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Willie Mae Hairston marks 102nd birthday with friends
By Billy Ludt
YOUNGSTOWN
Few people have witnessed as much history as Willie Mae Hairston.
She was born Dec. 5, 1915, and celebrated her 102nd birthday Tuesday at Omni Manor Health Care Center & Rehabilitation Center. Family, church members and residents at Omni Manor joined Hairston to celebrate with some festive music and cake.
In the 1940s, Hairston worked on factory lines at the Ravenna Army Ammunition Plant, where weapons used in World War II were made.
Members of the fellowship at Alpha and Omega First Baptist Church said Hairston has been with the church for about 70 years.
Pastor Raymond Mason and his wife, Joyce, were at the celebration. Joyce said she’s never known the church without Hairston. She was her mother’s friend and was there when Joyce was born.
If anybody wants to know the history of the church, Joyce said, they should talk to Hairston.
“Her mind’s just that sharp,” Joyce said.
Alpha and Omega also turned 102 this year.
“She ran things behind the scenes,” said church member Gerald Perkins. “She’s the boss.”
“I was in awe when I met her and saw her capabilities,” said Antoinette Gomes-Jones, who has given Hairston in-home help since July. “Nowadays, nobody knows anybody that age.”
Gomes-Jones said Hairston handles her own business. She cooks her own meals, signs her own checks and has lived with little assistance up until recently.
“She’s been in that community out there for a long time,” Pastor Mason said. “She’s one of the staple community members in that neighborhood and in the church.”
While at home, Hairston spends a lot of her time out on her front porch. Joyce Mason said it’s an open invitation for neighbors to stop by and catch up.
Hairston was hospitalized from a recent fall and sent to Omni Manor to recover. Gomes-Jones said she hopefully will recover and be back home soon.
Hairston said she wished she could have spent her birthday at home.
She added that turning 102 feels a bit different from past birthdays.
To lead a long life, Hairston said, people should never drink or smoke – and never run to a party.