Members of the Wandin Country Women’s Association (CWA) gathered on 14 September to celebrate the 100th birthday of lifelong member, Edna Parker.
Ms Parker has been a member of the Wandin CWA for 51 years, and during her time there, she’s left a legacy of kindness, wisdom and joy.
Wandin CWA president Lyndall Rowe spoke of Ms Parker’s personality and the influence she’s had on many over the years.
“She’s won a lot of hearts with her personality, she’s the happiest lady because she’s always given her heart to anybody who’s needed it.
“It’s just her whole manner towards everybody in the community and she’s a wonderful storyteller,” Ms Rowe said.
Ms Parker’s benevolent nature meant many saw her as an empathetic and caring person in the Wandin CWA.
She was born in Wandin and has fond memories of catching the train or riding her bike from Wandin to Lilydale, to her first job at Hutchinsons Produce Store in Lilydale.
Now, she still lives independently in the villa she moved into 25 years ago at Tudor Village in Lilydale.
Ms Rowe said Ms Parker was still full of adventure and youth, with Ms Parker recently catching a bus to the Shrine of Remembrance for a walking tour.
“She’s always been very active socially and she’s a very outgoing, fun-loving lady.
“She loved partying, loved dancing, and she’s carried that on.
“She always loved being involved in any excursions or bus trips that would occur and she was always first on the bus for those,” Ms Rowe said.
She met her partner Robert Parker and married in 1946 and had three children, their eldest boy Ian, and two girls, Adrienne and Nancy.
Mr Parker sadly passed away in 1997 and that’s when Ms Parker moved to her home in Tudor Village.
Casey MP Aaron Violi and Evelyn MP Bridget Vallence also attended Ms Parker’s celebratory afternoon tea.
Ms Parker has lived through some of the most significant, era-defining moments of the 20th and 21st century.
She has lived through World War Two, witnessed the proliferation of family-owned cars and the introduction of colour television. She’s seen the personal computer become commonplace, and the mobile phone go from the size of a brick to a slim rectangle.
“The changes in the world and what she has seen come through, that must be just mind bending for somebody of that age,” Ms Rowe said.
After all these years, Ms Parker said in an article in the Lilydale Star Mail that she’s still sharper than ever.
“I still cook for myself and until four years ago I was still able to drive. Now my daughter Nancy does my shopping for me, or Ian takes me to the shops then we go to the marketplace for lunch,” said Ms Parker.
