An Uddingston gran went a scoot down memory lane as she celebrated her 100th birthday.
Jessie Clark spent her holidays in her youth travelling the length and breadth of the UK with her husband John, with their camping gear balanced on the back of their beloved red Lambretta scooter.
So it was with sheer delight that she got the chance to toast her centenary year by climbing onboard an identical model brought into Rosepark Care Home as a special surprise for the Aberdeen-born birthday girl.
Kindly supplied by local ‘scooterist’, Callum Frew, 36 – nephew of Rosepark activities coordinator Annette Frew – Jessie beamed with delight at the sight of 1963 Lambretta Li 125, and she looked the part too in her red party dress, proving age is just a number.
Jessie said: “It was just wonderful. It brought back so many happy memories and really made my day.”
Callum added: “Her wee face lit up when she saw it. I was quite happy just to help a fellow scooter girl out.
“My aunt told me about Jessie’s trips and how she had her own red Lambretta back in the day, so it worked out perfectly for her that I basically have the same model.
“She was fit as a fiddle and once she got a wee hand up onto it, she was happy as could be.”
Born in Aberdeen on 4 July 1923, Jessie has lived an active lifestyle full of sport, games, travel and reading.
She grew up with a sister, and four brothers and a father who served in the armed forces during the First and Second World Wars. During the Second World War, Jessie contributed to the war effort by working as a weaver, fashioning white cloth that was used to make officers’ uniforms.
Following this, she worked at the prestigious Marischal College, providing silver service catering to the esteemed academics of Aberdeen University.
She married husband John in 1940 and, after the birth of the couple’s two daughters, the family settled down in Aberdeen, where Jessie worked in local schools, supporting children with learning disabilities.
However, the sporting theme continued to run in Jessie’s family when her two daughters went on to marry acclaimed sportsmen in Jim Pearson, former East Stirling, Morton and Aberdeen FC player, and Jim Kirkland, former Aberdeen FC and Grimsby Town player.
Following her husband’s passing in 1988, Jessie continued to live in Aberdeen before later moving to Uddingston to be closer to family, where her active lifestyle continued with frequent games of bowls at Bothwell Bowling Club.
Jessie moved into Renaissance Care’s Rosepark Care Home in January 2022 and happily toasted her centenary year with a few guilt-free sweet treats in the company of care home staff as well as her friends, family and loved ones.
When asked what the secret to a long and happy life was, Jessie said: “I think it’s just down to luck and looking after yourself. I’ve always prided myself on staying active.
"Even in my 70s and 80s I would walk between Uddingston and Hamilton every day. I had an aunt who lived to 104 and I want to beat her.”
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