Eileen Ramage celebrates her 100 birthday today March 6. On Thursday she went shopping for clothes at Value Village, her first outing in a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.--SUBMITTED PHOTO
A local woman turns 100 today, and after a year of not leaving her home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, she celebrated by going shopping.
Eileen Ramage wanted to spend $100 on clothes at Value Village, her son Bill explained.
“My mom has made it very clear that she has not been in a store in one year. That’s probably what she misses the most,” said Bill.
Eileen has already received two doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. Bill says he obtained written permission from the long-term-care home where she lives. She had to be properly masked and careful to use hand sanitizer going in and coming out.
“A big treat for her because we’ve been super careful,” said Bill.
A close friend of the family, Donna Robinson, took Eileen out shopping on Thursday.
Bill says his mom lived through the depression and understands the importance of saving money and that there is nothing wrong with buying used clothing.
On Friday morning what still lingered in Eileen’s memory from the shopping trip was the thrill of going outside and the spring-like weather.
“Oh, it was nice. Yesterday it was like summer. It was just too good to be true,” said Eileen.
Bill plays cribbage regularly with his mom and says she has won the last three games.
Eileen, born March 6, 1921 in Winnipeg, was the youngest of three girls in the Evans family. Her father was a stonemason often travelling to the U.S. for work and in the summer he etched grave stones closer to home.
“They grew up in a very small home on Parkview Avenue in Winnipeg,” said Bill.
She met Jack Ramage in Winnipeg and married him in June of 1946. Jack worked for Trans Canada Airlines and that led to the family moving to Montreal in 1959.
When Jack passed away in 2004, Eileen decided to move to Medicine Hat where Bill was living.
Bill says Eileen lived independently until 2015 when she had a “nasty fall” and ended up spending two months in hospital. After that she moved to Sunnyside Care Centre.
Eileen was a regular attendee at the Veiner Centre.
“My mom and I would play bridge at the Veiner Centre on Sunday afternoons right up until the pandemic hit, and of course they had to close the Veiner Centre down,” said Bill. “Sadly my mom’s not been able to play bridge since then.”
Kathryn Eaton and Eileen are part of a bridge group to play every Wednesday evening in Eaton’s home until March 11, 2020 when the pandemic brought an abrupt end to it all.
“She always left with a smile. We are all looking forward to getting together for bridge once again soon,” said Eaton.
Eileen is modest about her achievements and becoming a centenarian.
“I’m looking forward to a little party,” said Eileen with a little giggle. “I’m a lady of few words and my memory is not good so I struggle with names but I am doing pretty good.”
