- Aged care facility residents in Daylesford, Victoria, have proved you’re never too old to have fun by posing for a charity calendar.
- Peggy Warren, 86, is among the group taking part, dubbed Ageing Disgracefully, and funds were used to buy a new bus.
- The calendar girls – and gents – were aged from 53 to 103.
Here Peggy tells her story in her own words
Living at the Hepburn House aged care facility for the last three years, I loved all the activities they put on. I always looked forward to happy hour with my friend Jim and the others on a Friday.
Incredibly, I knew my friend Jim from decades ago, when I used to work for his family as a maid. I grew up in an orphanage. Then later, for work, I cleaned houses.
When I was 18 I met my wonderful hubby Henry at a dance, and we went on to have five kids. Sadly, Henry passed away in November 2018, aged 85.
I miss him every day and he’s still the love of my life.
My son Aubrey, now 62, and his daughter Grace, 17, live close by, and love coming over to see me.
And since living at Hepburn, I’ve made loads of great friends, including my good mate Amy who’s103.
Aside from social gatherings and excursions to the countryside, we’ve also grouped together to raise funds for good causes.
In 2020, a bundle of seniors from the house got together to shoot a cheeky calendar for the bushfire relief appeal.
We dressed as Hollywood movie characters, from Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, to Sally Bowles in Cabaret.
‘Who will be our covergirl?’ Hepburn’s manager Dianne asked, and I threw my hand up to volunteer.
Lying on a bed of red rose petals, I posed seemingly nude as the girl from the Oscar-winning movie American Beauty.
‘I’ve never done anything like it!’ I giggled with my friends after our photo shoots.
Amazingly, we sold 500 calendars, raising $6000!
At the end of 2021, Dianne came forward with a another calendar idea to help us raise money for a new bus.
The calendar, called Ageing Disgracefully, would again feature a range of volunteers doing some very naughty things!
My friend Ruth was the covergirl this time.
She posed in a mobility scooter while flipping the bird to the cars queued behind her.
It was hilarious! Meanwhile, Amy went blonde and wore a fur coat and tiara for her snap.
‘You’ll be doing a photoshoot with Jim,’ Dianne told me.
The lovely workers at Hepburn did my make-up and wrapped my hair with curlers before I popped on my nightie.
Jim, wearing his dressing gown, stood opposite and flashed me!
I posed with a shocked expression, mixed with flirtatious surprise.
‘Lucky you have your shorts on under there!’ I laughed with my good mate.
It was one of the most brazen things I’d done, aside from taking the odd cheeky peek at the boys at the pool when I was 13! The photo was such a success and I couldn’t be happier with it.
My daughter Rosslyn, 53, loved the idea and snapped up a calendar.
Altogether, we raised $10,000 selling 1000 calendars, and we’re very much looking forward to our new bus arriving in the near future.
I wonder what we’ll do next? I often chuckle to myself. There’s no better way to age than disgracefully! ●
Manager Dianne Jones, 53, says
The facility manager at Hepburn House since 2015, I’ve met some amazing seniors through these halls.
When roughly 20 volunteers put up their hands for the first calendar, the staff and I were stoked with how enthusiastic they were.
We had two residents dressed as Jack and Rose from Titanic at the head of a ship, and another as Mary Poppins flying off with her umbrella.
Pro photographers David White and Kyle Barnes, who worked for us for free, loved the shoots as much as the residents did!
When we collectively decided to raise funds for a new bus, I began brainstorming themes.
I thought back to when we received funding from the state government to engage isolated members of the community such as LGBTQIA+ residents and allies. We named that group Ageing Disgracefully.
And so that was it! That would be our 2023 calendar’s theme.
David came back to photograph, and my wonderful staff brought props and costumes from home that we could use for the shoots.
Snapping 13 residents aged between 53 and 103, we all had a blast!
With the support of our residents’ families, there were a lot of calendars sold.
We’re so proud of our golden oldies!
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