Townsville great-grandmother Doris Twomey celebrates 105th birthday

A love of music and eating well has seen a Townsville great-grandmother celebrate her 105th birthday.

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A LOVE of music and eating well has seen a Townsville great-grandmother celebrate her 105th birthday.

Doris Twomey has lived through two world wars, the Great Depression, the Spanish flu and now the coronavirus pandemic.

Ms Twomey was born Doris Weale in Townsville on January 16, 1916, and attended St Patrick’s where she discovered a passion for music and playing the piano.

At 16, she won a scholarship to attend the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and completed a Diploma Fellowship at Royal Schools of Music, and later worked as a music teacher in Ayr and a nurse in Mount Isa.

Doris Twomey nee Weale was born on January 16, 2016 and has celebrated her 105th birthday.

She married Michel Twomey on May 17, 1942. The couple had four children, seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Daughter Helen Weldon said her mother’s long life was attributed to clean practices – “ hard work, exercise and enjoying the odd sweet but eating healthy. Her greatest thing in her life is her music and family.”

Doris Twomey nee Weale was born on January 16, 2016 and has celebrated her 105th birthday. Pictured here with her great-granddaughter.

Ms Twomey still enjoys regular outings with her family around town.

Doris Twomey nee Weale was born on January 16, 2016 and has celebrated her 105th birthday. Pictured here with her husband Michael Twomey.

“I look at her and I think what a gutsy woman she is,” Ms Weldon said. “She has seen the best and worst in her 105 years but still reads and takes in more than we realise.”

Originally published as Townsville great-grandmother Doris Twomey celebrates 105th birthday