recover from his wounds, where he was nursed by Celia and the pair were soon engaged and married.
The newlywed Celia then headed off to Brazil with her husband, where he worked as a manager on a citrus farm.
In 1953 they returned to the UK with their two young sons, Michael — who now lives in West Wales with his family — and Christopher, who along with his family now lives in Nottingham.
The ship docked in Liverpool and that is where Celia and Jan stayed, bringing up their children in a buzzing city, “just round the corner” from Paul McCartney’s home.
It was their dream to retire to the Lake District, and so they did, moving to Melmerby in 1982.
They stayed in the village for about 20 years, until Jan’s death in 2002, when Celia moved to Penrith.
Despite having reached her “century”, Celia remains an active part of the community in Penrith and gets into town whenever she can.
Until recently she was regularly attending Pilates classes, and is part of an informal art group.
She also attends Christ Church, in Penrith, when she can.
Having worked as a Marie Curie nurse during her career, she volunteered for many years in Penrith’s Hospice at Home shop.
Celia has a large and loving family. As well as her sons, Michael and Christopher, she has four grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
