A man who has visited the same cafe for lunch everyday since his wife's death celebrated his 100th birthday with staff this week.

Ken Swinson moved to Gerrards Cross 40 years ago with his wife Kath, and the pair quickly became regulars at Fego cafe on the town's Packhorse Road. 

When Kath sadly passed away at the end of last year, Ken kept up their tradition and has become a familiar face among staff, who held a party at the cafe after Kath's funeral in December. 

This Tuesday, May 2, they also threw a 100th birthday party for Ken, marking the milestone achievement of their oldest customer, who has become "a part of the Fego family". 

Natalie Schlenker, who started working at the cafe in 2009 and served Ken everyday for nearly fifteen years, described him as a "legend" and "a very humble guy".

“It’s amazing that someone of his age has such a zest for life. Until last year, when he turned 99, he would get up and walk a mile into the café everyday.

“He’d come in, rain or shine, even during the pandemic, to get his tea and ask why there’s not enough meringue in his Eton mess. If you find a partner who looks at you like Ken looks at his Eton mess, you’ll be lucky!”

Bucks Free Press:

Ken's birthday party at the cafe was an intimate affair, with fifteen of his friends invited for lunch and to share a huge Eton mess cake.

Ian Peaple, manager of the high street shop Lighting Matters, dropped in to play a tune for Ken on the accordion and deputy mayor John O'Keefe also came by to present him with a 100th birthday card. 

Another server said: "He had lots of fun, you could tell. We had some customers in the store when the cake came out and everyone sung happy birthday to him. He even got up to have a little dance!"

Bucks Free Press:

Ken also received a commemorative card from King Charles and Camilla to mark the occasion, a gesture made more meaningful by the treasured letter he had received from the late Queen shortly before her death to mark his 70th wedding anniversary. 

Natalie said that as much as visiting Fego everyday has had a positive impact on Ken, it has also been a chance for the cafe's staff to learn from and appreciate his "old fashioned way of being". 

"We try to introduce him to other single people in the cafe but he's happy just to sit there and watch it all go on. There are only a few people Ken really opens up to, and the staff at Fego are definitely among them.

"It's a lovely window into being old. I look at him and I hope to have that sense of peacefulness and that community around me when I reach his age."