King celebrates birthday with party for 75-year-olds at Dumfries House
- Published
King Charles has attended previous tea dances at Dumfries House
A man who has taught 4,000 children how to swim was among Scots invited to celebrate their 75th birthdays at King Charles's Ayrshire estate.
Ron Robertson, 75, was among those born in the same year as the monarch. He was at a tea dance at Dumfries House held the day before the King's birthday.
The King attended a similar event at Highgrove Gardens in Gloucestershire.
Hundreds of people born in 1948 - like King Charles - were nominated to take part in the birthday celebrations.
The King came up with the idea to give back to those who have contributed to their local community, and more than 250 people attended the two events.
Among the lucky ones who spent the afternoon enjoying live music, afternoon tea and dancing at Dumfries House was Mr Robertson who is still teaching children how to swim, despite turning 75 earlier this year.
He was nominated by his daughter, Lorraine Biggar, who has seen the impact of his volunteering on the local community in Kilmarnock.
Guests enjoyed food, dancing and entertainment at Dumfries House
Ron Robertson has taught thousands of children how to swim
Mr Robertson has spent more than 40 years as a volunteer swimming coach while juggling a full-time job at the post office.
Ms Biggar said: "Even after retiring and to this day, he still spends the majority of his time by the poolside teaching kids how to swim.
"He oversees at least 200 kids in the lesson plan every week."
'I'm so chuffed'
But despite swimming being his passion, Orkney-born Mr Robertson only swam in a pool for the first time when he moved to Kilmarnock in his early twenties - as there was no pool in his hometown.
"It was never planned or anything, I just love teaching," he said. "I like to see people progressing.
"My daughter started going to swimming lessons and I ended up being asked to help out and I didn't stop.
"I think I've taught nearly 4,000 kids in my time. The satisfaction of getting them pushing and gliding is just great."
He added: "I'm so chuffed to have been chosen to go along."
An Elvis impersonator kept the guests entertained
Betty and Norrie Perry by the fountain at Dumfries House
The celebration hosted by the King's Foundation was inspired by its health and wellbeing programme, which organises monthly tea dances for seniors at the 18th Century country house near Cumnock.
Betty Perry, from Govan in Glasgow, was nominated to attend the event by her daughter and her husband's niece as she was born on the exact same day as the King.
She found out she had been chosen just over a week ago.
Mrs Perry said she liked that the King "isn't afraid to say what he means".
"If he thinks something is wrong, he'll say it - he's a very respectable man," she said.
"He does a lot for young people in the area, and looks at how to help them get jobs. We do admire him a lot."
'Great boost'
Her husband Norrie Perry added: "This was a mining area years ago and there's very little work going around here.
"There's not a lot of money here either and Dumfries House has been a great boost for the local community."
Before she retired, Mrs Perry worked as a housing manager at the Glasgow City Council for over 20 years.
"It was my job to get people into houses and try to prevent any issues in neighbourhoods from getting worse," she said.
"I had a job that I didn't love before - but this job with the council was a way to try and help the community, and I stayed there for a long time."
Wilma Goodwin enjoys a dance with Dumfries House butler Lewis Mackenzie
Anne and John Kirkland have strong ties with Dumfries House
Anne Kirkland also marked her 75th year at Dumfries House after her daughter put her forward for the honour.
She has strong ties to the area, as she was born in nearby Auchinleck and eventually went on to live on the Dumfries House estate for decades.
Her husband John was born at Glenside Farm on the north side of the estate and took over his father's farm in 1987.
The couple lived there with their children for 34 years.
"Dumfries House is a great thing for the local area," she said.
"We come here all the time and it's a really wonderful and impressive place.
"They give so much back to the community here, we're lucky to have it so close."
'A shock to the system'
Stuart Banks, the head butler at Dumfries House, organised the birthday celebrations after seeing how the regular tea dances hosted on the property helped isolated members of the community.
He praised the King's Foundation, as he has first-hand experience of the charity's impact.
"I dropped out of school when I was very young with no Standard Grades after my father passed away," he said. "It was a very dark time for my family.
"I never really got into a career as such, but I had a few call centre jobs here and there."
He had been unemployed for two years when he joined a new hospitality course at Dumfries House.
"This place took a chance on me and nurtured me," he said.
"My first week in the job I met the now King and then not long after that I was flown down to Buckingham Palace to serve at his 65th birthday party.
"It was quite a shock to the system, after coming from Kilmarnock and never really having a full-time job."
He added: "The work they do here is fantastic and I've experienced it personally.
"I've seen people come on the course homeless and get a great job at the end."