Research says people who live to age 105 are called “super-centenarians.” Arlington is privileged to have at least one of them and she is a family friend of ours.
We were among the guests at Mildred Mae Rogers Thorne’s 105th birthday party last month. It was quite the occasion attended by four generations of her loving family, many who brought along written personal memories of her – all of them a tribute to her caring thoughtfulness, kindness and generosity. Many celebrated how they relished Mildred’s cooking skills, even though she often said a dish hadn’t turned out “quite right.”
Mildred and her late husband, Albert, had two children, five grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren. The couple’s journey is a great story and looking back where their time together unfolded is woven into the nation’s history in some familiar ways and others just to call their own.
She was born on January 28, 1920 – the beginning of a decade when our country was experiencing remarkable changes that would shape the future. It would be known as the “Roaring Twenties.”
Women won the right to vote; the sale, transportation and manufacture of alcohol was prohibited; the first radio broadcast appeared; Charles Lindbergh and Amelia Earhart flew across the Atlantic; Henry Ford sold his 15th million Model T; Babe Ruth hit 60 home runs; Mickey Mouse appeared in Disney’s first animated picture; and Wall Street crashed ushering in the Great Depression.
Meantime Mildred was growing up without a father who died when she was an infant and was raised by her grandparents in the Texas Panhandle. Reaching adulthood, she worked as a nurse until she married Albert on Christmas Eve in 1942.
Soon, Albert was shipped off to the war in Europe as an Army Infantryman. Mildred was expecting their son, to be named Albert and called “Abbie” who would not meet his father until his return in 1945.
The young couple then set up their home on his parent’s ranch near Canadian, Texas, in a three-room house with no bathroom, no running water, no electricity or telephone. Their daughter Joyce was born in July 1947, to complete the family.
As seasoned ranchers by 1952, they moved to Missouri, where they farmed, raised livestock and milked 18-20 dairy cows by hand twice a day.
Moving back to the Texas Panhandle in 1955, Mildred and Albert bought the ranch from Albert’s parents. Mildred was a busy volunteer during her children’s school days and a caregiver for her parents.
Joyce – married name Bevoni – recalls, “First, she was Daddy’s helpmate. Work on a ranch was endless but somehow Mom and Dad would get my brother and me involved and make the work seem like fun family time.”
After the passing of her husband of 46 years, Mildred relocated to northeast Oklahoma in 1995 to build a new home where Abbie was ranching. Then in 2004, she moved to independent living facilities where she stayed for 17 years.
In 2022 she arrived in Arlington to be near Joyce who remains somewhat surprised that, “Mother was still driving as she turned 100!
“She loved spending time with her grandchildren. They have many fond memories of their time at her house and her good cooking. She willingly served others, always ready to share her time and talent with anyone who needed her help. Many of her cross-stitch and needlepoint projects are precious keepsakes for family and friends.
“Back in the ’60s, I had a teacher who would say, ‘Math isn’t important for girls,’ and she told me not to listen to her and do my best in math. Her advice is probably the reason I majored in accounting.
“She taught us about faith, hope and love, patience and perseverance, honesty and integrity, and how to look for the best in people.”
Also characterized by her independent spirit, Mildred’s current response to the care offered by the senior living facility where she now resides is to say, “I don’t expect them to do a lot. I’m used to doing things for myself.”
Her answer to Joyce’s offer to have her live in her home is the same. “I like my own space.”
My expected question for her: “Mildred, what’s your secret to longevity and good health?” Her response was, “Keep moving. We need to walk every day. Drink water, not soda. Eat plenty of vegetables!”
However, I’m told by Joyce’s husband, Doug, that he brings her candy almost every day and she really enjoys indulging in it!
Richard Greene is a former mayor of Arlington.
