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Wayne Hill, a World War II veteran and resident of Kearns Senior Apartments, had never had a birthday party in 97 years.
On Tuesday, dozens of friends, fellow veterans, local first responders and concerned people gathered to help break the record. The atmosphere in the common room of the senior center, located below the apartment complex, was lively as Hill unwrapped presents and thanked guests.
“In my 97 years of life, I don’t remember ever having a birthday party,” he says. “This is dandy.”
Hill, a Wheeling native, served in the U.S. Navy’s aviation law service in the Pacific theater of World War II.
“I’m very happy to meet veterans. We are becoming less and less every day. There are fewer and fewer of us, but I’m glad that everyone is here today to celebrate my birthday with me.” said Hill. “First responders aside, I appreciate and love everyone in this room. I’m so happy to be here.
“It’s great to see veterans. There’s a brotherhood there that will never go away, and it’s just a part of who we are,” he said.
In civilian life, Hill worked as a furniture repairman for the Reichardt Furniture Company. He added that he now considers his senior colleagues to be his family.
“I’m just happy to be alive and to be here. I hope to see you all next year and beyond,” he said.
Tish Kinney, director of Bellaire Senior Center, organized the party. She described Hill as “a crazy person.”
“But we love him,” she said. “He’s definitely a character. He makes us all laugh. He fires me at least twice a week, but he always employs me. He’s definitely a Belair It is the cornerstone of the senior center.
“He’s never had a birthday party, so I wanted to make today special. When he came in today and we were putting up all the decorations, he had tears in his eyes. With a smile on his face, he said, “I’ve never had a birthday party before.”
Kinney thanked the veterans who stopped by with first responders, and Belmont County Commissioners JP Dutton and Josh Meyer also joined in the celebration.
“It’s amazing that they all took time out of their day to come meet this guy. It means the world to him,” Kinney added. “Berea Senior, his center, has a great following. He’ll do a lot of things with the seniors.”
Senior service driver Jewel Hammond agreed.
“He’s amazing. He’s just the leader of our center. I look forward to seeing him every day. He always says something wise or something, but he’s a very, very nice person,” she said. Said.
Belmont County Senior Services Administrator Leslie Thompson said Hill was impressive.
“He is the heart of the center,” she said. “He attends our center and impacts the lives of everyone who visits our center.”
Bob Farmer of the American Legion St. Clairsville Post said he was honored to be in attendance.
“He, along with other World War II veterans, arguably earned the title of Greatest of the Generation. If they hadn’t served, we wouldn’t be serving today.” he said.
Hill was presented with the quilt by Sue Olinsky of the Ohio Valley Quilts of Valor.
“There were two of us who worked on this. We were saving it for a special occasion, and this was considered a special occasion. “I had a group of women “We have a group of about 30 women who are involved in making quilts for veterans. We’ve been doing this since 2015. We’ve probably distributed a little over 300,” she said.
“When we make a quilt, we sit down and think about who we’re making it for. Every quilter does that,” she continued. “He liked it. Usually veterans do that. They really appreciate them and what they do to show that they appreciate what they’ve done for us.” It makes us feel good to be able to do something like that.”
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