Scots woman's inspiring secret to happy life as she celebrates 100th birthday

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A Second World War female engineer has celebrated her 100th birthday surrounded by the most important thing in her life - family.Hazel MacLennan (nee Hope) marked the milestone birthday in the comfort of Malin Court Care Home in Maidens, along with a 20-strong crowd of her closest loved ones.The centenarian - who hails sons Murdoch and Alex as her ‘greatest joy in life’ - is eagerly anticipating her birthday card from King Charles III as she remembers celebrating his birth back in 1948.Born on February 5, 1923 on McLellan Street, Glasgow, Hazel grew up in the Plantation and Sheildhall districts of the city, attending Govan High School – a school renowned for also serving as the alma mater of Sir Alex Ferguson.After the outbreak of the Second World War, Hazel became one of the first young women to gain employment as an engineer, working on the factory floor at James Howden’s engineering works.She worked to build a multitude of aircrafts including Sunderland Flying Boats, fins and ailerons for Lancaster Bombers.Recalling those tumultuous years, Hazel said: “It was a strange time.

Work was tough, I worked 12-hour shifts for six years at the engineering works.“I distinctly remember the night of the Clydebank bombing – I spent the night perched on top of a jig, watching terrified as German planes flew overhead.“But we got through the hard times, like always, by sticking together and making the best of it.”Following the war, Hazel married Donald McLennan, settling down in Ralston, Paisley, and welcomed their two sons, Murdoch and Alex.

Now residing in Renaissance Care’s Malin Court Care Home in South Ayrshire, Hazel was delighted to celebrate her special day surrounded by friends, family and staff who she said “always go over