Man who shares King’s birthday celebrates turning 100

A HENLEY resident who shares the same birthday as King Charles III, was presented with a 100th birthday card from the monarch.

John Ogle, who lives at Chilterns Court care home, turned 100 years old on Friday last week while the King turned 77.

He celebrated alongside friends and family and was presented with a card from the King and Queen Camilla by David Woodgate, the Deputy Lieutenant of Oxfordshire.

Mr Ogle, who moved to Shiplake in around 1947 and Henley in 1967 was described by friends as a well-known face in the town.

The former Royal Berkshire Hospital employee was presented with a cake along with a surprise pencil portrait of himself drawn by a friend and graphic designer, Mark Wójcicki.

Many of the guests had travelled far to celebrate Mr Ogle, including his granddaughter, Emily, who flew in from Barcelona, his grandson, Joshua, who came from Wales with his wife Beth and his son, Chris, who came from France with his wife Annie.

Mr Ogle has a third grandson, Daniel, who is currently living in Vietnam.

The occasion was also attended by a number of Mr Ogle’s carers from the Chilterns Court care home in Henley, where he has lived since February last year, and from Home Instead. Addressing the crowd, Mr Woodgate said that Mr Ogle had impacted a lot of people in the time he had lived here.

He said: “I’d like to say thank you for everything you’ve done for our community.

“But I’d also like to recognise that you’ve left a tremendous legacy here in this room as well.

“It’s great to see so many of your family and friends here today.”

Mr Ogle’s son Chris thanked all that had attended. He said: “What’s especially lovely is that so many people have come from Home Instead, his previous care agency. I think it says a lot about my dad. I think it’s because of his positivity and his cheerfulness and his politeness, quite frankly.”

Mr Ogle, who moved to Shiplake from India following partition, worked for Huntley & Palmer, the biscuit factory in Reading, before working in the pharmacy of the Royal Berkshire Hospital for more than 20 years.

He was a keen badminton player and also enjoyed playing cricket.

After marrying his wife Elizabeth, he moved to Twyford where the couple lived in Springfield Park.

After Elizabeth died, when Chris was four, the family moved back to Shiplake and then to Damer Gardens in Henley. Mr Ogle later lived in Crisp Road and then Reading Road.

Mr Ogle’s granddaughter, Emily, who works as a personal trainer, said: “It’s really nice to see him again, especially on such a happy occasion, with lots of people that know him but I’ve never met and hear the good words that they have to say about him.”

She described her grandfather as “sweet and loving,” adding: “He’s always had a soft spot for me.”

One of Mr Ogle’s former carers, Val Bichan from Home Instead, described Mr Ogle as “a really kind person”.

She said: “Before I even started working with John I saw him going out in Henley. He has always been the politest person.

“He has always enjoyed going out and, if you take him out, there is often someone who knows him.”

Mr Wojcicki, who gifted Mr Ogle the pencil portrait, said the pair had got to know one another whilst John was living in the Reading Road.

He said the work had taken him 28 hours to complete.

Mr Wojcicki said: “He lived in the Reading Road and I lived just off it. He used to walk up and down the road and we’d say hello to each other and it went on from there.

“He’s very friendly, he’s kind, he’s appreciative and all the people that look after him love him because of that.”