Lord-Lieutenant of Hertfordshire Presents Awards and Gifts at Willow Court

Mr. C and the Lord-Lieutenant

Robert Voss Esq CBE, His Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Hertfordshire visited Willow Court, our care home in Harpenden to present three residents with awards and gifts in celebration of their centenarian status. 

Doris Banyard (100), Norman Wearne (100) and Mr C (104) were met individually by the Lord-Lieutenant who was keen to talk with them to find out a little about their past histories. A ceremony was then held at which each of the three residents received their awards and gifts.

The first centenarian to receive an award was Mr. C, a decorated RAF pilot who spent 38 years in the service. He was awarded his Veterans Badge by the Lord-Lieutenant alongside a centenarian medal.

Doris Banyard, who experienced the Blitz first hand and who volunteered to perform soup runs to Londoners sheltering in the Underground then received a bouquet of flowers and a centenarian medal from the Lord-Lieutenant.

Finally Norman Wearne, who helped manufacture Spitfire Engines and who served in the Home Guard, received his centenarian medal and a book on the first 50 years of Wellworthy, the engine parts company he worked for during the war.

Each of the residents also received a personal card from the Lord-Lieutenant.

The presentation of the awards and gifts to the residents was a very touching occasion for everyone there including the friends and family of the three centenarians as well as Councillor Lisa Scriven, the Mayor of Harpenden, who was there to lend her support and to take part in the event.

Sarah Adlam, the manager at Willow Court said "Our three wonderful centenarians bring with them a rich and varied personal history and it has been a privilege to welcome them into our family here at Willow Court. It’s such an honour and a pleasure to help take care of them, alongside their own families. We’re grateful to each one of them for their willingness to share their lives with us, both here in the present day, and by taking us back into the past through the sharing of their past experiences and achievements."