GEORGE NEWS - Sunday 21 May was Florence Alexander's 103rd birthday. But, while she was uppermost in her family's thoughts on the day, they could not celebrate with her as she had sadly passed away mere weeks earlier.
She was one of the oldest residents of George.
Her eldest daughter, Betty Mason, took two of her mother's carers out for a special celebration on Monday.
According to Betty, it was evident from the condolence messages, calls and Facebook messages from the family, friends and neighbours that her mother was very well liked and highly thought of.
She was born 21 May 1920 and died of a stroke on 13 April 2023, five weeks and four days short of her 103rd birthday.
Apart from the birth of her eldest daughter in 1946 and a four-hour stint in the Mediclinic in 2019, Florence never spent any time in hospital, never broke a bone and had an amazing history of good health.
On the day before the stroke she still enjoyed a car drive to Herold's Bay and a game of Rummikub.
Florence moved from the Genevafontein village into its frail care unit in 2017 and used to attribute her continued good health to the wonderful care she received there, including the catering.
Added to her zest for life were her requests to go on drives at every opportunity. When asked what her secret to a long life was, she would say, "No smoking, no red meat and little to no drinking!"
When Florence celebrated her 99th birthday, Betty organised a big party with over 60 visitors at Genevafontein where everybody thoroughly enjoyed a slide show and a talk about her life.
"My mother and I both were of the opinion that a wake should be a celebration of life for the living, especially for the elderly or terminally ill, not after they have gone!" Betty said.
Florence is survived by two daughters, Betty and Francisca, two grandsons, Chris and Mark, and two great-grandsons, Liam and Russell.
Florence Alexander
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