Catherine Lumetta celebrated her 104th birthday Tuesday surrounded by family and friends, including her niece, Antoinette Nachman. Photo by Michael V. Cusenza
As the Bee Gees’ smash-hit “Stayin’ Alive” blared from the speakers, and revelers danced in the dining hall at Catholic Charities Howard Beach Senior Center on Tuesday afternoon, the guest of honor beamed with pride, nestled in her throne—tiara and all—along the near wall, surrounded by family and friends.
This was Catherine Lumetta’s day. Her 104th birthday.
“I feel very happy and very lucky to have wonderful friends and a beautiful family,” said Lumetta, a mother of five children, grandmother of nine and great-grandmother of 22. “What more can you ask for?”
Lumetta, whose actually date of birth is Nov. 21, 1910, emigrated from Sicily when she was 4 years old, and grew up in East New York, Brooklyn, with her brother and sister. According to her daughter, Pauline Mantineo, Lumetta is in great health (“She doesn’t even take one pill a day”) and still fills out her daily crossword puzzle.
“How happy can you be, to still have a mother alive and well,” Mantineo said of the woman who up until about four years ago still cooked the traditional Italian Sunday dinner every week.
Lumetta lives on 149th Avenue with her son, Joseph, and visits the senior center once a week.
“She’s a sweetheart,” said Judy Ascherman, program manager of the center on Cross Bay Boulevard. “She loves parties and has a great sense of humor.”
Lumetta’s niece, Antoinette Nachman, called this week’s milestone “the most fantastic thing,” and echoed Ascherman’s note about Lumetta’s ability to laugh and make people laugh.
“You could tell her a dirty joke and she gets a kick out of them,” Nachman said with a smile.
To put Lumetta’s achievement in perspective, when she was born William Howard Taft was President of the United States; Halley’s Comet, which is visible from Earth every 75 to 76 years, could be seen in April, 1910; the Union of South Africa was created; the Boy Scouts of America was founded; and the first air flight for the purpose of delivering commercial freight took place in 1910.
Rosemarie J., who has been a member at the senior center for the past two-and-a-half-years, wished Lumetta a happy birthday, adding “it’s very inspiring…that maybe I’ll make 100. God bless her.”
Ascherman was already looking ahead.
“We’ll see her next year for her 105th,” she said.
By Michael V. Cusenza
