Gladys Suprano celebrates 100 years

Gladys Suprano is one of the girls.

The quick-witted centenarian makes life sparkle at Valley West Care Center, where she has been a resident since April and is known as the "comedian."

She doesn't care much for playing bingo and other games, and prefers spending time socializing with the other residents.

"I like visiting the elderly," jokes Suprano.

Suprano's daughter, Marilyn Kennedy of Arbuckle, said her mother has always had a sharp sense of humor.

"When I told her the newspaper was coming for her birthday, mom said 'make sure they put it in the section with the comics,'" Kennedy said.

Suprano turned 100 on Wednesday.

Suprano was born Gladys Emma Winward in Methuen, Mass., on Dec. 30, 1909, the year the first Ford Model T was sold, and the year instant coffee and sweaters for dogs first sprung onto the market.

She was the youngest of eight children, but was closest with her brother, Walter.

Walter Winward was nine years older, but he was with whom she shared a special appreciation for humor and comedy.

"He was my favorite brother," Suprano said. "He was full of the dickens and I could do no wrong. Our mother was stern, but if I got in trouble, Walter would managed to talk her out of it by telling a joke."

Walter Winward's daughter Pat Childers of San Diego said she, too, had a relationship with her aunt that was full of fun and humor.

"She was more like a girl friend," Childers said. "We could talk about anything."

The 1920s, which began with the ratification of woman suffrage in the United States, brought many new opportunities for women.

The baby boom that followed the first World War led to dramatic increases in the numbers of women attending school and the expansion of curriculum from the Three R's (readin,' ritin' and 'rithmetic) to classes in science, business and industrial arts.

After graduating high school, Suprano attended McIntosh College in Dover, N.H. and earned a degree in business administration, in which she worked all of her life.

Her most notable position was assisting with the establishment, opening and administration of California State University at Northridge.

She was a purchasing agent for universities and colleges and recounts that she loved the professors who came to her to beg for projectors and other supplies.

She married James Kennedy in 1928 and had one child, Marilyn, who became a licensed social worker and psychologist.

Suprano's education, work and lifestyle, which included long-distance walking and world travel, was unusual for women of her generation.

"It's because I'm from Massachusetts," said with a grin. "People in Massachusetts just do things differently than other people."

Following the sudden death of her husband in 1962, Suprano retired. She lived in Palm Springs in the winter and Honolulu, Hawaii, in the summer, where she enjoyed long walks on the beach.

In 1972, she married John Suprano, of New Haven, Conn., who passed away in 1983.

At her birthday party at Valley West on Tuesday, Suprano didn't mind sharing her secret to a long life.

"Exercise," she said. "I walked and walked and walked."

"I couldn't keep up with her," said niece Evelyn Pitts, of Arbuckle, daughter of Suprano's sister, Elizabeth Harris. "Whenever I visited, we would go on long walks together. Glades could walk forever."

Suprano said eating well is also important, but people should enjoy everything in moderation.

"I was always careful to maintain the same weight and eat healthy foods, including plenty of steamed vegetables," she said. "A good diet is important."

She said staying active in meaningful pursuits is also key to longevity.

For many years, Suprano gave her time, talent and money to assist delinquent, dependent and neglected children, primarily at the residential treatment facility her daughter directed in Cleveland, Ohio.

At 100, Suprano is the oldest surviving sibling of her family. She takes no medication, has never had surgery and has only been hospitalized once in her life.

On Wednesday, Suprano attended a luncheon in honor of her 100th birthday at the home of Evelyn and Lt. Col. Bruno Pitts, retired, in Arbuckle.

The event was well attended by family from Santa Rosa, La Mesa and Fairfield.

At her party at Valley West, residents gathered in the social hall to have cake and sing Happy Birthday and a variety of other religious and patriotic songs, accompanied by Candace Edwards on the piano.

"It's a good thing I can remember all the words," joked Suprano, after a rousing rendition of "America the Beautiful."

Contact Susan Meeker at 458-2121 or smeeker@tcnpress.com.