April 2025 Activities Schedule
Tom Jones Turns 105!
February 21, 2023
Happy 105th Birthday, Tom!
It was indeed a Happy Birthday for local resident Tom Jones (not the singer), who celebrated his 105th Birthday at Groveland Park Care Home on 16th February 2023.
Tom was born in Erith in 1918 and was a very well-known resident of Belvedere. Tom followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather and worked on boats in the harbour. During the Second World War, Tom enrolled in the Home Guard or ‘Dad’s Army’ to look after those at home.
Since joining Groveland Park in 2013, Tom has maintained his active lifestyle and is a loved resident at the luxury care home. Tom was also a finalist for the prestigious London Pride of Britain Awards in 2021. He was nominated for his charity work where he raised £4645 for the Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice.
For Tom’s 105th birthday, Groveland Park Care Home wanted to make sure they celebrated Tom’s extraordinary life with his closest friends and family. During his celebrations, they had organised a private lunch for his friends Judith, Albert and Carol in the Groveland Park fine dining room. The lunch menu was designed by Tom himself with his favourite fillet steak and all the trimmings for his main course.
In the afternoon, the Deputy Mayor for the London Borough of Bexley, Rags Sandhu joined Tom for an afternoon of celebrations. He presented Tom with his birthday card from King Charles III and the Queen Consort, which now joins the card he received from Queen Elizabeth II for his 100th birthday celebrations.
The Deputy Mayor for Bexley said “Tom is an AMAZING person, full of joy and laughter. For me, this was a truly memorable event – Thank you to the team at Groveland Park for the great work you do in making the residents feel loved. Hope to see you all again very soon, if not I’ll see you on Tom’s 106th Birthday”.
The birthday celebrations continued with entertainment from one of Tom’s favourite singers. Unfortunately, Groveland Park was unable to book the real Tom Jones to join the festivities!
Tom joined the Groveland Park family at the young age of 95 and is a much-loved figure. Tom remains very active and other residents can count on him to hand deliver their daily newspapers – for Tom it’s more of an opportunity to say hello. He is visited by his family and spends time with the many friends that he has made over the years.
