Talented 91-year-old Fife care home resident wins Scotland-wide whisky bottle label competition
A 91-year-old care home resident and budding artist has beaten competition from across Scotland to have his artwork turned into a whisky bottle label.
In honour of Father’s Day, leading care home provider, Meallmore Ltd, has developed a limited-edition whisky, with residents across all 26 Meallmore care homes invited to enjoy a dram with their loved ones on Sunday. Each home asked residents and their wider community to submit artwork for consideration for the label.
Following a public vote, artwork submitted by John Picken, from Leven Beach Care Home in Fife, was chosen as the winner for the inaugural whisky bottle, out of 30 entries from Meallmore colleagues, residents, friends and families. Over 500 votes were cast, with John’s artwork the clear winner.
John, who turns 92 in August, has lived at Leven Beach since 2017. He created a beautiful painting based on a photo taken by Leven Beach activity coordinator, Vickie Dodds, of the sun rising during her morning walk along the promenade in Leven.
Speaking about the win, John said: “I’m amazed! I've come a long way from a wee boy when I got into trouble for painting our pet Great Dane green!
“In recognition of my dear wife, Margaret who had the patience to support and encourage me over the years and to my best buddy, Vickie who warned me not to paint a ship, I dedicate this winning painting to them both. It means the world to me.”
John was presented with the first bottle of the whisky at a special event at Leven Beach Care Home on Friday, June 13, along with his family, friends and residents. His win will also be recognised with a plaque and display case for his whisky at Meallmore’s head office in Inverness.
As well as providing whisky tastings for families on Father’s Day, the 2025 bottle is taking pride of place as the first of a collection of community designed bottled whiskies, which will be available for events and displayed in the Meallmore head office.
Cillian Hennessey, CEO of Meallmore said: “We pride ourselves on the importance of our local communities and we take every opportunity to celebrate special days, so inviting residents and our wider network to help create something extra special for Father’s Day seemed like the perfect way to celebrate.
“We were blown away by the response of the public vote, with over 500 people taking part, and we’re all thrilled to have such a worthy winner. We’re honoured to have an original ‘Picken’ for the first of our whisky collection and look forward to seeing this competition and the display case develop over the coming years.”
Karen Radford, Leven Beach care home manager, said: “John has been a resident with us for eight years and really is part of our Meallmore family. We were so impressed by the stunning piece he created, and it looks perfect on the whisky bottle. It was a really lovely moment to see him so proud to have been chosen as the winner. Keep up the brilliant work with the paintbrushes, John!”
Meallmore currently operates 26 homes across Scotland: 20 for elderly residents, five for adults with mental health needs and one for adults with learning or physical disability. Two new homes are in development, which will provide services for elderly people in Aberdeen City and Kelvinside, Glasgow.