Elsie celebrates her happy 100th
“Hard work” is the key to longevity in life, according to Elsie Payne.
The Carinity Colthup Manor resident, a former farmer, is the latest member of Carinity’s ‘100 Club’ for centenarians after turning 100 years old on May 18. She celebrated the special milestone with a birthday party with family, friends, family, Colthup Manor staff and local MPs at Ipswich.
In a world with a population of more than seven billion people, Elsie is one of only an estimated 450,000 centenarians worldwide.
Elsie was born in a year that the world was at war and then finally at peace. During her life, she has seen man land on the moon, the invention of television and the advent of the computer age.
She was born at Rosewood Hospital to dairy farmers Marius and Esther Madsen, of Rosevale.
“As she grew up, she worked on the family farm along with her four brothers and six sisters. In her later teen years, she moved away from home and went to work for a family in Fernvale where she met her future husband,” Elsie’s son Colin Payne says.
In 1939, Elsie married Walter Payne and the couple had four children followed by eight grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren. In their early married life Elsie and Walter worked as share farmers before moving to Ipswich in the late-1940s, and they remained living in the district.
In 1991, Elsie won a competition to become Golden Oldie Queen of Ipswich, leading a street parade through the city. Her winning entry included a ‘wish for our country’ stating Elsie’s desire for “fair and just political views from all politicians throughout Australia” and “fair rights for the elderly.”
Elsie, whose husband died in 1981, moved to Carinity Colthup Manor seven years ago.
“One of Elsie’s passions in life is her knitting and over the years at Colthup Manor Elsie has continued her craft, including entering her creations into the local shows. Elsie has won numerous awards and championships and has also knitted teddy bears for the hospitals and the ambulance service to give to injured and sick children,” Carinity Colthup Manor Customer Service Coordinator Karen Birds says.
Thelma Wilson from Colthup Manor was inducted into Carinity’s ‘100 Club’ in August 2017.
