NEILBURG — More than 150 family, friends and neighbours of Louise Poppleton gathered Aug. 31 to celebrate her 100th birthday.
Guests visited the birthday celebrant while admiring photos and well-wishes from dignitaries including Premier Scott Moe, Lieutenant Governor Bernadette McIntyre, Governor General Mary Simon and King Charles III. Louise’s wedding dress was also on display, and her family shared stories from her life during a short program while guests enjoyed a light lunch.
Louise, born Louisa Lilean Campbell, was raised near Rivercourse, Alta., with her sisters Patricia and Edna. After completing Grade 9 at Ridgeclough School, she moved to Winter to work at the post office, located in the home of Dennis and Margaret Ledray. At 25, Louise travelled to England to work as a nanny for relatives for a year. She returned to Winter to work on Vernon Meagher’s farm, where she met Dougal Poppleton.
The couple married at the Neilburg Anglican Church on Aug. 22, 1952, and settled on a section of land south of Neilburg. They initially lived in a one-room home insulated with flax straw and shared their space with mice. Over the years, they purchased and relocated Wallace Orr’s house to the farm, and later moved Ronald and Donna Smith’s larger home in 1967.
Like most farms at the time, the Poppletons raised cows, chickens and pigs, mostly working with horses as Dougal preferred animals to machinery. Louise assisted with daily farm life. On one occasion while loading pigs, a large hog ran between her legs; she ended up riding it backward around the pen, laughing all the while. The couple delivered cream and eggs to Neilburg, earning spending money and lifelong friends. They had three children: Mary (1954), Ian (1956) and Darren (1965).
Louise became known as the “bun lady” for community events, bringing only the perfectly shaped buns to special gatherings while the rejects were sent home with Ian’s family.
Family remained central to Louise’s life. She and Dougal travelled to England in 1979 to visit relatives, took bus tours and researched family history. They celebrated their 40th anniversary in 1992 before Dougal passed away March 13, 1993.
Louise continued to live on the farm until 2017, moving to the Neilburg Housing Unit, and later in 2023 to Pine Island Lodge in Maidstone, where she still resides.
