News

The Town of Peace River gets behind 100th birthday celebration

March 4th, 2021

Eugenie Tupper celebrated her 100th birthday on February 5th, at Points West Living Peace River. What had promised to be a quiet event spent with a handful of fellow residents, turned into a full-on tribute.

Milestone birthday celebration

“We had all being looking forward to this day, as Eugenie is our first resident to reach this milestone,” says General Manager David Haastrup. “We didn’t want COVID to stop us from honouring her, so we got the community involved. First, we reached out to her family to get consent for a community event. With their approval, we contacted the Good Shepherd School, then Community Services, the Town of Peace River, the Fire Department, and all families, residents and employees of PWL Peace River.”

“The Good Shepherd students colored 100 candles which were put together to make a giant ‘cake’,” David says. “Tim Harris, Fire Chief, represented the Town of Peace River and presented a certificate and customized Town of Peace River blanket. Furthermore, we had a motor parade led by the Fire Department and included families and employees honking their horns in honor of the celebrant, as residents watched from the top balcony.”

Pioneering journey

Eugenie was born in Calgary on February 5, 1921, and remembers when that city’s streets were still dirt roads. She lived in nearby Vulcan, until 1933, when her family headed north. They took five years to travel 1000 kilometers by horseback and wagon, herding cattle and sheep along the trail, to settle in Keg River in 1938. Eugenie spent the following eight decades in various communities north of Peace River.

Matriarch of a multitude

She married Louis Tupper in 1941, and together they had 12 daughters and 4 sons (one girl and one boy died as children, Louis passed in 1991, and three daughters have passed away in the last ten years). Through them, Eugenie has 43 grandchildren and 74 great-grandchildren. The homestead Eugenie and Louis purchased in Carcajou in 1946 is still in the family.

“Eugenie’s number one ‘hobby’ is God,” writes her family. “He has been the biggest and most consistent thing in her life... Then comes her family, past and present… Gramma also really loves horses and when she needed a break away for some time for herself it was often done by going horseback riding.”

Happy Birthday and congratulations Eugenie!

Photo: Eugenie Tupper celebrates her 100th birthday with a visit from the Peace River Fire Department and gifts from the Town of Peace River. (Left) Fire Chief Tim Harris and (right) GM David Haastrup visit with Eugenie on her 100th birthday.

More photos at Flickr: The town of Peace River gets behind 100th birthday celebration