Party in Fortrose for Eilean Dubh care home resident as he celebrates 100th birthday with Black Isle bash and greetings from The King
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A BLACK ISLE care home resident received a Royal seal of approval as he celebrated his 100th birthday last week.
Eilean Dubh care home resident Louis "Lou" McKenna was joined by family and friends as he marked the milestone.
He was delighted to welcome the Lord Lieutenant of Ross and Cromarty Joanie Whiteford bearing a card from The King and The Queen Consort.
Lou’s son Gordon said: “Lou’s 100th birthday was a very special day for him. His family and friends gathered, celebrating with champagne and canapés. There were cards wishing him well and The Lord Lieutenant of Ross and Cromarty attended the celebration and presented him with his card from The King and The Queen Consort.
“There were two wonderful cakes, one decorated with an Army tank and a map of Italy and Sicily. Lou loves cake! It was a lovely event to celebrate a very special birthday of a most modest man.”
Lou was born in Govanhill, Glasgow in November 1922. He was the only child of John Louis and Mary. As a young boy he spent his holidays on Rothesay with his cousins, attended school in Queens Park and supported Third Lanark FC.
In 1942, aged 19, he joined the Army, doing his basic training at Catterick. As a sapper in the Royal Engineers he was active in the North Africa campaign, landing in the east of Algeria before advancing with the Armoured Vehicle Royal Engineers to Bizerte in 1942.
In July/August 1943 he was part of the 8th Army invasion force of Sicily as part of Operation Husky. Latterly, he participated in action around Monte Cassino, advancing with Allied forces up the east of Italy and ending the war as a Sergeant near Bologna.
He learnt to ski in Cortina d'Ampezzo in northern Italy and briefly enrolled at Padua University after VE Day and retained a lifetime love of Italy and Italian culture, opera, food and language.
Mrs Whiteford said: "It was a great pleasure to meet Louis and his family yesterday. His memories of serving for his country in Sicily were so clear and his stories fascinating, I really enjoyed meeting him.
"My thanks to Jackie from Eilean Dubh for inviting me, I am always delighted to meet this special generation of Centenarians."
Eilean Dubh's acting manager, Jackie Macrae, said Lou had a lovely day
She added: "He was so excited, he never slept the night before. Meeting the Lord Lieutenant made his day.
"He just had a great day, all his family was there and he had two cakes."
After the War, he joined the General Post Office and married Charlotte Ruth Gardiner in 1955. They had two sons – one a doctor, the other a senior policeman with the Metropolitan Police. Both are now retired. Lou had six grandchildren (one sadly deceased) and four great grandchildren. Ruth sadly died in 1983.
He has been resident at Eilean Dubh since last year.
