When Clarice Deutscher was five years old, her mother had to go to hospital in Horsham to have a tumour removed.
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Her grandfather had a car, but in those days people never drove to Horsham from Minyip, where the family lived, so instead they drove to Murtoa and caught the train to visit the hospital.
On Thursday, the Sunyside Lutheran Retirement Village resident will turn 100, and may need to use video conferencing to celebrate with her family, a measure of how much the world has changed in her lifetime.
Mrs Deutscher is the daughter of Ernst and Minna Niewand, the latter of whom also lived to be 100.
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Her son Daryl, who owns the turkey farm at Dadswells Bridge, said Mrs Deutscher went to school at Kirchheim, a Lutheran church on a hill behind Minyip.
"She was baptised there, she was married there and she says she wants to have her funeral there," he said.
"Mum was a mother to all of us, and supported Dad on the farm there. She loves to garden and has never lost her sense of humour."
Mrs Deutscher married grain farmer Clarence, who passed away in 2017 after they spent 71 years together. Together they began a family of five children, 14 grandchildren and 18 great grandchildren.
"Mum and Dad did a lot of ballroom dancing in their time, probably around their 60s they got into it and travelled many places to do it," Daryl said.
"When she was 93 she won patron of the ball at a ball in Horsham. She had a lot of lovely ballgowns which are now in display cases at Woods Museum in Rupanyup, where they lived for about 65 years."
Daryl said the family had been racking its brains about how to celebrate Mrs Deutscher's milestone within the COVID-19 restrictions on aged care visits.
"We are trying to decide what to do to have a get together," he said.
Department of Health and Human Services guidelines dictate that all members of a single household can visit an aged care resident for up to two hours per day. Up to 10 people can gather outdoors, not including infants under one year old.
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Alexander Darling
Alexander has been a member of the Wimmera Mail-Times' editorial team since December 2018, covering politics, business and property among other rounds. He is a passionate St.Kilda and rock and roll fan, and has previously worked as a radio reporter in Port Macquarie and Gosford, NSW.
Alexander has been a member of the Wimmera Mail-Times' editorial team since December 2018, covering politics, business and property among other rounds. He is a passionate St.Kilda and rock and roll fan, and has previously worked as a radio reporter in Port Macquarie and Gosford, NSW.
