Laurette Dimmick says she has no secrets, no tips or pointers on how one could reach the milestone she did Sunday, her 104th birthday.
Dimmick celebrated her day with family, cake and fellow residents at Stanford Place in Parksville on Sunday.
“I don’t know what’s keeping me alive,” she said.
Alive she certainly is. Dimmick has her own laptop, which she uses to keep in touch with family members, especially her five great-grandchildren. She remains more alert than many 30 or 40 years her junior, with a twinkle in her eye and an ease of conversation that belies her years.
Dimmick was born in Alberta in 1909 and moved to Vancouver at the age of five. She’s been in Stanford Place for about five years.
A newspaper could be filled with a list of the changes Dimmick has seen in the world since her birth, but she did mention the moon landing in 1969 as an event that sticks out. She also said she has taken real notice of the changes in the way people communicate.
“It’s a totally different, new language, this computer talk,” she said.
There wasn’t any one thing Dimmick could point to that explains her longevity, no special drink or activity.
“I have a wonderful family,” she did say. “And the people here (at Stanford Place) are very good to me.”
And what does this 104-year-old enjoy most these days?
“I eat a lot,” she said. “It’s my greatest pleasure.”
