Cherokee County Resident Celebrates 106th Birthday

CHEROKEE COUNTY — A Cherokee County woman turned 106 July 19, and celebrated the milestone with family and friends.

Mary Haskell, a resident of Manor Lake Assisted Living and Memory Care in the BridgeMill community, celebrated her 106th birthday.

She was born in Chillicothe, Ohio in 1918. She had two siblings, Elizabeth Harrison and George Bearce Jr.

She grew up in New York City in the Bronx, later moving to Bucksport, Maine. Her father, George Bearce, was in management with a paper company, which led to her moving around growing up.

While living in Maine, she attended the University of Maine, where she played field hockey. She graduated with a degree in economics.

“She was athletic and very smart,” her son Richard Haskell said.

After she graduated, she traveled to Boston where she worked and met her future husband, Arthur Haskell. He worked as a metallurgical engineer after working as a junior engineer during WWII.

“He worked on the titanium case that housed the atomic bomb,” Richard Haskell said.

The couple married in 1943, later moving to Niagara Falls N.Y. after Arthur Haskell was transferred by his company. They lived in upstate New York for almost 20 years until 1963, when they moved to Chicago. They later moved to Greensboro N.C. in the 1970s.

The Haskells had five children: Richard, Judith, David, Marion and Nancy, who died several years ago.

Mary Haskell has nine grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

After having children, she became a homemaker, which Richard Haskell said was a full-time job for her.

Arthur Haskell died in 1996 at 76.

“She still lived at the house in Greensboro by herself until she was in her early to mid-90s,” Richard Haskell said. “She then came to live with my wife and me in Canton. Even living with us, she was still pretty independent and active. When we would go away in the summer for a week or two, we would take her over to Manor Lake just on a respite stay. Eventually, she moved there full-time about a year or two ago.”

Mary Haskell adapted quickly to her new home, Richard Haskell said, adding that she’s made several new friends since moving there.

Throughout her life, she has enjoyed many hobbies including reading, bird club activities and spending time with her family and friends.

“She was in a weekly bowling league in Greensboro until her mid-80s, and she was pretty good — when your bowling score is higher than your age you must be doing something right,” Richard Haskell said. “Funny enough, she never did anything particularly healthy like exercise — she loved eating meat and potatoes. I can’t explain it. I’m 78 and go to the gym six days a week still, and her EKG (electrocardiography) results recently came out better than mine. It was just astounding. There are a lot of 30 and 40-year-olds who would be thrilled to have her cardiac trace, that’s for sure.”

Several Manor Lake Assisted Living and Memory Care staff members at Mary Haskell’s birthday party said she is kind and loving, always saying “thank you” after meal times.