102 and still going strong

North Jackson

Earla smith is proof that you don’t have to be young to have the time of your life.

The lifelong North Jackson resident celebrated his 102nd birthday May 19, but you wouldn’t know it unless you checked his birth certificate.

Smith said he has been to nine Mardi Gras celebrations, visits casinos often and most recently hopped on a Jet Ski for the first time.

“We couldn’t go very fast because it was pretty wavy,” he said. “But it was quite an experience.”

Smith spends half of each year in Pensacola, Fla., with his granddaughter Marie Ramsey and the other half on his North Jackson farm with granddaughter Adell Clouse.

Ramsey said she was nervous while Smith was on the Jet Ski but knows he can take care of himself, even at 102.

“You don’t ever tell Papa no,” she said. “He’ll do anything that you do, and he has a good time doing it.”

Smith said Mardi Gras is one of his favorite adventures.

“I have a lot of gals come up to me, and I have to give them a big hug to get their beads,” he said. “We went to a good spot to see everything and hear everything and collect beads. It was just a great time.”

Clouse said her grandfather knows no boundaries, and when he’s home, he’s active on the 100-acre farm.

“He’s sharp, and he’s quick,” she said. “Up until his 100th birthday, he mowed the lawn.”

For more on his life, read today's Vindicator or Vindy.com.