Jean is new face of Age NI

Jean won a competition set up by the charity combining Age Concern NI and Help the Aged, which sought to find inspiration older people. Jean, who is a founder member and Chairperson of Castlerock Senior Citizens Wednesday Club, was nominated by her friend Robert Burnett because her motivation and hard work has produced outstanding results for her community.

Jean also demonstrates on a daily basis that age is a state of mind, not a matter of arithmetic.

“ I am delighted to be one of the new faces of Age NI, and am really honoured that my friend Robert chose to nominate me,” admitted Jean.

“I believe that later life provides an opportunity for us all to flourish, and that age is really only a number.

“Working with the local scout group and Castlerock’s Senior Citizens Wednesday Club has kept my enthusiasm levels high for all these years, and I don’t see that changing in the near future.”

The competition, run in conjunction with NIE Energy saw Jean and three older people from locations throughout Northern Ireland receive £200, as well as an NIE Energy home energy saving pack.

And Wilma Stewart from NIE Energy was also full of praise for our Jean: “NIE Energy and Age NI have developed an important partnership to help improve later life for people in Northern Ireland and the New Face of Age NI competition provides a great opportunity to celebrate age.

“We were really impressed with the nomination Robert completed for Jean, it reflected Jean’s hard work, youthful enthusiasm and zest for life.

“Jean is a great ambassador for later life and really shows what it means to age gracefully, with a sense of fun and energy.”

Siobhan Casey, Age NI Marketing Director added: “Jean is the new face of Age NI, she is a worthy winner who has contributed so much to her local community. Age NI want people in Northern Ireland to think differently about what it means to grow older because age affects us all in different ways, and we hope Jean’s positive example will go a long way to shifting attitudes towards people in later life.”