By Grace Frost
Famie ‘Fay’ Boyd Coff celebrated her 100th birthday last Tuesday, surrounded by friends, family, residents and staff at Kilmore’s Caladenia Nursing Home.
The special birthday was marked by a celebratory afternoon tea, the table adorned in high-tea decor, a gift table piled with bunches of flowers and homemade presents, while pink and purple balloons surrounded Ms Coff at the head of the table.
The nursing home was filled to the brim with emotions, many holding back tears as they spoke of Ms Coff’s character, while others chuckled as she exclaimed ‘cheese’ while smiling for photos with family.
Family and staff spoke highly of Ms Coff’s joy and quick wit, which were evident in her birthday speech.
“Some I have known a long time, some I have known a very long time and I would like to say thank you very much for coming,” she said.
“I really feel thrilled to death,” she added, to which the room erupted in laughter.
Staff chuckled as they remarked back, saying ‘don’t do that’, and ‘I hope you’re not going to be thrilled to death’.
Ms Coff stood, showing off her new jumper embroidered with her birthdate and ‘100’, as she continued her speech.
“I hope you enjoyed yourselves and meet up with your friends as well,” she said.
“The food has been just lovely, and all I can say is … I can’t eat anymore.”
One of Ms Coff’s closest friends in the nursing home, Sheila Page, shared her deep love for her friend, with whom she was thankful to have grown closer since moving to a neighbouring room last year.
“Everybody’s so quiet and fine, I’m one of 12 kids so you had to be loud to be heard and that’s the way I am,” Ms Page said.
“Her and I just clicked.
“I get out of bed and I go in and say hello to her.
“We’re always together … She’s just like a sister, and I look after her. If she’s down, I’m down.”
When asked for one word to describe Ms Coff, Ms Page struggled to pick, and instead shared something more heartfelt.
“I love her. I love her to death,” she said with teary eyes.
Caladenia nurse Steph Elliott described the pair as ‘the naughty school kids’, always laughing and enjoying each other’s company, regularly playing card games, of which their favourite was poker.
Ms Coff was joined by her son, Andrew Coff, and daughter, Marlene Coff in celebration, her daughter helping her unwrap presents, holding up gifted knitted blankets and nightgowns for her mother to admire.
Marlene Coff spoke of her mother’s life with deep admiration.
Born October 4, 1922, she grew up on a farm in Oxley. Marlene described her as ‘a horse whisperer’ in her young age.
Ms Coff later moved to Melbourne where she worked for an American colonel at the Army barracks in St Kilda, and later at David Jones in accounting.
Ms Coff married and moved to Kilmore after living in Lilydale, when she and her husband purchased the green grocer and newsagency mixed business 70 years ago.
Marlene spoke in high regard of her parents, who worked hard to raise their children.
“Dad worked a permanent afternoon shift, he was an engineer at the Ford factory,” she said.
“Mum did the shop and paper round and all that sort of stuff until they sold it and they bought a house in … Powlett Street, Kilmore,
“[We] looked after dad at home. He was lucky enough to die at home in his own bed, and we were hoping that for mum, but the staff up here have been really wonderful so I’m very happy about that.
“As you can see, she’s always had a good sense of humour, even if she doesn’t know now because she does have some dementia, which is sad.”
Staff at the home wished Ms Coff the ‘biggest, safest, most amazing 100th birthday’ and thanked her for being part of their lives.
Ms Elliott beamed as she spoke of the joy Ms Coff brought to the nursing home, and said it was hard to believe she was 100.
“She joins in everything … you’d never ever hear her complain … she’s fit as a fiddle,” she said.
Ms Coff is one of the first 100-year-olds to celebrate the milestone without a letter from the Queen, but was hoping to receive a birthday letter from the new King.
