Celebration of a lifetime

Virginia Ross celebrated her 100th birthday on Tuesday October 20 at The Avenue

Retirement Hotel in Fish Hoek.

Ms Ross was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in America.

On a ship bound for Africa she met Archie Ross, of Scotland, whom she married 18 months later in what was then Northern Rhodesia. The couple served as missionaries there and had four children.

After 18 years they moved to Bulawayo, Southern Rhodesia, for a further 12 years and then on to Johannesburg before emigrating to California. She returned to South Africa with Archie after he had suffered a stroke and they settled in Cape Town where he died in 2005.

In her later years, she learnt to drive and use a cellphone and computer. She is active on Facebook. Her tip for longevity is: keep breathing.