A Sikh woman celebrated her 105th birthday in style, with family friends and a steam of well wishers.
She was treated as a dignitary as she turned another notable milestone in her life.
Nami Kaur is a Amritdhari Sikh who is known as ‘mata’ (mother) to people of all ages.
On Friday December 12, at about 11.30 am she received a special card from Her Majesty The Queen who congratulated her on her big achievement, which was followed by a telegram from the Secretary of State for Works and Pensions.
The Chairman of www.emgonline.co.uk , the first Asian daily online website, Jaspal Singh Bains personally came to congratulate Mata Ji on her big day and brought gifts and good wishes from all his staff.
“I felt very emotional as a met this honourable woman, I felt as if somehow I wanted to capture her years of experience and mould her knowledge into something we could capture and keep forever” said the emotional Jaspal Singh
The General Secretary of Punjabi Listeners Club Tarlochan Singh Virk gave a special trophy with photos of the ten Sikh Gurus.
Nami Kaur Ji also had gifts from Gurdwara Sri Guru Har Krishan Sahib Ji in Oadby, Leicestershire, local football club FC Khalsa, Leicester who play in the Senior League, and her eldest son Gurmit Singh who lives in Newcastle, daughter Gurmit Kaur from Surrey, Canada who recently visited her mum and spent nearly three months, her youngest child Surjit Singh whom she lives with in Leicester, her ten grandchildren and all her great grandchildren.
Throughout the day everyone was taking photographs of her or making films on their camera phones.
She also received numerous phone calls from all over the world.
The local newspaper Leicester Mercury photographer visited her in the evening when she also cut her special 105th Birthday cake with all her local family members around her.
The celebrations started on Wednesday evening with Surjit Singh Pasla being interviewed on the BBC Asian Network's Punjabi Programme by Gurpreet Kaur who has been presenting this programme since it began broadcasting September 1992.
Surjit Singh explained that the main reasons for Mata Nami Kaur's great achievement is the fact she went to sleep early, woke up early, harded work, and never saying a bad word about anyone and always respecting who ever came to visit their home.
Mata Nami Kaur Ji said that we just worked hard and did not even know what medicine was as, hard work kept me healthy and she prised her very good family for looking after her in old age.
Mata Nami Kaur Ji was born in the village of PHALPOTA near Barra Pind which is close to the city of Goraya in the District of Jallandar in Punjab state of India in the year 1903. She had 3 sisters and one brother who was the youngest. She was the 2nd eldest sister and was married to Beant Singh of village Pasla in the same district.
She came to the UK in the year 1967 first setting her roots in Coventry and then moved to Newcastle and now she is staying with her youngest baby son in the multicultural city of Leicester.
She is adored by all her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren and relatives, she is still active and enjoys good health.
By Tarlochan Singh Virk