A pair of Queens seniors marked their 100th birthdays with a special joint birthday party at the Atria Senior Living center in Forest Hills on Wednesday, celebrating reaching a century among family and fellow residents.
Jane Levy, born in New York City on Aug. 5, 1925, and Jaffa Smigrod, born in Germany on Aug. 25, 1925, toasted their landmark birthdays with a joint celebration at Atria Forest Hills, located at 11250 72nd Ave., on Wednesday afternoon.
Levy, who spent almost all her life in Queens and graduated from Queens College with a degree in languages, praised the senior center for hosting the joint party, stating that the celebration was not her idea.
“They really treat every resident very nicely and do things for them, because they did this for me – I didn’t suggest it,” the centenarian said at Wednesday’s celebration.
Levy said she had no secrets for a long life, adding that she aims to take life “day by day.”
“Somebody once said to me that if you don’t smoke and you don’t drink hard liquor, you can live to a ripe old age,” Levy said. “Well, I did smoke, which I gave up earlier, so I have no recipe for reaching old age.”
Smigrod, who was born in Berlin before moving to the United States, similarly stated that she had no secret for living a long life, but said she would advise her younger self to nap more often.
“Take afternoon naps. It’s healthier for you,” Smigrod said.
However, both women spoke of remaining mentally and physically active since moving into the senior center around five years ago through word puzzles and exercise classes.
Levy’s grandson Evan Lazar said his grandmother’s heavy involvement in the local Forest Hills community was at least partially responsible for her long and healthy life.
He also noted that his grandmother had an “adaptable mind,” noting that she has lived through several seismic global events. Levy and Smigrod were born on the eve of the Great Depression, with Levy becoming the first in her family to graduate from Queens College.
Levy would also go on to sell war bonds during World War II before protesting against the Vietnam War during the 1960s. Lazar said his grandmother remained active in the local community through the local Jewish temple and through education, serving as president of her local PTA before tutoring local students after retiring as an office clerk.
“Everyone wants to know what the super food is,” Lazar said. “But staying involved really was the secret.”
Meanwhile, her neighbor Evan Turk spoke of how Levy was “like a grandmother to all the kids on the block” before she moved into the senior living community five years ago.
“She was just so friendly, with a warmth and curiosity,” Turk said, adding that he still regularly visits Levy to bring local news from the Forest Hills community.
Levy, who has two children and four grandchildren, recently welcomed two great-grandchildren, which Lazar described as a “real treat.”
Smigrod, meanwhile, maintains that raising her two children is her greatest achievement and has also welcomed two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Levy and Smigrod marked their landmark birthday on Wednesday with cake and an afternoon of live entertainment.
