Family surprise and a piper for Lindfield woman’s 100th birthday

A 100-year-old woman has celebrated her birthday with a piper, a family visit and a card from the Queen.
Peggy Chinnock SUS-210218-143832001Peggy Chinnock SUS-210218-143832001
Peggy Chinnock SUS-210218-143832001

Jacquie Ferguson, manager of Walstead Place Care Home in Lindfield where Peggy Chinnock has lived for 12 years, said Peggy woke up on her birthday to an array of cards and flowers.

She said: “Peggy has a wonderful smile which comes across her face – when people say someone smiles with their eyes that’s our Peggy.

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“To reach 100 years of age is a marvellous milestone and we were delighted to have the pleasure of sharing it with her.”

The team made a special place for Peggy near the bay window decorated with balloons, so she would be able to see her birthday surprise, her daughters Angela and Shelia, her son John and her daughter-in-law Teresa.

Jacqui said: “Her face lit up, she was able to wave to them through the window and was able to open her card from the Queen and she smiled so much when she saw the picture of the Queen and her name in the card.

“What she wasn’t prepared for was that she thought she could hear bagpipes.

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“Her family had organised a piper to play some lovely ballads and Happy Birthday.

“She had an amazing day and at the end of it all she just wanted a cup of tea and a slice of her cake and a walk around our beautiful garden which she loves.”

Peggy, who was born on February 15 1921, has four children and five grandchildren.

She says her faith, family and friends have always been important to her, increasingly so after she was widowed.

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She met her husband Bob, who she described as ‘my one and only’, around the time the Second World War broke out.

Peggy joined the Land Army and they married in 1945 once the war was over.

Peggy was widowed in 1984 but learned to drive and really enjoyed the freedom it gave her to visit friends and family.

Jacquie said: “Peggy is a lovely lady with a fierce in-built independence and doesn’t suffer fools gladly.

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“Nowadays Peggy prefers the quieter side of life and is happy to sit and watch the world go by.

“She does not let anything hold her back, if she gets a knock back she picks herself up with sheer determination and carries on.”

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