There was a special day this week for one of Waterford Residential Care Centre’s lady residents, as she celebrated her 100th birthday.
Staff at the Centre where Mrs. Pamela Bankes is cared for were joined by her son Dr. Nicholas Bankes and his wife Nina and friends to mark the occasion.
The HSE/South East Community Healthcare’s Director of Nursing in Waterford Residential Care Centre Barry Power welcomed everyone present and wished Pamela a Happy Birthday, adding:
“We take great pride in looking after people here at Waterford Residential Care Centre and we get great support from the public in doing so.”
“Throughout this past Century, we have witnessed remarkable changes to all aspects of our lives. In many ways, the world we live in today would have been unimaginable on the day of Pamela’s birth.”
“Pamela is a great advertisement for being 100! It has been a pleasure to look after Pamela and we were delighted to be able to facilitate this occasion.”
Pamela Bankes was born in Liverpool in 1924. When Pamela was 18 years old, she joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) – known as the “Women’s Army” during World War II. It was during this time that she met her husband Gordan, who was serving as a captain in the armed forces and they were married whilst the War continued.
Gordan later became a school teacher, whilst Pamela also taught in schools alongside him. They had three sons together, Michael (RIP), Nicholas and Joanty. When the children were born, Pamela gave up her job and afterwards did some teaching for secondary school children with special needs. When Gordan retired, the family relocated to London.
Their son Nicholas moved to Ireland in 2002. Pamela followed a few years later in 2009, after Gordan had passed away. Pamela lived in South Parade, Waterford before moving to Waterford Residential Care Centre, where she has been a resident since 2021.
Pamela leads a full life and has a great love of music and art.
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