A MEMBER of the Windrush Generation who settled in Newport celebrated his 100th birthday last week.
Leslie Frank Wisdom was born on May 24, 1919 in the Saint Ann parish of Jamaica.
He came to the UK in 1958, and initially settled in Birmingham.
“My father gave me the money to come over,” he told the South Wales Argus.
Due to a lack of work in Birmingham, Mr Wisdom and his family moved south to Newport.
He got a job in the haulage industry, working for Wynn’s, driving up to Caerphilly – among other places.
“I used to like that drive,” he said. “It was before all the motorways.”
Mr. Wisdom spent much of his life driving - starting out in Jamaica when he was employed by the local water board to drive the water truck for the parish council.
“The truck I drove is probably still in a garage somewhere in Saint Ann,” he said.
'I don’t know what the fuss is all about' - Windrush generation fire engine driver who settled in Newport turns 100 https://t.co/7eysAQHyAw [2] pic.twitter.com/QJENANTQi6 [3]
— South Wales Argus (@southwalesargus) May 24, 2019 [4]
He went onto work at Llanwern Steelworks until his retirement, and later moved back to Jamaica in the 1980s for short period to take care of his parents before returning to the UK.
Mr. Wisdom was lucky enough to travel back to the island for his 99th birthday, but to mark his 100th birthday, more than 170 guests joined him in Newport for a party, with family from the USA, UK and Jamaica joining in on the festivities.
“It is very kind of everyone, but I don’t know what the fuss is all about,” he said.
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