Father’s Day – a time to celebrate dads at Mercy Place Cairns (Bethlehem)

Father’s Day – a time to celebrate dads at Mercy Place Cairns (Bethlehem)

90-year-old Mercy Place Cairns (Bethlehem) resident and great-grandfather Frederick Reynolds-Parker spent Father’s Day in good company.

This year, Frederick – whose maternal family arrived in Australia as one of the first free settlers to Western Australia back in 1820 – celebrated the special day at the nursing home alongside his son and grandson, Neil and Lyndon.

The Reynolds-Parker family spans four generations. Patriarch Frederick was born in Perth, but then, aged four, moved to the UK with his English-born father, following the death of his Australian mother. Frederick’s mother was a nurse, whom his father had fallen in love with and married after she nursed him back to health when he was severely injured in World War 1.

Tragically for Frederick, his father also died soon after he and his three siblings were taken to the English Midlands, which saw Frederick separated from his brothers and sister, and placed in an orphanage where he would spend the next 10 years, including those spanning World War 2.

“I visit Mercy Place Bethlehem where he’s loved by the staff”

“Despite dad not having a father of his own, or a mum for that matter, he’s been a really good dad and my son and I frequently visit him at the home, where he’s loved by the staff and fellow residents alike,” says Neil, who is the middle of Frederick’s three children. Neil has an elder sister, Beverly-Jane, who lives in Canada, and a younger brother, Clinton James, who lives in Wales.

“Frederick is a very important person in all of our lives; he had a tough and challenging childhood which he has written about in his book about his orphanage years, but he still has an incredible zest for life, so on Father’s Day we make sure he feels very much loved.”

Mercy Place Cairns (Bethlehem) General Manager Precinct, Zubair Coovadia, said Father’s Day presented a perfect opportunity to recognise fathers like Frederick.

There are many other “amazing gentlemen like Fredrick” at Mercy Place Cairns

“There are many amazing gentlemen like Frederick at Mercy Place Cairns (Bethlehem) who have demonstrated selfless dedication, love and care for their family during their lifetime, and that’s why our team here try hard to recognise their contribution, not just on a particular day but throughout the year,” he says.

Mercy Health is a Catholic not-for-profit provider of care, founded by the Sisters of Mercy and grounded in a 2,000-year tradition of caring for those in need. The organisation provides health and aged care services throughout Victoria, southern New South Wales, Western Australia, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory.