Happy 100th Jessie!
A great-granny whose living legacy is rooted in thousands of trees growing across Argyll, has just celebrated her 100th birthday.
Benderloch’s Jessie Wormell was joined by four generations of her family on her big birthday as well as the Vice Lord-Lieutenant of Argyll Archie Campbell who presented her with a congratulations telegram on behalf of King Charles.
Jessie was born at Fasnacloich, near Oban in 1926, the fifth of six children born to Jane and John Smith, and moved to Arisaig as a child where they lived for several years before settling on the Isle of Rum in 1938 where her dad worked for the Bulloughs.
She became the island’s post mistress until 1957 when she met and married Peter Wormell who was the Chief Warden for the Nature Conservancy.
The couple moved to the White House on Rum and stayed there until 1973 when they moved to Benderloch, so that their children could go to Oban High School without having to travel away from home.
Jessie’s grand-daughter Anna-May Woodhouse said: "On this acre of Scotland they started a tree nursery and grew thousands of native trees which were subsequently planted all over Argyll."
Over this last decade, Jessie has developed dementia but continues to be a fan of word searches and jigsaws and is lovingly cared for by her family.
The centenarian also keeps up "her quiet strength, her deep love of the natural world, and her unwavering devotion to her ever-increasing family," added Anna.
Last year, two more great-granddaughters were welcomed by the family.
"Her roots still run deep in the landscapes she calls home, and her legacy will live on in the forests she helped nurture and the people whose lives she touched over the years," Anna said.
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