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A love of beer and Parramatta Eels: Sylvia celebrated 100 years in style
SHE loves mowing the lawn, she'll drink anything "as long as it's beer", and she's the biggest and possibly the oldest Parramatta Eels fan.
Now, Sylvia Regan is 100 years old. She hit her century on November 28, 2024.
To commemorate the occasion, she had not one, not two, but three celebrations.
At the third, she received the gift of a lifetime.
It wasn't the letter from King Charles and Queen Camilla that she was the most excited about, nor the letter from the Prime Minister or the local member for Parliament.
Instead, it was the Parramatta Eels jersey, signed by every national rugby league team member, including her favourite player, Mitchell Moses.
The gift was organised by Mrs Regan's former carer at Ingenia Gardens, Jo; a surprise to everyone at the party, including Mrs Regan's daughter Robyn Thorncraft.
"Jo let everyone know that she recently reached out to the head office of Sylvia's rugby league team, the Parramatta Eels, to let them know that their greatest supporter was turning 100," Ms Thorncraft said.
A love of beer and Parramatta Eels: Sylvia celebrated 100 years in style
"The Eels immediately said 'we're all in, what can we do?'."
As a result, the team signed the jersey and sent it to Bathurst in time for Mrs Regan's 100th birthday.
It has now become her most prized possession.
"It's great, that's why it's hanging up there, I can't let them put it in my cupboard because I wouldn't see it," she said.
Mrs Regan's love of Parramatta began several decades ago, when her nephew Kerry Sargent was a trainer for the club in the 1980s; the glory days of Peter Sterling and Mick Cronin.
Love of sport
Though rugby league was definitely her favourite sport, she said there's no sport she wouldn't watch.
"I love sport, doesn't matter what sport, I'll watch it," she said.
"Just before mum turned 100, Australia played India in the first test, and they did really badly and lost, so Well kept saying to everyone, 'well, I'm better than the Australian cricketers, I'm going to be 100 not out'," Ms Thorncraft added.
At 100 not out, Mrs Regan said she feels as good as ever.
"I feel so well, there's nothing wrong with me," she said.
She first moved to Bathurst 12 years ago to be closer to medical services in the area.
Family life
Having grown up in Rye Park near Boorowa, Mrs Regan moved to Coolah at 18 years old.
There, she met her husband, and the couple raised three children. Since then, the family has grown considerably, with the addition of six grandchildren, and now several great-grandchildren.
When she wasn't spending her time raising children, Mrs Regan worked at a local store in the haberdashery department.
And when she wasn't at work, she would always find something to keep herself busy.
A love of beer and Parramatta Eels: Sylvia celebrated 100 years in style
"Mum was always a very hard worker until she was well into her 80s; she used to mow her own lawn," her daughter, Ms Thorncraft, said.
"I love mowing. I would mow down the front and have it all nice and tidy, and then I would go and sit on the front verandah and have a beer," Mrs Regan added.
To this day, she still enjoys an ice-cold brew. Whether it's VB or Toohey's, Mrs Regan said she would drink anything.
"As long as it's beer," she said.
"It's a running joke because for years it was more fashionable to drink wine, but mum always had her beer," Ms Thorncraft said.
The secret to hitting 100 years
But, despite her love of beer, there's one drink she loves more.
It's this drink that she credits for her long life and for having gone 100 years without breaking a bone despite having a fall last July.
"Milk, I love milk," she said.
And milk, according to Mrs Regan, is the secret to a century.
"Drinking plenty of milk and hard work," she said.
She intends to keep drinking her milk and working hard at crafts or anything else she can manage at the Cheriton Retirement Village, where she now resides.
She hopes that this, in turn, will help her to reach 105.
A love of beer and Parramatta Eels: Sylvia celebrated 100 years in style
Sylvia was gifted a signed Eels jersey for her 100th birthday.www.westernadvocate.com.au
Good on you Sylvia to reach 100 years of age and still support this mob is quite an achievement.
