110-year-old aged care resident Bridget swears by her daily tipple
Bridget Grocke, one of Australia’s oldest residents, has survived two World Wars, the Great Depression, the Space Race, the Global Financial Crisis, and the Information Age.
Amidst all the change, there has been one staple drink in her life lasting for the past six decades: a glass of Emu Export beer every single day.
Celebrating her 110th birthday at Bethanie Subiaco, in Jolimont, a western suburb of Perth, earlier this month, it was the celebratory tipple Bridget turned to rather than a slice of cake.
“If there was a whole heap of beer and I was asked which one is your favourite, I’d have to say this,” she said as she held a glass of bush chook in her hand.
“I’ve always known it. It tastes good.
“Cheers to Emu Export.”
Born in Leederville, Perth, on November 18, 1914, Bridget spent her early years in Kalgoorlie and moved all across WA as the family followed her father’s work as an engine driver.
She was the second eldest in a family of seven children and at the age of just 18, she took a brave step to move to Perth on her own.
She found work at David Jones, known as Aherns at the time, where her knack for fashion and connecting with customers made her a highly regarded staff member.
She raised four children with her husband, Jim, who she married at St Joseph’s Catholic Church in Subiaco in 1942.
Despite losing her husband in 1985 and two of her children, Bridget is surrounded by the love of her remaining son and daughter, 10 grandchildren, and 10 great grandchildren.
Bridget, 21, at Cottesloe Beach, Perth.
She continued to live independently at her home in Doubleview until the age of 109 when she took up residence at Bethanie Subiaco.
Other than a red can a day, she attributed her long life to her loving family.
Bridget’s daughter Jan Robertson said her mother’s adventurous spirit and loving family had kept her young at heart.
“Mum was very easy going and she was strict, of course, but she always gave you the right path,” she said.
“She has always been well. The only thing she got done was her cataracts at 100, before that she hadn’t been in hospital since childbirth.”
