At 78, was army veteran the oldest paperboy in Sussex?

At 78 years old, Richard Everest may well have been Sussex's oldest paperboy.
By The Newsroom
Published 20th May 2017, 15:30 BST
Updated 7th Jun 2018, 22:36 BST

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Richard Everest SUS-170517-144310001Richard Everest SUS-170517-144310001
Richard Everest SUS-170517-144310001

The retired army veteran delivered newspapers for almost 15 years and covered Broadoak Lane, Bexhill, and the surrounding area.

Mr Everest, now 80, served in the Royal Army Medical Corps for 39 years having initially joined as an apprentice at the age of just 15.

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The Mountfield-born veteran retired with the rank of Major and decided to take on a paper round when his 76-year-old neighbour called it a day.

“A neighbour asked me if I would be interested in taking over his round,” said Major Everest. “My wife suggested it would be a good way to keep fit as I was no longer a regular runner following a knee injury.

“I had been running on the advice of army doctors having had a coronary bypass in 1981 and the round seemed like the perfect alternative form of exercise so as not to strain my knee unduly.

“I used my bike and it was a great opportunity to meet new people, it helped keep me occupied.”

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Major Everest suffered a heart attack in 2015 but carried on with the round for a further year.

He says he would “never say never” to a potential comeback but now has a new hobby to occupy himself.

“The doctors said I could still do it despite the heart attack. I was so pleased to carry on for a little while longer. I’m still going strong and would do a round again if the right opportunity presented itself, although gardening takes up a lot of my time now.”

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