Kate Orchard
Kate Orchard | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1922 or 1923 |
| Died | (aged 102) Cornwall, England |
| Known for | Second World War veteran |
Kate Orchard (1922 or 1923 – 4 April 2025) was a British veteran and campaigner. She served in the Second World War and later in life was a fundraiser for military charities.
Biography
[edit]Kate Orchard was born into a large Anglo-Indian family as one of 13 children.[1] She spent much of her childhood attending boarding schools in India as her father worked in the railways.[1] Orchard joined the Women's Auxiliary Corps in India in 1942 and worked alongside both the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Indian Air Force.[2] Her work involved being a plotter which meant working on 24-hour watches, plotting aircraft targets and sending signals via air warning systems.[3]
She rose to the rank of warrant officer first class and became a trainer of new plotters. She also met her husband Bill during the war. He was serving in India with the Royal Artillery before he was sent to Burma. The couple married in 1944, and following the war in 1946, the couple moved to his home in Cornwall, which was her first time visiting England.[4]
Later in life, she resided in Camborne.[5] In 2013, she was featured in a special exhibition in London.[6] In 2020, she was invited to attend the recent annual Battle of Britain Sunday service, at Westminster Abbey.[7] In April 2022, she took to the skies in a glider aged 99 to raise money for Help for Heroes.[8] The plane took off from RNAS Culdrose in Helston.[9] One week later she turned 100.[10] She received a bottle of Royal Champagne from the King to mark her 100th birthday.[11] As a charity fundraiser she sold poppies to raise money for the Royal British Legion.[12] In 2023, she became the oldest person in Britain to fly on stage after being nominated by her granddaughter Kyra to be lifted by the wires at the Cornwall Playhouse.[13]
A great-grandmother, Orchard was a regular churchgoer and ran a Scrabble club for more than 15 years.[11]
Orchard died in Cornwall on 4 April 2025, at the age of 102.[14]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Vergnault, Olivier (6 May 2024). "Meet surviving WW2 plotter who was sending vital signals aged 20". Cornwall Live. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ "'Inspirational' Cornwall veteran Kate Orchard dies aged 102". BBC News. 7 April 2025. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ "Veteran Kate Orchard, 100, selling poppies in Cornwall". BBC News. 3 November 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ "Second World War 'plotter' to take to the skies above Helston aged 99". Falmouth Packet. 22 October 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ Matthews, Chris (19 April 2022). "WWII veteran Kate flies over Cornwall aged 99". Cornwall Live. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ "Battle of Britain museum: Kate Orchard to feature". BBC News. 9 July 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ "Second World War 'plotter' to take to the skies above Helston aged 99". Falmouth Packet. 22 October 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ "RAF veteran, 99, takes to the skies for charity". BBC News. 18 April 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ "The 99-year-old Cornish WW2 veteran who has completed a glider flight for charity". ITV News. 19 April 2022.
- ^ "Plane sailing for fundraising WWII veteran Kate, 99". www.helpforheroes.org.uk. 12 July 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ a b Newton, Kirstie (13 August 2023). "Centenarian war veteran attempts a world record". Voice.
- ^ "Veteran Kate Orchard, 100, selling poppies in Cornwall". BBC News. 3 November 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ Martin, Greg (5 August 2023). "Cornish woman becomes oldest person in Britain to fly on wires". Cornwall Live. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ "'Inspirational' Cornwall veteran Kate Orchard dies aged 102". BBC News. 7 April 2025. Retrieved 14 April 2025.