Paula Naylor pushes a wheelchair for her father, Paul Romanello, on December 21 in Tulsa, Okla. Romanello recently celebrated the centenary of the Centennial in Oklahoma.
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Paula Naylor pushes a wheelchair for her father, Paul Romanello, on December 21 in Tulsa, Okla. Romanello recently celebrated the centenary of the Centennial in Oklahoma.
Michael Noble Jr. for NPR
Gloria Helmuth has seen what it means to be happy at the age of 100. She wasn’t there herself — she was 82 years old — but over the years she helped pay tribute to hundreds of centenarians. And that has given her unique insight into what it really means to live to be 100.
For one, there are obvious health challenges. And a lot of the time, it can be downright lonely. Loved ones—such as spouses, friends, even children—can pass years, and sometimes decades, before a person crosses the century mark.
“I just feel that it is important for them to know that someone really cares about them,” says Helmuth. “And that’s the reason for our existence.”
Helmuth is the director of an all-volunteer group called Centennial in Oklahoma. Their mission is simple: honor anyone in the state who is 100 or older.
Gloria Helmuth (left) and Sue Scott from Oklahoma Centenarians pose for a portrait on December 21 at their Tulsa office. since it Founded in 1991, the group says it has honored more than 2,700 centenarians and counting.
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Overall, the United States has more centenarians than any other country, and thanks to medical advances and changes in lifestyle, it’s a country with a growing population. According to the Census Bureau, there are about 90,000 centenarians living in the US today, nearly three times as many as about 40 years ago. In 40 years, that number can increase to nearly 600,000.
In Oklahoma, it is thought that there are about 500 people 100 years of age or older, according to Oklahoma centenarians. since it Founded in 1991, the group says it has honored more than 2,700 and counting.
“We travel across the state,” said Sue Scott, the organization’s board chair and one of the volunteers conducting the organization’s memorial services. “Our oldest passed away last year… she was 112 years old.”
Two others will become super-longevers next year – 110 years old. “They have some stories to tell,” Scott said.
Gloria Helmuth displays an example of a sign the group gives away to people 100 years of age and older. In Oklahoma, it is thought that there are about 500 people 100 years of age and older alive today.
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Honoring the state’s “Golden Oakies”
A typical remembrance ceremony features a brief biographical sketch of each new centenarian, along with some trivia that the team has collected over 30 years of activity. For example, Scott might point out that more than 80% of the centenarians they honor are women, or that the highest percentage of centenarians anywhere is in Japan. Each new referred person receives a certificate and a “Golden Okie” pin.
“We’ve done it in every situation. We’ve done it in bars, garages, outside and inside,” Scott said. “And during the pandemic, we did it through the window – we stood outside and the seniors inside. It worked anyway.”
Each new inductee receives a “Golden Okie” pin as part of the celebration.
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Scott says she’s even been invited to pay tribute to the centenarians on their deathbeds.
“I believe they could hear us, because a particular man would squeeze the hand of his son who was standing beside him when I read something about him,” Scott said. “I think he understood some of it.”
The group’s work also has an academic dimension. When a centenarian dies, volunteers take the biographical information they’ve gathered and send it to the Edmon Low Library at Oklahoma State University for researchers there to study centenarians. Information is also shared with the Oklahoma Historical Society.
The importance of paying tribute
One of the group’s newest inductees is Paul Romanello, who was born in New York’s Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood in 1922 – when Warren Harding was president.
Talking to Romanello is like going back in time. He might tell you about how as a boy he cooked potatoes right on the street that is now Midtown Manhattan. Or how he said he memorized the eye test to get into the Army during World War II. Otherwise, he might have missed the USO dance where he met the love of his life.
“She had a passion for dancing,” Romanello recalls. “During her dying days, she still said, ‘Paul, dance with me. Dance with me.'”
Paula Naylor is one of five children of Romanello. She said the past few years have been difficult for her father. He lost his wife in 2015 after 70 years of marriage. He stayed in their home for several years, but would eventually move to an assisted living facility. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Naylor said he was almost isolated from the world.
Paula Naylor poses with her father, Paul Romanello. “He seemed so happy he was getting all this attention and he knew he had finally reached the age of 100,” she said of his reaction to being greeted by centenarians in Oklahoma. honors.
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Naylor said: “We noticed that he was a little bit different when he couldn’t interact with people, because he was a very sociable Italian.
But celebrating his 100th birthday, held last month at an elderly community in Tulsa, gave her father something to look forward to.
“It was great,” Romanello said of his celebration. “I think it’s nice.”
“When we got him into the library and the whole family was there, he was so excited,” Naylor speak. “He seemed so happy he got all this attention and he knew he had finally hit 100. And that’s what he’s been saying for months.”
Words of wisdom
Helmuth, director of Centenarians of Oklahoma, says stories like that are all there is to it.
“Those are the things that make up our day, that make it worthwhile for us,” says Helmuth. “The few of us who do this are fortunate to be able to work with 100-year-olds.”
Over the years, the organization’s volunteers have gathered wise advice from centenarians on how to live a long and fulfilling life.
Some offered practical advice, such as “eat your vegetables” or “work hard and save money”. Others are more philosophical, such as “don’t worry about what you can’t change” or “find the good in everything”.
Then there’s one of Helmuth’s favorites.
“One woman just wrote ‘keep breathing’,” she said with a smile. “She’s got a sense of humour. She’ll be fine.”
Paul Romanello was born in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood of New York in 1922. He met his wife of 70 years at a USO dance. “She has a passion for dancing,” he said.
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