'I started working here at 15 - now I'm retiring after 75 years '

For much than 75 years, customers successful a tiny seaside municipality person been greeted by the aforesaid acquainted look down the antagonistic astatine the section pharmacy.

Now, Sadie Jefferson, who began moving successful the store successful 1951, has decided to telephone clip connected a vocation spanning much than 7 decades successful the precise aforesaid building.

She started moving astatine the pharmacy aged 15, and has cherished memories and friends from her decades of toil.

"I met truthful galore fantastic pharmacists done the years, but for maine it was ever the radical - immoderate of the families successful this municipality that I cognize span 4 generations."

When Jefferson archetypal began moving successful the pharmacy successful Portrush, County Antrim, it was known arsenic JGW Boggs Medical Hall.

Over the decades, the ownership changed respective times, becoming RG Macaulay's, Herons, Lloyds Pharmacy and, eventually, Gordons Chemists.

But contempt the sanction supra the doorway changing, Jefferson has remained a changeless presence, serving generations of section families with a smile.

Speaking to BBC News NI, she admitted that retiring aft truthful galore years felt rather strange, but said she had perfectly loved each infinitesimal of her clip successful the shop.

Talking astir getting her archetypal job, she said: "The pharmacist was looking for idiosyncratic to enactment for him, and it was really my sister who told maine to apply.

"To archer you the truth, it was rather hard enactment backmost then.

"You had to marque up each the medicines, hole the tablets, and person them acceptable to spell precise quickly."

Jefferson believes the crushed she stayed truthful agelong was due to the fact that of the radical she worked with, and truthful galore of the beauteous customers she got to talk to connected a regular basis.

"I've known truthful galore of them since they were born, and present immoderate of them are retiring arsenic well," she said.

Skydiving landings tin beryllium a spot tough

Jefferson said a existent item of her clip was the galore fundraising opportunities she had.

"I did a skydive erstwhile I was 80, good I did 2 skydives actually, to rise wealth for the Northern Ireland Hospice," she said.

"It was fantastic, conscionable an astonishing happening to experience, it's a spot of a daze to the strategy erstwhile you're up successful the level looking down.

"You conscionable request to ticker your ankles, due to the fact that the landing tin beryllium a spot tough."

Robert Gordon, laminitis and proprietor of Gordons Chemist, described her arsenic "a unit of nature" and said what struck him upon gathering her was that everyone successful Portrush seemed to cognize her.

"Everybody wants to telephone successful present and accidental hullo to Sadie," helium said.

"Even if they aren't needing anything, Sadie conscionable seems to person this immense pursuing that has conscionable grown and grown implicit the years.

"We observe milestones present successful Gordons. We would propulsion a small solemnisation for anyone who has served 25 years with us, but Sadie has been successful this store 3 times that amount, truthful it conscionable truly is incredible.

"Sadie really started moving successful this store 3 years earlier I was adjacent born."

'Main Street won't beryllium the aforesaid without Sadie'

Kathryn Dobbin, alleviation pharmacy manager of Gordons Portrush, said it was a "huge honour" to telephone Sadie Jefferson a workfellow for much than six years.

"Sadie is conscionable a large lady, she has clip for everyone, she is truthful good known to the locals present and I'm truthful bittersweet to spot her go," she said.

Jenny Elliott from North Coast Travel, a fewer doors down from the pharmacy, has worked connected Main Street for astir 30 years and said she would regularly telephone in.

"Sadie was ever truthful pleasant to woody with, ever afloat of fun, specified a beauteous woman and besides conscionable a existent quality present successful Portrush."

Karen McMath, who works successful Jingles Giftshop Portrush, knows Jefferson personally and said Main Street won't beryllium the aforesaid without her successful the pharmacy.

"She is 1 of the astir caring radical you could perchance conscionable and adjacent though she won't beryllium moving I deliberation we volition inactive spot her retired and astir collecting for charities and keeping busy," she said.

So what are Jefferson's program for the future? Well, they don't see slowing down.

"I americium progressive with the practice radical present successful Portrush, which is each astir promoting the municipality and preserving its history, truthful I be that erstwhile each month, which is truly enjoyable," she said.

"I besides emotion gardening truthful I volition beryllium doing a batch much of that present and I besides emotion going retired for java with friends."

Jefferson said if she could springiness immoderate proposal to immoderate young idiosyncratic astir to commencement a caller occupation it would beryllium to "give it 100%".

"Just effort your champion and marque definite you are committed is each I tin say," she said.