An 89-year-old has found a job after placing an advert in his local paper asking for part-time work to stop him “dying of boredom”. Joe Bartley, from Paignton, south Devon, is due to start work at a cafe in the town after the owners of the family-run business spotted his request.

“No matter what your age or your background, you deserve a chance,” said Cantina Bar and Kitchen’s co-owner Sarah Martin. “Most people have got something to offer and Joe is someone who is keen, who is putting himself out there. What is not to like about that?

“A lot of people who come here don’t just come for coffee, they come for a chat, so Joe is perfect.”

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Bartley, who was a member of the 6th Airborne division and served in Palestine after the second world war, put an advert in the Herald Express twice last month. It read: “Senior citizen, 89, seeks employment in Paignton area. 20hrs+ per week. Still able to clean, light gardening, DIY and anything. I have references. Old soldier, airborne forces. Save me from dying of boredom!”



He said he had been overwhelmed by the response to the advert, which he described as “not unusual, just an old guy looking for work”, adding: “The owner phoned me and said she was interested, and asked me to come in. So I arrived at the cafe and we’ve had a bit of a chat with the owner, and shook hands.”

Bartley said he was amused at the fact that the advert had made him something of a local celebrity, and said he was looking forward to earning his own money to enable him to pay rent. “I can’t believe it really, I feel great about it,” he said.

He said he had lived alone since his wife, Cassandra, died two years ago, and had been lonely. “When you live on your own there is no one to speak to. Since she died I’ve moved into a flat and it’s a big block. Once you walk into that flat it’s like solitary confinement,” he said.

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His new hospitality role was not the only job offer he got after taking the initiative. Glenn Rodgers, an independent baker in Barnstable, north Devon, offered the pensioner a job after reading his story in the Guardian. “I’m a baker and even though it’s not complicated, it’s therapeutic, it’s quite a soulful thing to do – and I thought I’d offer him a job.”

But the bakery, The Ginger Breadman, being in Barnstaple, was too far for Bartley to travel. Rodgers said he wanted the pensioner to know he had been offered a job in the hope that it would put a “smile on his face”. More employers should think about taking on older staff, he added. “It’s unjust otherwise. Why not give him a chance? Also it works both ways, employers are getting experienced reliable staff who really want to work.”

Bartley will get a lift to work with his new employer on Sunday, but will take a bus the rest of the week. “He is delighted, and we are looking forward to it,” said Martin. “We think about these things all the time. We are never going to be rich, but we like to give something back, so when we saw the advert there was no question – the minute we saw it we knew we’d give him a job.”