A World War Two veteran living at a Truro care home received a surprise visit to celebrate her 102nd birthday.

Freda Cowperthwaite, who served in the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force, was visited at Cathedral View House by RAF St Mawgan personal flying officer Haydn Maclean and Sgt Bekki Trevail-Yates helping to mark the momentous occasion.

They presented Freda with a birthday card from station commander, Wing Cdr Marshall Kinnear, and a special RAF St Mawgan coin, as well as spending a couple of hours chatting about her vivid memories of her life in service.

Fg Off Maclean and Sgt Trevail-Yates were joined by Lance and Carolynn Smale from RAF and WRAF veterans respectively from the RAF Association’s Falmouth branch, and Freda’s daughter Anne Culliford.

The group was able to look at many old photographs from Freda’s time in uniform whilst she regaled them with tales of her career spent on Fixing Stations and in Ops Rooms.

Freda joined the WAAF as a 19-year-old, working as a VHF/R/T direction finding operator and left at the end of World War Two,

She was posted all over the country from RAF Colerne in Wiltshire to RAF Ouston in Northumberland and many spots in between.

Anne said: “Mum was incredibly pleased that Haydn and Bekki came in uniform.

“They looked so smart, and she was glad that everyone in the care home could see them.

“She was a bit worried about their thin tights (‘nylons’) – she used to wear woolly stockings! The presentation coin, and the story behind it, is very special and that will pass down through the family.”

Whilst Freda was taken with the coin, she was even more delighted when Sgt Trevail-Yates agreed to part with her headdress.

Sgt Trevail-Yates said; “Freda found it highly entertaining trying on Fg Off Maclean’s hat whilst we were chatting, so at the end of our visit I asked her if she would like to keep my headdress as a memento of the occasion.

“It took a bit of convincing before she realised that I wasn’t joking, but once I had handed it over she was thrilled to hang on to it.

“I told her that I would like her to have it to help remind her of her WAAF days and asked that she keep it somewhere she could see it every day. It’s a small gesture, but Freda seemed genuinely touched.”

Freda’s daughter remembers hearing a great deal about service life during her early childhood, with her father having also served in the RAF as a mechanic.

“I remember mum told me how much she loved marching,” she said. “And going to dances to enjoy the music of the time such as Vera Lynn and Glen Miller.

“She still likes watching TV programmes and listening to music of those years now.

“The London Blitz made a huge impression on her and disturbed her. She must have seen this on newsreels.

“She was so proud of the way the Royal Family behaved, with the King and Queen visiting the East End, and Princess Elizabeth driving trucks in her role in the Auxiliary Territorial Service.

“Many of my memories are about the bleakness of the post-war years. I suppose all the support, purpose and teamwork of wartime service was suddenly stripped away. People struggled to rebuild lives, jobs, and relationships. They had very little – not like the excesses of today.

“Our home was sparsely furnished, mostly with ‘utility’ furniture (some which mum still has). It had none of the modern-day domestic appliances, so housework was hard going. And, of course, there was rationing.”

Fg Off Maclean was keen to expand on the benefits to service personnel of spending time with veterans and hearing about their experiences of service life, which differ in so many ways from today.

“It was wonderful meeting Freda to celebrate her 102nd birthday,” she said.

“It is an excellent opportunity for us to meet veterans such as Freda, to hear about their lives, past service, and their experiences. Freda was inspiring and passionate about her time in the WAAF and serves as an important reminder that we are here today living our freedoms because of the commitment given and sacrifices made by so many during the war.

“It is vital that those serving today continue to engage with veterans, showing how highly their service and experience is valued.”

Anne summed up the effect Freda’s time in the WAAF had on her, and how it shaped her.

“Mum says the greatest thing her service gave her was independence,” she said.

“It offered her experiences that she would not otherwise have had. She felt as though ’everyone was the same’, there was a sense of camaraderie, and they just had to ‘get on with it’.

“Her service gave her a resilience, a strong sense of right and wrong, and the importance of following the rules which has continued throughout her life.