A former cruise ship worker took to the water once again to help celebrate her 102nd birthday.
Joan Owen, who lives at Colten Care’s Brook View care home in West Moors, Dorset, travelled to Southampton for a harbour tour accompanied by four fellow residents.
After arriving by minibus, the party went on board the Alison MacGregor, a purpose-built boat operated by the charity Solent Dolphin that provides trips for elderly and disabled passengers.
The visit was especially meaningful for Joan, who worked for many years for Cunard, met her husband in Southampton and had expressed her wish to go on the water again to team members at Brook View.
As an early birthday surprise, Cunard had sent Joan a ‘Happy 102nd’ card along with words of thanks for her years of service.
Claudia Canosa, Brook View Companionship Team Leader, said: “We deliberately held off giving her the card until she was aboard the Alison MacGregor and on the water, so it would be even more memorable for her.”
Born just outside Manchester in the summer of 1924, Joan said one of her earliest childhood memories was flower arranging with her mother.
As she grew up, she loved gardening, playing tennis and listening to music from the 1940s.
At Cunard, she ran an on-board shop selling luxury items.
Joan she was motivated each day by the splendour of the ship she worked on, the Queen Mary, and the sunshine during cruises on the high seas.
Asked what advice for life she would give younger generations, Joan said: “Be generous, don’t waste money, and do go to church.”
And if she could relive a day from her life, she said it would be to see her grandmother again for one last time.
