Maggie Magdalene Vuadreu celebrated her 97th birthday in Suva this month.
The get-together brought her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and close relatives together to celebrate the remarkable achievement of reaching the ripe old age of 97.
She was born on August 2, 1928.
Mrs Vuadreu lives a happy, meaningful life surrounded by those that care, love and cherish her.
Her accomplishments in life are many, but one that she cherishes the most was being able to be a strong anchor for her family when her husband Semesa Vuadreu passed away in 1997 after a short illness.
Mrs Vuadreu, who hails from Vunibau Village in Deuba, Serua, is a woman of great virtue, she puts others needs above her own and treats everyone with the utmost respect and love.
Mrs Vuadreu’s mother was a Wade of Irish and Maori descent. Her maternal family resided in New Zealand before they moved to Fiji during WWI in 1914.
Her family moved to Togoru in Navua where they operated a successful garage business in the 1900s.
“I was brought up in Vunibau, but had moved to Sigatoka when I started school,” she said.
At a young age, she and her sister were taken to the Catholic Convent in Sigatoka where they were nurtured by the sisters and nuns.
Mrs Vuadreu attended primary school at the St Joan of Arc school in Sigatoka where she learned a lot of life-skills at the convent.
“My mother at the time worked for a European couple. When the couple moved overseas, they wanted my mother to accompany them and to continue working.”
Mrs Vuadreu’s mother first moved to Tonga and later to New Zealand where she settled down.
“We don’t know much about our father, but my mother had taken my sister and I to Vunibau Village to live with my maternal grandparents.
“In New Zealand our mother married a Mr Beesley and continued to keep in touch through Christmas cards every year until 1990.
“Sadly, we later found out that she passed away that year (1990) in an aged-care home in New Zealand.
“My namesake (granddaughter) who lives in New Zealand visited her resting place and also the home where she lived.”
Life after school
As an older sister, she felt obligated to help raise her sister.
She said after school it was not plain sailing as she struggled to find work to support them.
She moved to Suva and lived with her grandmother in Colo-i-Suva where she could find employment in the Capital City.
“I started working at a Chinese Restaurant at Walu Bay before working as a house girl for a few expatriates in Suva.
“I then left work after I got married and moved to Nadarivatu with my young family.
“My late husband was from Solodamu village in Tavuki, Kadavu. I had met him when I was living with my grandmother in Colo-i-Suva. He was working for the Forestry Department.
“Our two older children were born in Suva and later in 1958 my husband was transferred to Nadarivatu Forestry Station where he continued to work as a carpenter and forest guard.
“He was also a Special Police Constable and would work some weekends at the Tavua Police station.
“We lived in Nadarivatu until he retired in 1989.”
She and her late husband have six children, 21 grandchildren, 26 great-grandchildren and one grandson.
YWCA work and life in
Nadarivatu
Mrs Vuadreu and her family spent 30 odd years in Nadarivatu where she did a lot of community work.
“I was the Young Women’s Christian Association’s (YWCA) area coordinator for many years.
“I worked with women groups in remote villages teaching them how to sew, bake and make smokeless stoves. I also worked with the health team there in building water-seal toilets.
“During work I used to be away from home for a few days, and my late husband would look after the children when I was away. He was very supportive of my community work.”
One of her many accomplishments while working in Nadarivatu was being able to secure a vehicle to help her carry out her community work in the highlands.
“I was also given the opportunity to travel overseas for workshops and meetings. I travelled to Canada, Australia, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and Marshall Islands.”
With YWCA she managed to establish branches at Waikubukubu, Navai, Natolevu in Tavua, Nadrau, Nadala, Naseyani and Drauniivi in Ra.
“I would visit these places once a week and would look forward to assisting women in those communities.
“We received sewing machines for each centre as donations, and I organised training sessions on sewing machine maintenance so that the women can look after their own machines in their villages.
“I was grateful for the Catholic nuns and sisters in Sigatoka for teaching me self-discipline, art and craft, sewing, knitting, cooking, baking and hygiene. I shared what I learned from school with these women when I visited them.”
During her time in Nadarivatu, Mrs Vuadreu learned to raise sheep – quite unusual for villagers living in Colo North.
“I would spin the sheep wool and knit warm clothes from it.
“The warm clothes were used by my family during the cold seasons in Nadarivatu.
Not only did Mrs Vuadreu make an impact with YWCA in Nadarivatu, she also got involved with an NGO called Wainimate where she shared her traditional knowledge of herbal medicine.
“I was involved in developing a wainimate garden at the University of the South Pacific.
“There we planted local herbs that could be used for medication instead of pharmaceutical drugs.
“I still use herbal medicine when I’m sick and continue to encourage my children to use it too.”
Even though life was good in Nadarivatu, the Vuadreu had to make a tough decision.
“When my husband retired, we had leased a piece of land near Nadrau Village where we could live and farm. We had to give that up because my husband was ill.
“We quickly moved to Suva in 1994 and lived in Kalabu.
“My husband passed away in 1997 from his illness. He was a good family man, very humble, hardworking and assisted me a lot with raising our six children.”
Long life
To have a long life, Mrs Vuadreu believes it depends on the choices we make as individuals.
“I also believe in the choices of food we eat. I’m very mindful of what I eat. During my working days I loved to walk and I maintained a home garden where I grew vegetables for my family.
“I was always active and was very cautious of how my time was spent. In the evening I would do crochets while watching TV and this helped me stay sharp all those years.
“I love to keep pets and other animals, I have dogs, cats, chickens and ducks.”
She said quality family time is important.
“With this digital era, there is no quality family time as everyone is busy with their phones, computers or movies.
“I usually look forward to seeing my grandchildren during the school holidays in Nadarivatu.
“We would buy playing cards, paint brushes and even a carrom board to keep them occupied.”
She loves and treasures those sweet memories.
“I’m thankful to God for my life and my children. I enjoy every day with the loving care provided by my children and grandchildren who I live with at home.”
Her advice to young people is to always show respect and to love your elders.
Maggie Vuadreu, with garland, with family members and relatives while celebrating her 97th birthday. Picture: JONACANI LALAKOBAU
Maggie Vuadreu, with garland, pictured with her granddaughters, during her 97th birthday celebration in Laucala Beach. Picture: JONACANI LALAKOBAU
Ofa Akanisi, left, and Serevi Juju. Picture: JONACANI LALAKOBAU
Alipate Kalouniwaqa, left, and Semiti Turagarere at the birthday celebration. Picture: JONACANI LALAKOBAU
From left: Reavi McDonald, Epeli Save and Vatili Vuadreu at the birthday celebration. Picture: JONACANI LALAKOBAU
Family members tuck into lunch during the 97th birthday celebration at Laucala Beach, Suva on August 2. Picture: JONACANI LALAKOBAU
Maggie Vuadreu, with garland, pictured with her great-grandchildren during her 97th birthday celebration in Laucala Beach, Suva on August 2. Picture: JONACANI LALAKOBAU