Olive Finds New Home in Aged Care at 103

Not many seniors move into an aged care community after they turn 100, but Brisbane woman Olive Crawford has bucked that trend. The average age of women moving into aged care is 85 years, but Olive was 103 when she recently made the move to Carinity Hilltop in Kelvin Grove.

One of four siblings, Olive was born in Southport on 1 May 1921. She lived on the Gold Coast with her younger brother and sister until her mother sadly died.

“My mother passed away when I was six years old, and I ended up as a Ward of the State,” said Olive, who had tuberculosis when she was a child.

“I moved to New South Wales when I was young, and I then joined the army. That is where I met my husband.”

Olive married Robert Victor Crawford in September 1944 and they lived in Sydney following the end of World War II. The couple had two sons.

“After I got married and left the army I worked in a hospital. After this I worked as a dressmaker and made clothes for my children,” Olive said.

Olive was also a maid who studied massage. Her son, Robert, recalls people were always coming to the family house to get their back cracked.

Olive, who has four grandchildren and three great-grandchildren, was recently inducted into the Carinity 100 Club for centenarians.

 
Olive Crawford is inducted into the Carinity 100 Club by Carinity Hilltop Residential Manager, Ramandeep Gill

She is one of two centenarians living at Carinity Hilltop who turned 100 after moving into the residential aged care community.

They are amongst the ten centenarians currently living in Carinity residential aged care communities in Brisbane and Ipswich.

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