Peggy Haagner, a lifelong resident of Potchefstroom, will celebrate her 100th birthday on 1 April after a life that has spanned a century of extraordinary global and technological change.

The Potch Dienssentrum hosted a special birthday celebration on Tuesday, March 31 for Haagner during its weekly meeting, where two cakes sponsored by Turkstra Bakery marked the milestone occasion.

Born in Potchefstroom in 1926, Haagner has witnessed some of the most defining moments of the past century. From the Great Depression and the Second World War to the arrival of the first televisions and computers, South Africa’s first democratic election and the rise of smartphones.

Her life has bridged the transition from handwritten letters to instant messaging.

Haagner attended Covenant Primary School before continuing her education at Potchefstroom High School for Girls.

She was married for many years to her husband, Clem Haagner, who died in 2013. The couple had four children and today her family includes six grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.

In the late 1950s the couple started a poultry breeding business. Haagner played a key role in the enterprise, handling the administration and marketing while the business exported day-old chicks to areas across the northern parts of South Africa, including farms and tribal lands.

The couple also travelled extensively due to Clem Haagner’s career in wildlife photography. Their travels took them to destinations including Antarctica, Europe, the United States and East Africa.

Auntie Peggy developed a deep love for plants, particularly succulents, and built up a vast collection over the years. Her passion for plants led to an extraordinary discovery when she found a previously unknown species of succulent.

The plant, Lavrania haagnerae, a rare succulent endemic to a small region of Namibia, was named in her honour. She first spotted the species in 1969 in the Khowarib Gorge in north-west Namibia when a piece of the plant broke off a steep cliff and rolled down to her. The species was later formally described in 1986 by botanist Darrel C.H. Plowes.

Today, at nearly 100 years old, Haagner still lives in the family farmhouse outside Potchefstroom near Boskop. She lives with her daughter Denise, who has cared for her and her late husband for many years. Other family members on the farm also assist with her care, including her son Peter and grandson Peter, as well as her granddaughter Lyndle and grandson Richard.

According to her granddaughter Lyndle, Haagner is known for her kindness and gentle nature.

“She never complains and is a very kind person,” she said.

Her son, Bob Haagner, describes his mother as the most dedicated and hardworking person he knows.