Winston ‘Woody’ Richardson 105 and going strong

Winston Richardson had 105 reasons to celebrate on Monday as he enjoyed another birthday.

“Woody”, as he is affectionately called, still has a sharp memory, a good sense of humour and pleasant demeanour. He stood and warmly greeted Acting Governor General, Sir Kenneth Hewitt, when he arrived at the seniors’ home, Rendezvous Retreat, for his birthday festivities.

The two engaged in a brief conversation and Woody shared about his younger years playing football for Barbados and being involved in other sports locally. The birthday boy also accepted a gift of a bottle of non-alcoholic champagne and a birthday card. He read the words of the card aloud for all present, including his niece, Lisa Richardson; sister-in-law, Margaret Richardson; and owners of the Rendezvous Retreat, Ronald and Heather Nicholls, to hear.

Sir Kenneth said it was the first time he had the privilege of attending the celebrations for someone marking their 105th birthday, “and chances are it will not happen again, so I feel very honoured to be in your company”. He wished Woody many more birthdays to come.
Expressing gratitude, Woody said it was a “pleasing sight” to be able to see all the faces of everyone in attendance. He added, “I bring greetings to one and all and I just want to wish Barbados and its community all the very best for this year.”

Later in an interview with the media, he said his 105th birthday “just crept up” on him but he was happy to celebrate it.

“Nobody thinks you will live long. Nobody that is living long ever thinks, ‘I hope that I am going to live so much longer.’ You are happy the way you are living. The way you are living you are careful with it and you hope that it will last as long as possible,” he further stated.

Woody was born in Castries, St. Lucia. He said he moved to Barbados at age 11 and attended the Combermere School. He later went on to work at the Water Works, now called the Barbados Water Authority until retirement.

The birthday boy was married to Theresa Ambrose. He has three children, grands and great grands who live overseas. In his younger years, he played football for Barbados, “did a lot of boat sailing” and was an athlete. The quarter mile was his speciality. He also had an amateur radio.

For his 100th birthday, he visited the then Governor General, Sir Elliott Belgrave at Government House. He was joined by his family for that
occasion.