Kingsley: Meath Care’s oldest resident celebrates 105th birthday

MEATH Care in Kingsley’s oldest resident Ruby Roberts celebrated her 105th birthday on July 31.

She welcomed visitors, had afternoon tea with fellow residents and staff and had an evening meal with her family to celebrate her big day.

Mrs Roberts was born in WA on July 31, 1913, and still recalls her life with amazing clarity.

She spent her early years in North Perth and Bayswater before starting work at 14 as a house cleaner for a family near Kings Park for “seven shillings and sixpence a week and my keep”.

Her varied working life also included store work at Boans in central Perth and waitressing in Southern Cross, Merredin and Perth.

“The Gold Rush was on when I was in Southern Cross and the place came to life,” she said of her time working at the town’s Railway Hotel.

Her first husband Thomas Butler died in World War II.

She met second husband Len Roberts, a boilermaker, at the Embassy Ballroom and they settled in the northern coastal suburbs.

He died several years ago.

Mrs Roberts moved to Meath Care in Kingsley in 2009, where she enjoys concerts, watching the news on television and family visits.