There is one reason Lorraine Joell has stayed working at the Elbow Beach Hotel – she just loves it.

Last September Mrs. Joell, who works in the housekeeping department, was recognised for half a century of service at the hotel, along with several others.

In recognition she received a watch, a bracelet and a free cruise to the Caribbean.

"There were a lot of us celebrating long service at the hotel," she said. "There are a few of my friends who have been here a long time, and they like it."

Mrs. Joell, 75, first came to work at the Elbow Beach Hotel when she was 22 years old.

"The hotel has changed in 50 years," she said. "It is a lot bigger. But we still have a nice staff and everyone works together."

When she first started at the Elbow Beach Hotel, she worked in the laundry. Her job involved feeding towels through a mangle to dry them, and then folding. She also pressed all the waiters' jackets.

"They couldn't have any wrinkles," she said. "They used to admire my work."

Working in housekeeping, Mrs. Joell said she likes to clean things "quickie-lickie".

"At check-out it can be stressful sometimes because everyone wants to check out at the same time.

"I will say 'I can only do one at a time'. If the room is nice and clean you can clean it much faster. If it is dirty you have to pick up this and pick up that. Some people are so neat. You have to look around to see if they are still in the room. Others, aren't so neat."

Although she was young when she started at the Elbow Beach, it wasn't her first job, or even her second.

"My first job was when I was 14 years old at Belmont Laundry," said Mrs. Joell. "I went to different places like the hospital, Princess in town, Longtail Club.

"The Longtail Club was down on Front Street. After I left the Harmony Club, then I came to Elbow Beach."

She said in those days, everyone left school at a young age to go out to work.

"They didn't have high schools like they have now," she said. "You went to the seventh grade and that was that. It wasn't really a sad thing to leave school. After that everyone just started working."

The cruise from the Elbow Beach Hotel was a great gift for Mrs. Joell, because she is a cruise veteran.

"I am getting ready to go on a cruise right now with my family," she said. "We are going down to the islands again. I like down there... St. Thomas and all of those places.

"We have family cruises. The family loves that. Some of my girlfriends wanted to go to Alaska, but I couldn't make it that time. Maybe next time."

She said hotel visitors are often surprised when they ask her age.

"They can't believe I'm 75 either," she said. "When I came here my daughter was six months old, and now she is 51."

Visitors are also surprised when they ask her how many kids she has. Mrs. Joell has 11 children.

Three of them also work in the hotel industry. Her youngest son, Gary, was diabetic and died at age 24.

Ten years ago, at age 65, she married Quinton Joell.

"I was talking with him for a long time," she said. "Everyone came to that wedding. I enjoyed the wedding. I had about 600 people there. We got married at Rehoboth Church of God Church.

"It is nice being married. Between the grands and great grandchildren we have somewhere between 30 to 40 (offspring)."

She does a lot of cooking at home. She is well known for her soups and crab meat salad.

"I just cut up the crabmeat and put a little red devil and some green peppers and onions," she said. "I made a big bowl on Sunday."

But what Mrs. Joell really likes to do is socialise.

"I am a party girl," she admitted with a laugh.

To others thinking of coming into the hotel industry, she said, "Come and try it, if you like it stay, and if you don't like it you can leave. It used to be people were called maids, now they are called room attendants. It is a good job to go into it. If they don't like it, they can do something else."