Diana Carver celebrates centenary at Salvation Army’s Holt House

Holt House Resident Diana Carver, 100 today, meets the mayor of Bury, Councillor Sharon Briggs

One of the residents of The Salvation Army’s Older People’s Service in Prestwich, Holt House, turns 100 years old today with a party, buffet and celebration in her honour at the centre.

Mrs Diana Carver, who was born in Vancouver, Canada, in 1914, moved to England when she was eight years old and lived in Southport, St. Helens, Weston-Super-Mare, and Marple before retiring in Knutsford in 1980. The only girl in a five-child family, she had four brothers – Dudley, Philip, Jack and Dick.

Diana was involved in the caring professions for much of her employed life – working with mothers and babies in maternity homes before moving into the Ministry of Pensions in Liverpool . It’s a trait which has been handed down to her children – her son is a doctor and one of her daughters have been involved in the caring profession – all of her four children have families of their own and have carried on Diana’s lifelong commitment to Christianity.

Gill, Diana’s daughter, explains further, “I was one of four children – but mum was very committed to the call of God in her life and what she did in her ministry, so a lot of her energy went into that. In many respects, that commitment to faith and her desire to be close to God is what motivates her, even now.”

She continues, “There is longevity in the family – Mum’s father, my Grandfather, was 98 when he died, but it’s amazing when you think of the changes that Mum will have seen over the past century. To reach three figures is quite wonderful.”

Diana has had a long and fulfilling life – enjoying playing tennis when she was younger and cycling until just a few years ago, she also enjoyed a happy marriage to her husband Arthur. Tying the knot on June 15th, 1943, they were married for 63 years, with Diana sadly becoming widowed in July 2006.

Gill is looking forward to celebrating her mother’s birthday in style at Holt House, which, as with all of the Older People’s Services of The Salvation Army, prides itself on being a well-maintained, resourceful centre which is there to provide first-rate care for elderly vulnerable people. Recently the Centre was inspected by the Care Quality Commission, meeting all of their standards for quality care.

One extract from the CQC report reads, “The atmosphere was calm and relaxed. People were complimentary about the staff team. They said staff were, "very good," "the staff are great," "they are kind" and the "staff are brilliant".

Gill agrees with this assessment; “Mum has been well cared for, there’s no doubt about it. She loves it there and is very settled. It’s been a very easy atmosphere for her to live in and there’s a family feel to the place – it’s as far from institutional as you can get, it’s a very warm and loving place to be.”