THE Corbridge community has rallied round to send 90th birthday greetings more than 3,500 miles to a former resident.

Friends of widow Hope Guthrie Meyer, who now lives in Owosso, Michigan, decided to make her milestone birthday extra-special by reaching out to organisations in her birthplace, which she has always remembered with fondness.

Parish councillors, members of St Andrew’s Church and staff at the village schools were among those contacted by Glenda Caszatt, a long-standing friend of Hope who has often been regaled with her memories of Corbridge.

“It turned out all of the parish councillors had received individual letters,” said vice-chairman of Corbridge Parish Council, Melvyn Stone.

“Although she didn’t live here long, this lady obviously feels a real connection to the place she was born, so we decided to do what we could to write to her collating the history of Corbridge.”

In her correspondence, Glenda told members of the community: “Hope has visited Corbridge a few times over the years, and even though she has no memories of living there, she loves to talk about ‘my beautiful home’.”

Hope, who was born at East Rigg, Appletree Lane on September 3, 1927, is the daughter of John Oliver Guthrie and Marie G. Tweddell. She only lived in the village as a baby but has grandparents buried in the cemetery and an uncle named on the war memorial.

Coun. Stone added: “We know she did manage to visit the village as an adult and remembers visiting landmarks such as the Pele Tower while staying at the Angel Inn.”

As a result of Glenda’s correspondence, a series of cards, history books and other information on Corbridge has been sent to Hope to mark her birthday.

Headteacher at Corbridge Middle School, Jane Kennedy, also received an email and, after sending a birthday card, is planning to invite pupils to write to Hope about life in Corbridge today.