There are many milestones in a person’s life, from first words and first steps to getting married or buying a home.
One milestone not many get to is turning 100. But Jim Bargery has done it.
The new centenarian celebrated his birthday at Halcyon House by having cake with family and friends. At the entrance of the dining hall, poster board was set up with photos of his life.
Bargery was born on Oct. 13, 1916 in Ripon, England, where he and his family grew up.
When war broke out in 1939, he enlisted, joining the infantry division, though he didn’t ship out right away.
“They were calling them all up 18 to 20, and then 19 to 21 and then from 20to 22,” he said. “They couldn’t take them all at once because they couldn’t fit them all out.”
While stationed in North Africa, he was captured, becoming a prisoner of war until the end of the war.
Bargery got a job at an army camp after coming back from the war, and it was here that he met Barbara, the woman who would become his wife.
The pair married in 1947, settling down and having three children, Jim, Susan, and Janet.
In 1956, the family decided to move to Nakusp, where Bargery’s brother lived. The family travelled by ship from Southampton, England to New York on the Queen Mary, then boarded a train to Toronto, and another train to Nelson. Jim’s brother picked them up in Nelson and took them straight to Nakusp, where most of the family has lived ever since.
When asked how it felt to be turning 100, Bargery’s answer was simple.
“No different than any other day.”