With representatives from nearly all of the six generations following her, Johnnie James Boyington celebrated her 100th birthday on Sept. 15 at the Atterdag Village. With flowers and carrot cake, laughter and hugs, the centenarian took in the event with quiet grace and her trademark quirky humor.
“I never thought I would,” Boyington said of her accomplishment. Likely she never thought she would receive a birthday card from a sitting president either, but she did.
“You have witnessed great milestones in our nation’s history, and your life represents an important part of the American story,” Barack and Michelle Obama wrote in their card. “As you reflect upon a century of memories, we hope that you are filled with tremendous pride and joy.”
Indeed, she says, she is. Her joy coming primarily from her family and her extended family of caretakers at the Atterdag Village. “People here take good care of me,” Boyington says upon her return from having been scurried away to have her hair curled a bit, in honor of the photo they are about to take.
“Isn’t Johnnie lovely?” says Jennifer, one of the staff. “She’s just the cutest thing.” With fairy wings purchased for her by one of her caretakers, and affixed to the back of her wheelchair, Johnnie finds the Village as much of a home as any she has had.
But the family she loves most are many blood relatives who live in and visit the Valley often, stopping by to share a moment with her on a regular basis. “Oh, my little Sharron,” she says of Sharron Luft, her grandniece, who was with her again on this day.
Myrtle Emerson, Boyington’s roommate, turned 100 years old last week as well. In fact, the pair are only two of several at Atterdag Village residents who are or are about to be more than a century old. But of all the history that has come and gone over the past century, it is the current moments spent with family that have the most meaning.
“She really likes to watch the little ones,” says Luft. One of those little ones is 4-year-old Rylee, who took the partying in stride. Any event which offers cake is a good thing, the kindergartner says, certain that her Auntie enjoyed her special day.
Luft, like nearly everyone else in the family, calls Boyington “Auntie Johnnie.” When Boyington’s sister died at the age of 36 leaving three small children, Boyington stepped up to take on the role of mother. It is a role she has played for many generations now.
A fearless businesswoman, Boyington started her own escrow business in an era when women did not usually do that kind of thing. When asked if she ever experienced difficulties due to her gender, Boyington simply smiles. “Oh no,” she says tipping her head slightly toward Luft, leaving it to her to finish the thought she now has trouble expressing.
“She demanded respect,” explains Luft, “not by what she would say, but in how she conducted herself.” Judie Hunt, another great-niece, who traveled from her home in Colorado for the celebration, agrees. Boyington’s self-assurance, wisdom and ability to diffuse difficult situations with humor have always netted her the esteem she deserves, Hunt says.
It was only after her retirement in the early 1970s that Boyington made her way to the Valley, with various family members following thereafter. Setting down roots, Boyington set about embracing the local culture. Almost immediately she began tending olallieberries in her Solvang garden, and then turning them into jam.
“Oh, they love to gobble it up,” says Boyington. The jam was only one of many recipes that drew her extended family to the Sunday dinner table – fried chicken with all the fixings were the regular favorite.
“I recall many summers spent in Gunnison, where Johnnie had a home, eating wonderful meals, fishing and playing board games,” says Hunt. And while Boyington’s days of cooking meals are behind her, she still looks forward spending time with family whenever she can.
“It isn’t really dinner if the family doesn’t come,” says Boyington. With memories fading over time, along with her hearing, it is those family dinners that remain vivid and give her so much pleasure.
Gathered on a later date to read her many birthday cards, Boyington reminisces with Luft and Hunt. “You don’t realize how much you remember until you do,” she says with a smile.
“Congratulations on your birthday, and may you enjoy many more happy years as a centenarian,” the Obama’s conclude in their card. As long as she has her family by her side, Boyington says she is sure she will.