A Newbury veteran has celebrated her 100th birthday.
Mary Cholwill celebrated becoming a centenarian on May 22 with her family.
And has now received a card from King Charles to add to her growing collection.
“It’s been absolutely delightful, it really has,” said Mrs Cholwill.
“It was a beautiful day, seeing everybody and talking to them.
“We sat here chattering, and then I pressed my talking clock and it was 10 past one in the morning.
“By the time I got to bed, it was 2 o’clock.”
But her celebrations are not over yet.
Her family are hosting a gathering for her at the Fair Close Centre on Saturday (May 25) – which around 50 relatives are expected to attend.
They plan to organise a donation box for the Alzheimer’s Society, a cause close to Mrs Cholwill’s heart.
Her husband, Tom Cholwill, showed early symptoms of the disease before he died.
And how does she feel about turning 100?
“I don’t feel 100,” she added. “Sometimes when I get up first thing in the morning, I feel 99.
“But the days go by quite nicely.”
Mrs Cholwill – understood to be the oldest Second World War veteran in West Berkshire – plans to attend the 80th D-Day Anniversary Commemoration at 11am at Greenham Control Tower on June 6.
And she has also been made an honorary member of the Royal Artillery, which she served with during the war.
“It was so long ago, but it ought to be remembered,” she added.
Mrs Cholwill enlisted in November 1941 and completed her training in the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) at Aldermaston.
She was dispatched all over the country at just 17 years of age.
She served in the 2nd Search Light Regiment, Royal Artillery where she operated telephones and plotting boards, monitoring and coordinating artillery fire against incoming enemy aircraft.
Born in Reading, Mrs Cholwill moved to Spencers Wood with her family when she was six years old.
She has lived in Newbury for the past 20 years.
She has two sons, two grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
