Not many can boast such a long and dedicated career to a single pharmacy than Sadie Jefferson, if anyone can at all.
Gordons Chemists has announced that Jefferson has retired from her role at its Main Street branch in the Northern Irish seaside town of Portrush after 75 years on the job.
She applied for a position as a dispenser in the pharmacy in 1951 when she was 15, and has stayed at the same premises as the pharmacy changed hands over the years.
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News of her dedication even reached the halls of Westminster last week when Democratic Unionist Party MP Gregory Campbell paid tribute to her during a debate on the future of community pharmacy.
“Hers is an example of the commitment and effort in community pharmacies right across the United Kingdom,” Campbell told fellow MPs on June 2.
Skydiving
Jefferson told C+D pharmacy has changed “an awful lot” since she started making medicines up in the dispensary, noting that so many new drugs had come out over her career.
She got stuck into activities outside of her role too, notably doing two skydives to raise money for NI Hospice.
When asked if she’ll pursue it again, she quipped “you wouldn’t get the insurance for it at my age now”.
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Jefferson has served four generations of families, with some of her original patients also now retired.
But her favourite part of working in the pharmacy was “meeting so many lovely people”.
“I enjoyed people coming into the shop, especially in the summertime,” she said. “You get them from all over the world here. I always like to talk to them.
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“I’m a happy person, which means a lot, and I’ve enjoyed every minute all the years I worked.”
Despite her boss at Gordons Chemists asking her if she wanted to stay on, she’s looking forward to spending time with the local heritage group in her retirement.
“We meet once a month. There is a lot of heritage around Portrush that people don’t know about, so I help with it.”
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Gordons Chemists said her “warmth, dedication and commitment have made a lasting impact on generations of patients across the town”.
“Everyone at Gordons would like to thank Sadie for her lifelong dedication to community pharmacy and to the people of Portrush. We wish her a very happy and well-deserved retirement.”
