by Julie Ryan

Jean Eva Aiken( née Broadribb) marked her 100th journey around the sun with a joyful celebration among family and friends at the Fitzgerald Care Facility in Richmond this March.

Jean’ s daughter, Joy, expressed her heartfelt appreciation for the care her mother has received since moving into the facility.

“ The love and wonderful care she receives from the staff on a daily basis has, I’ m sure, contributed greatly to her continued good health— both in body and mind. I have nothing but gratitude towards this facility and its invaluable staff,” Joy said.

Jean was born in Portland, near Lithgow, on 11 March 1925. The family later moved to a farm in Glossodia and, in 1928, relocated again to a larger property in Maroota, where they cultivated fruit and vegetables.

In 1933, Jean’ s mother, Alice, passed away, and Jean was placed in part-time care with a neighbouring family.

Due to the lack of bus services in the area, Jean began working on local farms after completing primary school. At the age of seventeen, she

claimed to be eighteen in order to join the Voluntary Aid Detachment( VAD), serving as a nurse at Hawkesbury Hospital and the RAAF base hospital until the end of the Second World War.

After the war, Jean returned to farming, where she met her future husband, Sydney Aiken. They married in 1948 and moved back to her father’ s farm in Maroota to continue the work she loved. Jean particularly enjoyed the weekly dance evenings held in local halls.

Jean and Sydney had two children while living in Maroota: Bill, born in 1949, and Joyce( Joy), born in 1951.

Around 1955, the family moved to Windsor to access better schooling opportunities for the children. Syd returned to his trade as a plumber, while Jean became actively involved in volunteering. She joined the Country Women’ s Association( CWA) and the Red Cross, with one of her key roles involving

visits to hospital patients. She also began attending St Matthew’ s Church— conveniently located at the top of her street— and took on various volunteer roles within the church. Jean remained a devoted member of the congregation well into her early nineties.

Tennis and gardening were two of Jean’ s great passions.

In the late 1960s, financial pressures prompted Jean to seek employment, and she began working at Dowidat, a company in North Richmond.

In April 1972, her husband passed away. Jean continued working until the company eventually closed, at which point she decided it was the right time to retire. Around this time, she caught the travel bug and took several trips to New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. Old-time dancing with her tennis friends became another cherished social activity.

Jean resumed her volunteer work, once again visiting hospital patients on behalf of the church— a role she continued well into her eighties. She also began delivering Meals on Wheels with a close friend. When her friend retired, Jean joined her daughter Joy on her delivery route. She has now notched up over 35 years of service( though she’ s long since lost count) and still continues.

Jean also joined a walking group and travelled extensively around Australia,

where“ hugging a tree” became a signature moment on each trip. She later took part in organised bus tours, discovering more of the country and making new friends along the way.

Remarkably, despite all her volunteer and social commitments, Jean’ s garden never suffered— in fact, it flourished as she grew older.

Jean is proud to be the matriarch of a large family, with five grandchildren and twelve great-grandchildren( and counting).