Centenarian sent 16,000 birthday cards dies

A hundred-year-old woman who received 16,000 birthday cards from strangers after an appeal by her care workers, has died.

Winnie Blagden, who passed away last night, would have only had contact with the outside world via home care visits, if it had not been for the efforts of her care workers who made her world famous thanks to their appeal for birthday wishes.

An appeal on Facebook by home care agency Serenta Homecare to celebrate Winnie’s 100th birthday last May, soon went viral after strangers heard about Winnie, who lived alone and had no relatives to share her special day with.

As a result, the centenarian who lived in Sheffield, received cards from all over the world, including from Taiwan and Singapore.

The actor Dustin Hoffman and even Prime Minister David Cameron got involved to send birthday messages.

But cards were not the only thing to arrive for the widow on her birthday. Flowers and many other gifts, including offers from strangers to take her out, poured in from all over the globe.

Mrs Blagden, whose husband George died 30 years age, passed away on Sunday night surrounded by her carers.

Care workers at Serenta Homecare, owned by Sue and Darren Pinder, were too upset to talk about Winnie’s death but proved how much they really cared by making sure she felt well-loved in life.