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1 3 | Friday, F ebruary 1 7 , 2 0 1 7 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | w w w .insideH A LT O N .com Webb reflects on 105th birthday in her hometown by Nathan Howes Oakville Beaver Staff For Audrey Webb, Valentines Day this year was certainly a special occasion -- her 105th birthday. Born Audrey Aileen Leaver, the Oakville woman turned 105 on Tuesday, Feb. 14, with a celebration held Sunday at her retirement home. Webb's children, Susan Eskelin, John Webb and Wendy Janisse, joined her at the gathering to help mark it. "It' s the same as any other birthday. If you're well, you just go day-to-day, the same as ages 101, 102. If you're well, it's just another day," Webb, told the Oakville Beaver. Born in Toronto, Webb has lived most of her life in Oakville. When she moved here, her house, built by her father, was located on a farm on Winston Churchill Boulevard, just north of Lakeshore Road East. "The family lived in it until my mother died when she was in her 50s," said Webb. "My dad was in the city (Toronto). He went to get a job to get enough money to buy a farm. I figure he had enough money so we moved to Oakville." The senior recalled her dad taking her on the flatbed, pulled by a horse, to go pick strawberries. "Oakville is noted for strawberries, you know," Webb said. "My dad was a farmer. It was a fruit and vegetable farm ... that's what he grew." As a child, Webb attended Clarkson Public Audrey Webb turned 105 on Valentine's Day, Feb. 14, and her fam ily held a birthday party for her Feb. 12 a t her Oakville retirem ent home to celebrate the upcom ing milestone. Here, Audrey gets hugs and birthday cards from her children Susan Eskelin, left, John Webb and Wendy Janisse. | Graham Paine/M etroland School in Mississauga. The 105-year-old has been witness to many of the world's significant events including the Second World War and the Great Depression. Webb was in her late adolescent years and near the end of her high school term at Oakville Trafalgar High School. There wasn't much to do around the time she graduated, around 1930, she recalled. "In those days, there wasn't work. There wasn't anything to do for a person, if you finished school," said Webb. K a r a s t a n a R u g "There was only a few stores in town. There was nothing in those days." She added, "The Queen Elizabeth Way wasn't there. It was just a road." A few years after graduating high school, Webb married her first husband, George Herbert Webb, with whom she had four children -- Eskelin, John and Keith Webb and Janisse. George, like others at the time, was unable to get a job immediately after high school, as the local economy was at a "standstill" and people weren't spending money or building homes. He eventually became a mechanic at what was known as Whittaker' s Garage on Lakeshore Road. During the Second World War, Webb saw numerous relatives, one by one, become involved in the Canadian Forces, including two brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins and a brother-in law. Webb remained at home to look after her children and spent time baking and making care packages to send overseas. "When (Oakville) opened up the wartime exhibit at the museum, I was floored by the family I had in the war," said Webb. While Webb said it's the people who have defined Oakville for her over the years, she noted the ongoing development of the town. "I've never seen so much going on in town. A building here, a mall th ere.con d os," said Webb. "It' s a different world altogether now." e F l o q r / >/ A / G c a . c o m W SERVICING THE OAKVILLE COMMUNITY FOR OVER 2 0 YEARS! B EST Q u A U T Y . B e s t SER v i c E. B e s t PRI c ES! TH IS W E E K 'S Any Carpet Style · B erber · Tw ist · P lu s h · S h a g 1 /2 P R IC E C Q ^ ^ a w w / s q .ft . · Textured B erber Installed with Underpad 1500 sq.ft, limit $ 1 0 0 R e b a te 2512 Old Bronte Rd at Dundas Weekdays 10-5 Sat 10-3 "we m afe you foo^j/ood.,inside a n d o u t!" O ffe rv a lidfro m Ja n u a ry1 6M a r c h1 7 ,2 0 1 7 . Purcfissaa mhimunof4 O utfit and receiw a$100rebut*mdm extra S20for aachadditional shade prschased. WlidstparticipatinQ reciters oriy.Tha re All Ftitfrta Reserved. THEPROMOTIONCARDisa Prepaid American Express? Csid issued by Amex Bank of Cans*.* Used tv Amex Bank of Canada mde w h e n y o u p u rc h a s e e n e rg y e ffic ie n t D u e tte * h o n e y co m b shades. W IN D O W S - D O O R S - C O V E R IN G S HunterDouglas G allery- 9 0 5 .8 2 7 .3 3 3 1 F O L L O W iN G L O C A T iO N S ON LY: f a s a d a .c a *will be issued h the form of a Hunter DouqIbs PrepaidAmerican &tpres#Card. THE PROMOTIONCARDis a trademarkofThe Hunt Group, anae from American Express. Forful dera te, wait hinterdoutfaa.es. ca.com · M i r a g e H a r d w o o d · K a r a s t a n OPEN SUNDAYS ^ U n d d in ,1921 SUPERSTORE Tr a f a l g a r v il l a g e , (across fromO ak villeG ostation)Oakville 9 0 5 .8 49.4472 C a r p e t i n g · 2 2 8 KING ST. E. Ham ilton 9 0 5 -5 4 6 -1 9 2 1 P e r s i a n R ugs ·