War veteran celebrates his 100th birthday

A World War II veteran from Senghenydd has celebrated his 100th birthday.

Alfred Lerwill marked his centenary on Thursday, June 4, with family, friends and neighbours paying him socially distanced visits.

Mr Lerwill was surprised with a box of nearly 100 birthday cards, written to him by Senghenydd residents and collected at Sonia’s Plaice chip shop.

The box of cards was delivered to Mr Lerwill by Cllr Lindsay Whittle, chair of the Aber Valley Heritage Group.

Mr Lerwill was also surprised with an afternoon tea and a birthday cake, given to him by resident Sue Gallent.

Chairs were laid out across Mr Lerwill’s street so visitors could wish him a happy birthday while keeping two metres apart due to the coronavirus pandemic.

He becomes the second member of his family to reach one hundred, with his late sister, Olive, reaching 101.

Mr Lerwill was born in Senghenydd in 1920 and has spent most of his life living in the village.

Aged 14, he finished school and started working down the pit at Llanbradach for a short period of time, before he started working in Birmingham.

In 1941, aged 21, Mr Lerwill was called up to serve in World War II.

He served as an armourer with the Royal West African Frontier Force in the West African Infantry Brigade Workshops.

Here, Mr Lerwill repaired and serviced machine guns and rifles to support the soldiers fighting in Burma and the far east.

Mr Lerwill returned home in 1946, having spent time guarding German prisoners of war until they were repatriated.

A year later, he began working in Melksham, Wiltshire, in the Avon Tyres factory. However, he grew homesick after a bad winter and returned to Senghenydd in 1948.

In August 1954, Mr Lerwill married his wife Stella, and the couple were together until Stella’s passing in 2007.

He continued working until 1982, when he decided to retire having being made redundant at the Rover factory after it relocated from Gabalfa to Solihull.

Despite not having any children of his own, Mr Lerwill has played a big role in the lives of his extended family, with his great-niece, Sarah Lerwill, describing him as a patriarch of the family.

Ms Lerwill said: “He’s been the grandfather I didn’t have.

“My children are like his grandchildren – he’s been great with them.”

Ms Lerwill said her great uncle “still has his whits about him” and described him as her “shopping buddy”.

Mr Lerwill also met Caerphilly’s Senedd Member Hefin David, who said: “It was a pleasure to meet Mr Lerwill this afternoon at his 100th birthday celebration.

“Mr Lerwill, who served his country during World War II, is a much respected member of the community in the Aber Valley having lived there all his life.

“I’m so glad that the weather stayed dry for him today and so he was able to see his family and friends outdoors, while maintaining the necessary social distance.”