108 Years Of Memories

She remembers playing inside a woodshed with her neighbor when she was 5 years old.

She remembers her father buying a house phone for the first time. It came with a hand-cranked generator.

Marion Irvin can still describe it all to the very last detail. It didn't matter they occurred prior to the introduction of the Model-T, the Archduke Franz Ferdinand assassination or the last time the Chicago Cubs won the World Series. Her memory hasn't deserted her.

Irvin celebrated her 108th birthday Thursday. On Friday, residents at Atria Evergreen Woods gathered for a party inside the banquet hall.

"It's the good Lord who made me as I am," said Irvin. "I have no reason to know why I've lived this long."

She is confined to a wheelchair and has minimal hearing out of only one ear. She has no living relatives, but has established strong friendships with many of the employees and volunteers at Atria Evergreen Woods, where she has been a resident since 1984.

In spite of her limitations, Irvin's memory remains sharp. She has ample strength in her arms and often waves them when she speaks.

"She's just very humble," said Suzanne Dallefeld, an employee at Atria. "She wants nothing (more) than to get out of her chair and into bed or wash her hands and eat."

Dallefeld wheeled Irvin onto the dance floor. As the electric piano blared in the background, the crowd applauded her as she was rolled out into the hallway and into a quiet room so she could be interviewed.

"Why should this be important now?" Irvin asked.

She was surprised at the reception and attention she was getting on her birthday. She spent no more than 20 minutes among the crowd.

She was content relaxing in her own quarters and away from the television cameras, reporters and flashes.

Irvin is a private person. She is also steadfast.

Her suite was designated as the Alzheimer's wing some years ago, but she insisted on staying in her room. She wouldn't budge, and the employees obliged.

The Plattsburgh, N.Y., native moved to Atria Evergreen Woods at a much quieter time.

"Now, so much is going on," Irvin said of the community.

Her husband died 40 years ago, weeks prior to when Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. Irvin was 67.

"We worked in the same office," she said. "We got friendly. It just happened."

Employees and residents remain in awe of Irvin's memory. She remembers ages, dates and birthdays.

JoAnne Gangel was a volunteer when she moved into the facility 24 years ago.

"She is very agreeable," she said. "She's a very happy person ... I tell her every year she's an inspiration to all of us."

A couple of years ago, Irvin fell and broke her hip. At age 106, few people expected her to return from the hospital.

"She did her rehab and then came back home again," Gangel said.