The 100+ Club are Models of Healthy Ageing in Residential Care

A special kind of club has started up at The Lodge Lourdes Valley Residential Care.

The club is exclusively for residents who have reached the age of 100, and the Health and Wellness Team are using the club to encourage members to continue exercising and promote healthy ageing.

There are five founding members of the 100+ Club: Merridy Howie, the youngest member aged 100; Penny Halliday, aged 101; George Lower, aged 102; Margaret Llewelyn, aged 103; Doreen Bridges, aged an impressive 105 years old.

George visits the gym everyday at 3pm to keep his fitness, strength and balance up. Margaret and Merridy go for walks along the corridors, whereas Penny and Doreen prefer to exercise in their rooms.

As a group, the 100+ club comes together two or three times a week in the health and Wellness centre to go through their leg exercises in synchronisation.

Each of the 100+ club members agree there’s no secrets to how they have lived such long and fulfilling lives.

Exercise is clearly important, eating well and genetics are the other keys, but Doreen (who was a piano teacher and continues to play piano for the singing group) added that it helps to “do what you love”.

Staff have set up a ‘Hall of fame’ wall for those who reach 100, with their name and a picture, and everyone is keeping track of who will be next to join the wall.

All of our Residential Care homes encourage healthy, active ageing and each has a Health and Wellness Centre, for more information about the services on offer visit our Residential Care Services page.