A SURPRISE gathering of some 20 family and friends helped Minehead resident Maisie Reynolds celebrate her 100th birthday at the town's Northfield Hotel last Friday.

Mrs Reynolds moved to Minehead six years ago at the age of 94 to be nearer her daughter Doreen Wring, and the pair now have adjoining flats.

Born in Sunderland, Mrs Reynolds worked in the linen and fancy goods department of a large furniture store there and rose through the ranks to become head salesperson.

She gave up the role when she moved to London to live with her future husband George's parents in Eltham.

The couple married in 1934 when George was serving in the RAF in Kent.

The couple had two daughters, Joan and Doreen, who were born in Eltham, and a third daughter, Ann, who was born in 1941 when Mr Reynolds was transferred to the Air Ministry in Carlisle just before the outbreak of the Second World War.

During the war years, with a young family to care for, Mrs Reynolds did smocking work at home.

In later years, she helped her husband in his work as a lay reader in charge of the Mission to Seamen in Avonmouth, Bristol.

She helped with the hospitality and entertainment of officers and remembers it fondly as a busy and lively period of her life.

Sadly, it came to an end when her husband tragically died in 1965, leaving her a widow at the age of 52. She never remarried.

Mrs Reynolds retained an active interest in needlework and made both her own and her children's clothes, as well as toys for her seven grandchildren.

She was also very adept at knitting and crochet and would have loved to have been a dress designer in her younger days.

Today, she also has ten great grandchildren to keep her busy and they helped her celebrate her day with a special flower arrangement, while other family members gave her chocolates, an album commemorating her life and a bottle of her favourite alcoholic tipple!

Photo: Steve Guscott