Township, Somerset County Centenarians Honored In Older Americans Month Fete

Anna Girandola at the 2014 Centenarian Celebration at Regency Jewish Heritage Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Somerset.

Who knew that eating pecan ice cream could lead to a longer life?

But that’s just what township resident Anna Girandola ascribes to her reaching 100 years of age.

“Ice cream has prolonged my life,” she said with a smile.

Girandola was one of about 20 Somerset County centenarians that were expected to attend a luncheon honoring them May 21 at the Regency Jewish Heritage Nursing and Rehabilitation Center on DeMott Lane in Somerset. The program was sponsored by the Somerset County Freeholders and the Somerset County Office on Aging and Disability Services in honor of Older Americans Month.

In total, 14 township centenarians were honored by the county: George Adock, 100; Dorothy Black, 100; Harriet Danza, 103; Mollie Eisenstein, 101; Mary Farrell, 105; Anna Friske, 100; Girandola; Anna Howard, 102; Eureka Ortiz, 101; Jean Roth, 100; Luna Stewart, 102; Lee Cohen, 100; and Emma Tyukody, 100.

Emma Tyukody

Tyukody ascribed “living right” and “doing the right thing” to her longevity.

And chicken paprikash.

“We make a lot of that,” she said.

“I’m just an old-fashioned girl,” she said.

Marie Barnes, a spokeswoman for Regency, said the company decided to partner with the county on this celebration because “we thought it would be a nice collaboration.”

Last year, she said, the center set a record by having 40 centenarians in the room at the same time. She said that feat should be memorialized in 2015 in the Guinness Book of World Records.

“we enjoy doing it and respecting and honoring the centenarians,” she said. “It’s proving to be a good day.”

Harriet Danza

Harriet Danza, who is just four months shy of her 103rd birthday, said she was lucky to have “healthy parents.

“They were young,” she said.

Danza said she also credits staying active and being nice to people for her living so long.

“I like to cook and bake good food,” she said. “I like good food.”

To Lee Cohen, being 100 years old is “just one of those things.”

“I do everything just like everybody else,” she said. “it’s just one of those things that happens.”

Lee Cohen, left.

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