Ivy Sanders active and loving life at 98

GEORGE NEWS - At age 98, Ivy Sanders is a vivacious woman whose days are full and interesting.

She recently contributed a batch of 135 jars of home-made jam to her church bazaar and baked her own birthday cakes for her 98th birthday on 16 April.

Sanders paints, does the odd bit of pot gardening, and knits and crochets blankets, bed socks and beanies for her grandchildren and great grandchildren. Her granddaughters receive a copy of a colourful, beautifully adorned, hand-written recipe book when they get engaged, and her grandsons each receive a painting. Just last year she finished a huge work of art.

Her many interests include sport. She used to play golf, tennis and bowls, and remains an avid spectator.

"Roger Federer is my pin-up, you see," she says, pointing to a photo of a young Federer on a side table. "My favourite soccer team is Man United."

A bookshelf filled with books stands in one corner of the lounge and she is an active member of the library.

At age 69 she began taking painting lessons, which she kept up until her move to George three years ago. "Flowers and wedding cakes are actually my thing. I used to win prizes for my baking.

"When I did the flowers and wedding cake for the then mayor of Johannesburg, the mayoress remarked that I should be able to paint if my flower arrangements were anything to go by. That was where the seed was planted."

Independent
She lives independently in her own flat on the premises of the Precious Life frail care facility. The owner, Eldri Havenga, has great admiration for Sanders's independence. "We so enjoy having Ivy here. She is such an inspiration."

Sanders still does her own shopping with the help of her daughter in George and a local taxi service that kindly provides a female driver who helps to carry her parcels. She was born in 1920 in Namibia, the second eldest of eight children. The family moved to Johannesburg when she was 12 and she lived there all her life, till she came to George. As a young woman she used to work as a private secretary.

"But I loved nursing, so after work I would be off to the Johannesburg general hospital to help out. I joined up as a nurse when the war broke out and served until it ended." She also nursed her husband for three years before he passed away 26 years ago.

Ivy Sanders wanted to know, why all the fuss of a newspaper article about her turning 98? It took some explaining that 98-year-olds are usually not quite as sprightly as she. Eldri Havenga (left) is the owner of Precious Life frail care and Elize Buitendag a nurse. Photo: Alida de Beer

Sanders also has a son in Johannesburg, a son in New Zealand and a daughter in Belgium. There are nine grandchildren and eleven great grandchildren. She does not shy away from flying, even long hauls overseas, to visit them.

Sanders believes in keeping an interest in all that life has to offer, including people. Her general health is good and she only takes a tablet for diabetes, which does not put her off enjoying a slice of cake.

"I recently had a fall while trying to pull a dress with a tight neckline over my head and got a bump above one eye.

"A scan showed that nothing was fractured, but apparently I have the brain of a 60-year-old," she laughs. "My doctor teases me and wants to know when I'm ever going to get sick."