100-year-old care home residents' secret to age is love of football star David Beckham

A great-great grandmother who has recently celebrated her 100th birthday at a Preston care home has put the secret to her old age down to cheese, crackers and David Beckham.
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She gets to look at David Beckham every day with the calendar of him she has on her bedroom wall.

Rosena Garner was able to enjoy her birthday celebrations at Brookside Care Home in Bamber Bridge on April 4 and was delighted to receive more than 130 cards on her special day.

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Rosena, who was born in 1921 near Allonby in Cumbria, was a manager in the Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes.

Rosena Garner was able to enjoy her birthday celebrations at Brookside Care Home in Bamber Bridge on April 4Rosena Garner was able to enjoy her birthday celebrations at Brookside Care Home in Bamber Bridge on April 4
Rosena Garner was able to enjoy her birthday celebrations at Brookside Care Home in Bamber Bridge on April 4

She met her late husband Frank when she was working in the Navy during the second world war and married him in 1943.

Jo Maxwell, the activities coordinator at Brookside Care Home, said: “Despite lockdown restrictions, we wanted to make every effort to make Rosena’s birthday as special as we could.

“We celebrated her birthday with a party at the home and all enjoyed the day. She was up dancing and we talked all about 1921, the year she was born.

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“We talked about what was popular back in the day and reflected on the music. Her family sent us in a lovely resume of her life that I read out and we found out so much about her life that we didn’t know. We danced, listened to music and enjoyed a tea party.

Staff danced to music from the 1920s to celebrate her 100th birthdayStaff danced to music from the 1920s to celebrate her 100th birthday
Staff danced to music from the 1920s to celebrate her 100th birthday

“We asked people to send in cards on social media and we lost count of how many cards she got at 130, and she was lucky enough to get one from the Mayor of Chorley.

“Her secret to a long life is her love of cheese and crackers - and David Beckham! She has a David Beckham calendar in her room.”

Rosena has three children, is a grandmother, great-grandmother and great-great-grandmother to many, with her family bringing her a cake and seeing her through a window on her special day.

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And on the same day, the Bamber bridge care home celebrated 30 years of service from another member of staff.

Rosena received more than 130 cards on her birthdayRosena received more than 130 cards on her birthday
Rosena received more than 130 cards on her birthday

Brookside care home is among the few residential homes that can boast zero transmissions of Covid-19 since the start of the pandemic with strict measures implemented by manager Louise Newton to protect the residents.

All residents at Brookside had received their first jab by the end of January.

Manager Louise said: “The past year has been exhausting and worrying for us, but we have been very strict with meeting guidelines and abiding by the rules to keep staff and residents safe.”

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