Good on her, what a tough bird. She even survived 11 years of Bea Arthur.A love of beer and Parramatta Eels: Sylvia celebrated 100 years in style
SHE loves mowing the lawn, she'll drink anything "as long as it's beer", and she's the biggest and possibly the oldest Parramatta Eels fan.
Now, Sylvia Regan is 100 years old. She hit her century on November 28, 2024.
To commemorate the occasion, she had not one, not two, but three celebrations.
At the third, she received the gift of a lifetime.
It wasn't the letter from King Charles and Queen Camilla that she was the most excited about, nor the letter from the Prime Minister or the local member for Parliament.
Instead, it was the Parramatta Eels jersey, signed by every national rugby league team member, including her favourite player, Mitchell Moses.
The gift was organised by Mrs Regan's former carer at Ingenia Gardens, Jo; a surprise to everyone at the party, including Mrs Regan's daughter Robyn Thorncraft.
"Jo let everyone know that she recently reached out to the head office of Sylvia's rugby league team, the Parramatta Eels, to let them know that their greatest supporter was turning 100," Ms Thorncraft said.
A love of beer and Parramatta Eels: Sylvia celebrated 100 years in style
"The Eels immediately said 'we're all in, what can we do?'."
As a result, the team signed the jersey and sent it to Bathurst in time for Mrs Regan's 100th birthday.
It has now become her most prized possession.
"It's great, that's why it's hanging up there, I can't let them put it in my cupboard because I wouldn't see it," she said.
Mrs Regan's love of Parramatta began several decades ago, when her nephew Kerry Sargent was a trainer for the club in the 1980s; the glory days of Peter Sterling and Mick Cronin.
Love of sport
Though rugby league was definitely her favourite sport, she said there's no sport she wouldn't watch.
"I love sport, doesn't matter what sport, I'll watch it," she said.
"Just before mum turned 100, Australia played India in the first test, and they did really badly and lost, so Well kept saying to everyone, 'well, I'm better than the Australian cricketers, I'm going to be 100 not out'," Ms Thorncraft added.
At 100 not out, Mrs Regan said she feels as good as ever.
"I feel so well, there's nothing wrong with me," she said.
She first moved to Bathurst 12 years ago to be closer to medical services in the area.
Family life
Having grown up in Rye Park near Boorowa, Mrs Regan moved to Coolah at 18 years old.
There, she met her husband, and the couple raised three children. Since then, the family has grown considerably, with the addition of six grandchildren, and now several great-grandchildren.
When she wasn't spending her time raising children, Mrs Regan worked at a local store in the haberdashery department.
And when she wasn't at work, she would always find something to keep herself busy.
A love of beer and Parramatta Eels: Sylvia celebrated 100 years in style
"Mum was always a very hard worker until she was well into her 80s; she used to mow her own lawn," her daughter, Ms Thorncraft, said.
"I love mowing. I would mow down the front and have it all nice and tidy, and then I would go and sit on the front verandah and have a beer," Mrs Regan added.
To this day, she still enjoys an ice-cold brew. Whether it's VB or Toohey's, Mrs Regan said she would drink anything.
"As long as it's beer," she said.
"It's a running joke because for years it was more fashionable to drink wine, but mum always had her beer," Ms Thorncraft said.
The secret to hitting 100 years
But, despite her love of beer, there's one drink she loves more.
It's this drink that she credits for her long life and for having gone 100 years without breaking a bone despite having a fall last July.
"Milk, I love milk," she said.
And milk, according to Mrs Regan, is the secret to a century.
"Drinking plenty of milk and hard work," she said.
She intends to keep drinking her milk and working hard at crafts or anything else she can manage at the Cheriton Retirement Village, where she now resides.
She hopes that this, in turn, will help her to reach 105.
A love of beer and Parramatta Eels: Sylvia celebrated 100 years in style
Sylvia was gifted a signed Eels jersey for her 100th birthday.
Good on you Sylvia to reach 100 years of age and still support this mob is quite an achievement.
