By Raia Flinos
AT 104 years old, Olga Viken is is the oldest member of the Mornington Police Senior Community Register. Known fondly by the Norwegian community in Melbourne as the “Queen of Mornington”, her story is one of resilience, love, and an unwavering spirit.
She was born on May 19, 1921, and raised on a farm outside of Bergen, Norway, alongside her six siblings. During World War II, when Germans occupied Norway, Olga would sneak past the German patrols in the middle of the night to bring the milk in.
She fell in love with Eivind Viken after the war ended. He was a Norwegian war hero described as the country’s “most secret agent”. He was highly decorated for his efforts and was awarded honours including the King’s Medal for Courage, the Distinguished Service Cross, and a Norwegian Service Medal. Olga said the reason she fell in love with him was “he had done so much for Norway”.
Mr Viken dreamed of a life in Australia and made the decision to migrate in 1949. It took four years for Olga’s visa to be approved, but she joined him in 1953, and they married at a church in South Melbourne, with only the gardener and a cleaner present as witnesses.
“My fiancé loved Australia so much,” Olga said. “He said this is the place to live. And so, I gave in, and I came. And eventually went to classes and learned English.” “It’s not easy to leave your home country and go to a strange place, especially when you don’t know the language. I’ll never be a perfect English speaker, but at least you can understand me.”
Back in Norway, Olga had become well-known for her sewing abilities, running a successful business. When she moved to Australia, she decided to continue sewing. “I sewed children’s frocks… oh I loved it. I used to put the price up. It was beautiful, all this frill, and before Christmas we were very busy,” Olga said.
The couple lived in King Island, Eildon, and Gippsland due to Mr Viken’s job before moving to Caulfield. At the time, their landlord refused to sell them the house they were renting. Determined to build a future, Olga took matters into her own hands. “I had saved money from the sewing I did when we were in Caulfield. And I was always looking in the newspaper to see if there was anything available in Mornington,” Olga said.
She reached out to a real estate agent and decided to buy a corner block of land. “So, I said to my husband, “Well, why don’t you build our house on the block of land?” Olga said. “And he said, ‘What block of land? Where are you talking about?’ And I said, ‘Oh, I forgot to tell you. I bought a block of land.’”
They built their life in Mornington, and Olga has lived there ever since. Though they never had children, Eivind and Olga shared a full life together until he died in 1999. Olga has lived alone ever since. “I’m 104 years old; I look after myself and I feel I do a good job of it,” Olga said. Her secret to a long life? “I eat well. I cook my own meals and still have all my own teeth,” she said with a smile. “I eat a lot of fish but after coming to Australia, I love my lamb chops.”
She maintains a connection to her community through the Mornington Police Senior Community Register, a volunteer-run program which supports older residents of the peninsula through social visits and check-ins. Olga’s long-term neighbours and friends, Derek and Pat Birchall helped her sign up for the register in December of 2023. The couple visit her regularly, keeping her company and providing a helping hand. “She keeps us busy,” Pat said. “She’s like a history book,” Derek added. “She can go back so far, and her memory is still pretty good about her childhood.” Yvonne Morrison, coordinator of the register, says it’s an honour to know Olga. “She’s remarkable. We all feel very lucky to know her.”
The register has almost 5000 members and 33 volunteers who make weekly calls and home visits. “I just love talking to all the different people, helping them when they need help,” Morrison said. Olga says she is very appreciative of the work the register does and enjoys their check-ins.
Olga has managed to maintain a connection to her Norwegian roots. Every year, the Swedish church in Toorak is hired out for Norwegian Independence Day. It falls on 17 May, two days before Olga’s birthday. This year, the event doubled as a celebration of Olga’s 104 years. “It was a beautiful day; I met a lot of different people. They recognised my birthday which was very nice,” she said.
She has been back to Norway many times, but she says it was difficult to go back at first. “It was nearly ten years before I went back. And you see I had been used to Australia for ten years. So, then it’s hard to change back to where you come from.” Leaving Norway was a difficult decision, but Olga says she loves Australia and enjoys the life and community she has built for herself.
First published in the Mornington News – 24 June 2025
