“Uncle Chip” Collins Celebrates 100

As guests entered Milton ​“Uncle Chip” Collins’s 100th birthday party at Amarante’s Sea Cliff, they might have had trouble distinguishing the World War II vet, beloved New Havener, aesthete, and now centenarian from a crowd of dancers. However, Collins could be found by the band, grooving along to swanky jazz.

Collins, known to most as ​“Uncle,” does not look ​“a day over 80,” according to his niece, New Haven Public Schools’ Supervisor for Speech and Hearing Sondi Jackson. Collins celebrated his birthday on Saturday at 62 Cove St. surrounded by friends and family, as well as the many lives he has touched as an active member of the New Haven community.

Fittingly, around 100 of Collins’s friends and family members gathered to celebrate his ongoing legacy, enjoying a classy party featuring a jazz band, buffet lunch, and a view of the Long Island Sound.

Born in New Haven on July 10, 1924, Collins spent his childhood as a member of Boy Scout Troop 78 and playing for the basketball team at the Dixwell Community ​“Q” House. Collins also has fond memories of tap dancing, a talent that led him to join a short northeast tour of a dance trio.

Following his graduation from Hillhouse High School in 1942, Collins was drafted as a private in the 3124th Quartermaster Service Company, before receiving an honorable discharge in 1945. Upon his return from World War II, Collins was studying tailoring in New York City when he met his wife of 51 years, Martha ​“Betty” Saxon. The married couple had one child, Neal David, who passed away in 2009.

Collins returned to New Haven in 2004 upon Saxon’s passing, and has since been a loyal member of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church. He devotes much of his time to his interests, including jazz, theatre, literature, and Formula 1 racing.

Sondi Jackson delivered the opening remarks at Saturday’s party, eager to celebrate ​“the man, the myth, and the legend known as Milton, Chip, Thelma’s sister, and, to most, as Uncle.”

According to Jackson, the party was Collins’s idea: ​“At last year’s Freddy Fixer Gala, Uncle said, ​‘I want a party just like this one.’ Well? A live jazz band? You got it. A DJ? You got it. Good food? You got it. Friends and family to celebrate with? You got it.”

After an invocation by Collins’s grandniece Kia Levey Burden and a reading of congratulatory proclamations from the New Haven Board of Alders and Hamden Mayor Lauren Garrett, William ​“Billy” Wright toasted Collins’s selfless nature.

“I leaned on you when I needed you most. You were there for me. I love you, and I appreciate you.” Guests burst into applause, but Wright had one more question: ​“Also, I think I have selective amnesia. Do I owe you any money?”

The toast concluded the programming, which was followed by a buffet style lunch including brisket, pasta, salad, and broccoli — the ​“key to a long life,” according to Collins.

When asked to speak about her uncle, Jackson reminisced on his reputation. ​“He commanded respect. He was revered — feared and revered,” Jackson laughed.

“He was the uncle you could go to for support, money, support educationally.” According to Jackson, financial literacy has always been Collins’ speciality, and he rarely minded making an investment in his niece’s learning.

Jackson credits her uncle with her financial savviness and interest in — ​“not love, but interest in” — jazz. ​“We used to have an annual tradition of going to see the Rockettes in New York. He loves the Rockettes, and he loves New York.”

Jackson described her uncle as ​“vibrant, alert, astute.”

“He’s opinionated, he’s interested in politics — ask him anything, and he’ll have something to say,” Jackson said. ​“He has an iPad — he may not know how to use it, but he has it! He also always has the newest phone, specifically for the GPS.” Although he frequently incorporates walking into his daily regimen, Collins often opts to drive to commitments.

“He’s taught me that you’re as old as you feel. He’s 100, but he lives independently, he cooks for himself, he manages his own finances, he still dances — he’s incredible,” Jackson said.

In lieu of gifts, Jackson collected funds for a college scholarship to be awarded to a graduating Hillhouse senior with an interest in the arts. Collins will also be the first honorary member of the Hillhouse Alumni Association.

“It feels great to be 100,” said Collins. ​“I’m happy.” For those around him, he “[hopes] that everything turns out great” for his friends, family, and the organizations he participated in.

Looking back at his life, Collins said he is especially proud of his work with the Antillean Association, a volunteer organization run by those with ancestral roots in the West Indies. According to Jackson, Collins’s maternal grandparents are from St. Kitts.

When asked about his secret to ​“not looking a day over 80,” Collins swore by hotdogs and beans every Saturday. ​“I remember my mom used to make it for me. That’s the secret to a long life: Hotdogs and beans.”