01/08/2025
Poole care home encourages community to send former Wren 100 surprise birthday cards
A Poole care home is encouraging the community to send birthday cards to a former Wren celebrating her 100th birthday.
Kathleen, who lives at Elizabeth House, on Dolbery Road, will enjoy a party with her friends and some special guests at the care home to mark her 100th birthday on Saturday 30 August.
In June, Kathleen enjoyed a surprise reunion with her friends from the Bournemouth Wrens Association to mark the 81st anniversary of D-Day. Being joined by Val, Polly, Pat, Jackie and Tricia ‘filled my heart with so much joy and love’, Kathleen said at the time.
Kathleen joined the Women’s Royal Naval Service (Wrens) at the age of 18 in June 1944, the same month as D-Day, which saw the largest seaborne invasion in history and the beginning of the liberation of Western Europe. She was given the role of a bomb range marker, which involved monitoring targets and charting parachutes released from a plane.
Now her care home is hoping that the community will support their idea to surprise Kathleen in the lead-up to her centenary celebrations with 100 birthday cards.
Claudia Carvell, Home Manager at Elizabeth House, said: “Kathleen completed her military service for her country, so we feel that it’s only right that we give something back to her on her 100th birthday. We would love the community to reach out and show Kathleen what an incredible lady she is. She has a brilliant sense of humour so we are hoping that some people might also include a silly joke in their cards.”
Birthday cards should be sent to: Kathleen, Elizabeth House, Dolbery Road South, Poole, BH12 4PX
Kathleen left the Wrens in July 1946 after meeting her late husband, Peter, who flew in a Blenheim Bomber during the Second World War. They later moved to Upton in Poole where they welcomed their son Tim.
Originally formed in 1917 during the First World War, the Wrens were disbanded in 1919, before being reformed in 1939 at the beginning of the Second World War. The service was fully disbanded in 1993 when it became fully integrated into the Royal Navy.
Elizabeth House, which is part of the Care South family of care homes, provides residential, respite, and dementia care. It features a dedicated activities team who organise a daily programme of events to bring residents together to socialise and build friendships.
Care South is a leading provider of high quality residential and home care services across the south of England. The not-for-profit organisation, which is a registered charity, has care homes in Dorset, north Devon and Somerset, and care at offices covering Dorset and Somerset.
For more information about the care services available, go to care-south.co.uk or call Care South on 01202 712410.
