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Pauline Rankin:
100 Years Young

By Kathy Kurtz Ferrari
Times Staff
3/4/10
If you had to guess how old she is, you might think Pauline Rankin looks great for someone in her 80s. Funny thing, though: She’s actually a little older than that.

“Oh,yes, I remember Armistice Day very well,” she said, of the event that marked the end of World War I. “I was 8 years old in 1918.”

That was one of the milestones Rankin was asked about Feb. 25, on the occasion of her 100th birthday. The Unquity House resident was feted with many parties during her birthday week, including a gathering at her apartment building. The party was attended by more than 50 fellow residents, family, friends and town dignitaries assembled to honor one of the town’s oldest residents.

Dressed in an elegant, fuscia pink and blue knit suit, the guest of honor beamed at all the fuss that was taking place during the celebration.

“I don’t know why I’m getting so much attention,” she teased, as she listened to speakers who offered their best wishes.

“One hundred years. Numbers aren’t what they used to be,” said Unquity House Activities Director Wendy Blutt, as she kicked off a pancake breakfast as part of the ceremonies honoring the centennial celebration. “Pauline is the classiest woman I know.”

Offering their birthday wishes were the Rev. Jeffrey Johnson, from First Congregational Church; Selectman Marion McEttrick, who presented Rankin with a proclamation honoring her birthday from the town; the Rev. George Welles, from Church of Our Saviour, who along with Carolyn Savage presented Rankin with an inscribed wooden bench that will be placed inside Unquity House in her honor; Milton Residences for the Elderly Executive Director Sarah McLaren; and state Sen. Brian Joyce, who presented a certificate from the State House.

Also in attendance were Rankin’s daughter, Joan Stover, granddaughter, Sandy Stover, great-granddaughter, Ashley Al-Nebulsi, and great-great-grandson, Braylon Al-Nebulsi.

When asked what her secret is for such a long life, Rankin said she never smoked or drank. “I never cared for it,” she explained.

And exercise is still a part of her daily life.

“Do you remember Jack LaLanne?” her daughter asked.

“That’s right. I do this with my legs every morning,” Rankin demonstrated, making a bicycling motion from a seat in her apartment. She also enjoyed swimming during her 37 years of living in Florida.

Rankin was born in Roxbury, two months after her father died of malaria. He was Norwegian, and her mother was from Germany. Her father was a gold miner in Panama, and her mother traveled there to be with him. After his death, her mother, pregnant, trekked on the back of a donkey over the mountains to ensure that her baby would be born in America.

Rankin worked as a secretary most of her life, retiring from a dental office in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., at the age of 88. She was married twice, and has two daughters, four grandchildren, five great-grandchildren, and one great-great grandson. She lived in Milton for a time, while her daughters were young. Her daughters, Joan and Nancy, attended Milton public schools for a few years.

Asked what things stand out in her memory, Rankin recalled traveling on trolleys in Boston, and seeing horses drawing carriages.

“I remember my brother bought a Ford Touring car for only about $198 in those days. Big deal! I think I was about 18,” she recalled. “I don’t remember too much about the past. I spent most of my time enjoying my grandchildren.”

These days she is a frequent visitor to the Council on Aging, where she is a member of the knitting group. She has knitted countless baby hats and mittens, as well as cherished Afghans for family members. She also treats her friends to wonderful homemade cookies and banana bread, despite becoming legally blind recently. But she is able to live in her apartment on her own, where family and friends check in with her often.

“She’s spunky,” said Unquity House manager Allyson Todd. “But at 100, she deserves to be spunky.”

A large family gathering was also held Feb. 27, as members traveled in from around the country to celebrate Rankin’s special occasion.