South MS woman about to celebrate her 103rd birthday has some advice for you
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Helen Calehuff will celebrate her 103rd birthday on Sunday, July 5.
- Calehuff is at the Lyman Senior Center every weekday for cards, lunch, bingo and friends.
- She credits regular meals, plenty of sleep and staying active for her health.
Helen Calehuff has never been a worrier because, she says, that’s how a person gets twisted up and things start to go wrong.
Instead, she enjoys the people around her and feels blessed that she has no major aches and pains. Calehuff is about to turn 103 years old.
“I’m just one of those happy cusses,” she says.
Her birthday is July 5, a Sunday. The Lyman Senior Center in Harrison County will be closed, so they’re throwing a big birthday party for her on Wednesday.
She seems unsure what all the fuss is about.
“Don’t surprise me too much,” Calefhuff told center Director Kellie Peleaz, who mentioned the party on Tuesday morning. Calefhuff was sitting in the lobby with a few of her friends. She’s at the senior center every weekday for cards, lunch, bingo and company.
Calehuff seems a little taken aback when she hears how old she’s about to turn.
“I’m not 103, am I?” she asks. “Oh, my God.”
There’s laughter. Calefhuff quickly corrects course. “Thank God,” she says. “As long as you’re happy and healthy, who cares?”
And Calefhuff is both healthy and happy, she says. She’s never really been sick. She remembers a case of scarlet fever as a teen in Pennsylvania, where she grew up, married and raised her children. Today, she lives with a son in Saucier.
She’s just happy to be here and would be even happier if she could go square dancing. It’s one of her favorite things in life, although it’s been awhile since she’s been to one.
“I love to square dance,” she says. “Get up and keep moving. It makes you happy. There’s nothing like it. It makes you feel like a kid again.”
And who can argue with Calehuff when she says it’s good exercise? She’s sitting up straight in her Sketchers walking shoes, cropped slacks and cotton knit pullover, white hair framing her face. She breaks easily into a smile and squeezes the hand of the woman seated next to her, Cheryl High.
“She’s warm and caring,” High says. “She’s our girl. We’re glad she’s here.”
Calehuff says she stays healthy by eating three meals a day and getting plenty of sleep. She avoids sweets.
Rest, she says, is very important.
“I think if you have your health, you’ve got it made,” she says. “But you’ve got to do your share. God is not going to do it all for you.”
Complaining is another thing she avoids.
“What’s to complain about if you feel good?” she asks.
