Mrs Inglis (nee Hogg) celebrated her 100th birthday in her home town of Waikouaiti yesterday.
Friends and family were by her side for the festivities and having everyone there was ‘‘pretty jolly good’’, Mrs Inglis said.
She has lived in the coastal township since 1988, living in the same home she built all those years ago.
‘‘It’s a lot easier than living in town side by side.
‘‘You’ve got a bit of room and you know all the neighbours.’’
She was born in Dunedin and attended Otago Girls’ High School before moving on to attend the Otago Business School.
After that it was off to Napier to work as a typist for Napier Motors. She did that for a number of years before she moved back to Dunedin to work at Wright Stephenson & Co. She stayed in that job until she and late husband Robert Inglis moved to the family farm in Warrington.
That was in 1950 and the couple lived there with their son and daughter until 1986.
The secret to her longevity was to keep her body active.
‘‘Get a stick and walk around as much as you can,’’ Mrs Inglis said, adding that walking when the weather was fine was preferable.
Throughout her life she played rugby, tennis, golf and basketball.
She fondly recalled the beginning of the widespread use of the telephone.
And although she still had not totally figured out smart-phones yet, they allowed her to keep in touch with her family and that pleased her.
Her daughter, Noeline Inglis, said she talked with her mother about reaching 100 and a lot of their discussions came back to the importance of community.
‘‘It’s such a wonderful community here in Waikouaiti,’’ her daughter said.
