At Regis Cranbourne in Victoria, Nola is known for her friendly, positive nature and colourful outfits. She is always up for a chat with fellow residents, employees and visiting family members. In fact, her interest in others is what led to her colourful hair and matching outfits.
“Spraying colour on my hair is something I’ve done only since I’ve been at Regis, as I was inspired by a co-resident’s daughter. She has purple hair and showed me how I could colour my hair myself,” she said.
Nola has always been creative and matching her hair to her clothes is just the latest outlet. Throughout her life, she’s enjoyed painting, various crafts, dressmaking and crochet. Nola can always be found joining in the craft activities at Regis Cranbourne and says they continue to inspire her to create.
“I love keeping busy and doing things I enjoy that give me purpose and are fun. I love craft because it is creative and then I’m proud of what I’ve made,” Nola added.
When she was younger, Nola’s favourite things to do were dressmaking and going to dances, which is where she met her first husband, Alan. She says her family is her greatest pride, and she has two granddaughters and two great grandsons.
Nola will be celebrating her 92nd birthday this year, on Christmas Day. Whilst some would dread the idea of sharing their birthday with the holiday, Nola loves it.
“I have always loved having a birthday on Christmas day as it is such a special day of the year,” she said.
“My mum always gave me two gifts on this day; one for Christmas and one for my birthday. I still feel lucky that my birthday is on Christmas day as it’s an extra special day.”
Nola’s positivity is infectious and she credits this attitude for her long life.
“The secret to living to 90 is living a good life, staying positive and happy and being open to new experiences.”
