Double celebration at Raunds care home as residents with combined age of 205 celebrate birthdays

(l-r) Ivy and Margaret celebrating their milestone birthdays

Happy birthday to Ivy and Margaret!

Two Raunds care home residents with a combined age of 205 are celebrating milestone birthdays.

Ivy Foot, who turned 103 on May 31, and Margaret Tirebuck, who turned 102 on June 7, both had parties at Ashfield House care home.

Ivy was a former mechanic in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force during the Second World War who worked on Spitfires, Wellington bombers and Rolls Royce engines.

The Mayor of Irthlingborough Cllr John Farrar with Mrs T's son Richard, pictured standing. Seated with Margaret is one of her friends, Fred

A resident at Ashfield House since 2015, Mrs Foot lived and grew up in East Ham, London, before moving to Raunds in 1990.

Margaret, a mother-of-three from Suffolk, also worked on aeroplanes – she used to put the rivets in the wings of Haviland Halifax Bombers.

She also had a lot of responsibility from the age of 14 after her mother passed away, meaning she had to dedicate her time to looking after her siblings and family.

The pair welcomed family and friends to their celebrations, which included cake, balloons and sharing fond memories.

Lizzie Plummer, manager of the care home run by Shaw healthcare, said: “Ivy and Margaret are two of our oldest residents. They are great personalities and often get involved with activities in the home.

“Margaret loves to knit and do crosswords on a daily basis, while Ivy said the secret to a long life is to stay active and work hard!

“We were really pleased to be able to put on such lovely celebrations for them both.”

Margaret – also known as Mrs T – also celebrated her birthday at Candocare Co-op CIC, a day centre for the elderly based in Irthlingborough Library,

She has attended Cando once a week since they opened in May 2014.

Candocare managing director Kathleen Meredith said: "We have loved having Margaret attend Cando, as with all our service users, and we couldn't pass the occasion over without celebrating her special day presenting her with a bouquet of flowers and balloon.

"It was great to have the mayor attend with Margaret's family and to be entertained by The Raunds Ukelele Orchestra. Mrs T is truly a remarkable lady and an inspiration to us all."