Pictured is Barton, N.Y. resident Helen Grier, who holds a proclamation announcing “Helen Grier Day” in the town on Friday, May 29. In honor of her 106th birthday, Helen was visited by the Barton Town Clerk and Supervisor, and received several gifts from area businesses. (Photo by JoAnn R. Walter)
The 100-plus birthday club is growing in Tioga County, New York. Barton resident Helen Grier celebrated her centenarian birthday a few years ago, and her birthday on May 29 just topped that milestone.
Town Clerk Joan Richards believes Helen is the oldest Barton resident, and though there is a good chance she is also the oldest resident in Tioga County, that is still unknown. Richards, along with Town Supervisor Dick Cary, visited Helen on her birthday and delivered an official proclamation announcing that Friday, May 29, 2015 was “Helen Grier Day” in the town, in celebration of her 106th birthday.
To her surprise and delight, Helen received several gifts from area businesses, a real treat for a lady who at first said she wasn’t keen on publicity. Several gift certificates were received, including Ted Clark’s Busy Market, Soprano’s Market, and Kentucky Fried Chicken, among others, as well as a cake from Jolly Farmer and flowers from the Valley Flower Shoppe.
When asked what she had for her birthday dinner, Helen shared, “Kentucky Fried Chicken and cake,” although she seemed especially pleased with the homemade apple pie baked by one of her grandsons.
Helen Kimball, born May 29, 1909 in Vestal, N.Y. chuckled as she explained, “I was born in an old shack on the railroad tracks,” and added, “Sam’s Club now sits on that land.”
Helen and her son, Earl “Dick” Grier, laughed together as they remembered another birthday memory, the birth of Dick on the day after Helen’s birthday 86 years ago.
“He was my gift that year,” she said, and also pointed out that May 30 was originally “Decoration Day,” now known as Memorial Day.
For many years, the Kimball’s worked a family farm on Boswell Hill Road in Endicott. When Helen was a young girl, a bout of diphtheria troubled the family for more than six weeks, once a major cause of childhood illness and even death. Not secluded was Helen’s father, who continued working the farm while living in a woodshed.
Helen shared, “My mother would carefully send food to him through an open crack in the door.” On that door, Helen recalls, was a “quarantined” notice.
Helen walked to a one room school house on Boswell Hill, and as a young teen took on the role of janitor, which paid $7 a month for starting the daily wood fire, washing the blackboards and filling buckets with water. Unfortunately, the high school was too far from home, so continuing her education past the eighth grade was impossible without transportation, since her father needed the horse and buggy. With no other boarding options, Helen remained on the farm.
Helen met her husband, Earl, while working at Endicott Johnson (EJ). Loss of jobs at lumber companies and mines near Trout Run, Pa. brought Earl to the Southern Tier searching for work. Helen holds fond memories about her long-term job at “EJ’s,” and still today, appreciates what the company did for its employees.
Married 16 years before she and her husband purchased a car, Helen first got behind the wheel at age 41, and drove for nearly 60 years. A fainting spell occurred about the same time her driver’s license renewal was due at age 100, so she decided it was best to hang up the keys.
Overall, Helen has experienced good health during her 106 years and proudly shared that she only needs to take one daily medication. She promotes using home remedies, and said, “I drink hot water with milk,” and also mentioned that she has never smoked or drank alcohol.
At her current home of 29 years, Helen tackles word puzzles, reads three daily newspapers, keeps a “doctor book” by her side, and enjoys hearing from her six grandchildren, twelve great-grandchildren, and twelve great-great grandchildren. Helen has outlived her husband and many family members, which sadly includes the loss of two daughters, although one aunt lived to be 105. She lives alone and fixes her own meals, yet her son-in-law, Marshall, lives next door, and son, Dick, is only a few miles away.
Two notable experiences Helen has had include flying by plane for the first time at age 90, a trip she made by herself to South Carolina, and at the age of 100, she was a passenger on an unforgettable motorcycle ride.
Helen is looking forward to a family reunion at Hickories Park in Owego this summer, and will attend her great-great granddaughter’s high school graduation in Elmira.
“Not everyone can say they’ve done that,” she said.
