TAMARAC, Fla. – Hilda Swadlow marked her 108th birthday on Friday.
She was born in New Jersey when Woodrow Wilson was the president of the United States. Her father was a retired dress manufacturer who moved from Poland to Newark. She lived through World War I and World War II.
Swadlow and her family later settled in South Florida, and she has been a resident at HarborChase of Tamarac, an assisted living facility with memory care in Broward County, for about four decades.
The HarborChase staff said Swadlow is not one to start up conversations and she prefers to spend quiet days in her bedroom, but not on Friday. It was an extraordinary day. She was the star of a big party.
Dozens of people surrounded Swadlow in a dining room. A white cloth covered her round table and the centerpiece had red roses and petals. The HarborChase staff served the chef’s pork with rice and black beans.
Her family brought a large rectangular white cake adorned with delicate fondant roses in shades of pink, yellow, and blue. It had a large edible picture of her in the middle, and she wore a golden “birthday girl” crown. She said she was grateful.