Nellie Beach of Hubbard at age 107 Healthy and wise

October 2, 2016 at 12:05a.m.

HUBBARD

No low-cost, low-tech ways of life are guaranteed panaceas for making a centenarian of you, but a straightforward combination of three has served Nellie Beach well.

“I drink tea, three cups a day, have one banana and I am a good Christian,” Nellie said in explaining how she made it to age 107 – and with few health problems.

Despite her age, she walks unassisted, except for the occasional use of a walker for safety, rarely takes medication and is highly alert. She also is a regular churchgoer and keeps active, both of which can be traced to her early years.

“When Mom was 14, she wanted to go to work, so she changed her birth certificate to make her 16,” Nellie’s oldest daughter, 84-year-old Geraldine Hallapy of Hubbard, recalled. This was shortly after she arrived at Ellis Island, N.Y., on a weeklong boat trip from her native Yorkshire, England, then settled in Youngstown. “She went to work at Mazda Lamp on Market Street in Youngstown for 20 years and made light bulbs.”

“She’s a firm believer that you go to church every Sunday. She still goes to [Central Christian] church in Hubbard,” added Jeanette Perry, Nellie’s youngest daughter.

In addition, Nellie has two sons, John Beach of Hubbard and Leo Beach of San Antonio, Texas, who is Jeanette’s twin. The family also consists of nine grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren and 14 great-great-grandchildren. A daughter, Donna J. Beach, died at age 3.

The three women recently shared many stories and recollections while at Countryside at Elmwood assisted-living facility, 871 Elmwood Drive, where Nellie has lived since July after having lived 28 years in a Hubbard high-rise building.

During World War II, Nellie became a certified welder and worked on tanks and boats for about three years as part of the war effort. Afterward, she spent 24 years as a maid for a local woman.

“My brother taught it, so he taught me how to weld,” Nellie remembered.

Jeanette said that her mother finished her formal education at a girls school in eighth grade, which was common in those days in England. Instead of receiving a diploma, however, Nellie took home a letter the headmaster (principal) stamped, indicating she had successfully completed school and was ready to enter the workforce.

When she was 19, Nellie went on a blind date with Everette J. Beach, and married him two years later, though her parents didn’t know the two had gotten hitched, Jeanette said. Nevertheless, the couple enjoyed a largely egalitarian marriage regarding raising their children and handling common responsibilities before Everette died in 1968, two months after Nellie’s mother had died.

“She didn’t date until she was 19, and my father was her first love,” added Jeanette, who worked 30 years in banking before retiring from PNC Bank.

Even after her husband’s death at age 65, a new level of independence entered Nellie’s life, because she took a driver’s-education course at Hubbard High School in her early 60s and learned to drive a car, recalled Geraldine, who retired after having spent 47 years in the banking industry.

Since moving to Countryside, Nellie, whose hobbies include needlepoint and ceramics, enjoys the variety of entertainment, crafts and music the facility offers, along with the other residents and staff, Geraldine said.

For her part, Nellie has had many proud moments, one of which was having been part of the Rebekah Lodge in Hubbard for at least 50 years. During that time, she worked her way to the lodge’s highest level.

Nellie has many positive facets to her personality and continues to maintain a high level of independence, noted Karen Delisio, Countryside’s business office manager.

“She just began using her walker when she came here because she said, ‘Walkers are for old people,’” Delisio said with laughter. “She is a hoot. She’s very outgoing and sarcastic and doesn’t mince words. She tells it like it is.

“She encourages people with aches and pains to keep moving.”

Such an assessment likely is no surprise to her daughters, who have always thought of their mother in such ways, as well as someone who taught the values of hard work.

“She’s always said, ‘If you work hard, you’re going to be healthy,’” Jeanette added.

To honor the centenarian, Mayor John Darko declared Nov. 23 as Nellie Beach Day in Hubbard. On that date, she will turn 108.