Mitchell Romero celebrates a century

WARWICK — With his good memory and sense of humor, it’s hard to imagine that Mitchell Romero, a resident at Mount Alverno Center, recently celebrated his 100th birthday.

When Romero was born in Trinidad on July 5, 1913, the island, now a republic, was part of the British Empire. The British monarch at that time was King George V and the president of the United States was Woodrow Wilson.

Romero doesn’t attribute any particular reason for his longevity except that he worked hard and didn’t smoke. However, he did enjoy an occasional rum and Coke.

As a youth, Romero worked on a coca bean plantation in Trinidad. He immigrated to the United States when he was 24 years old. To earn a living, Romero sailed on passenger ships, the primary method of overseas travel in those days, and then worked for a major hotel in Manhattan until his retirement in 1981. He and his wife, Ruth, who died about five years ago, lived in Brooklyn. They had four children and more grandchildren and great-grandchildren than he can remember. Romero's oldest son is now 80 and an interesting fact is that Ruth, who was born in 1907 and was about six years older when they married, was 101 when she passed away.

During World War II, Romero served as a Merchant Marine and received an honorable discharge from the Coast Guard in 1945.

In spite of his advanced age, Romero has only been living at Mount Alverno, an adult residence and assisted living program on the Warwick campus of the Bon Secours Health Care System, since last August. And although he lost his eyesight about five years ago, he was able to live independently until that time with the help of friends.

On July 18, Romero celebrated his 100th birthday with a traditional birthday cake and music and song by Norman Slonim, a fellow resident, at the piano. When Activities Coordinator Amy Steinberg asked him how he was feeling that day, he answered, “Would you like to dance?”

Romero said he enjoys life at Mount Alverno.

“Everybody is good to me,” he said. “I like living here.”

Although it may still seem rare, the fastest growing segment of the population is actually people who have reached the age of 100 and beyond. Providing long term health care is one of the most important services offered by members of the Bon Secours Charity Health System.

Additional information about Mount Alverno Center, Schervier Pavilion, Day-At-A-Time and St. Anthony Community Hospital is available at bsch.bonsecours.com