NOT FOUND: 96 years.jpgGlen Roth celebrated his 96th birthday this summer. 96! That means he was born in 1914. That’s a lot of life to have lived and Glen has lived it well. Plus, since Gov. Schwarzenegger just gave him a five-year extension on his valid California driver’s license, Glen has more life to live!
And that he does. Glen was born in Connersville, Indiana and when his father got tired of delivering the mail in the snow and sleet, he decided to move his family (Dad, Mom, Glen and brother Thomas) to Shafter, California to become a farmer. That lasted about a year. Deciding farming and Shafter were not for them, Dad (Nelson Roth) moved the family to Bakersfield where he went back to delivering mail.
After two years the heat got to Nelson so he told his boss he needed a colder place to work. He was transferred and the Roth family moved to Hermosa Beach, a half block from the beach. The young Roth boys loved it, but Mom was not too thrilled about cleaning buckets of sand out of the house each day. Mail carrier, turned farmer, turned mail carrier decided to build his family a house a little further from the beach. They remained there throughout Glen’s high school years.
On one of their many family camping vacations, Glen, his brother and his dad decided to go on a hike. They left their mom at the tent, packed some sandwiches and took off. They slept over night and headed back home the next day when they met some Sierra Club members. The Roth men had hiked to the top of Mt. Whitney and back down the next day! This is not your average, everyday hike. Sounds like this family has a great deal of zeal and determination.
In 1934, on a sunny Sunday afternoon in Torrence, CA, Glen met his future bride, Marion, at a Christian Youth conference. Glen was a student at Loyola University and he found out that Marion was working at Montgomery Ward. When it came time to buy his mother a Christmas gift, he drove out of his way to shop at her store. He left the store with a waffle iron and a date! They dated for a while and Glen asked Marion’s father for her hand in marriage. In October 1940, they were married.
Glen, with a twinkle in his eye, refers to Marion as “Sweetie” or “Mrs. Sweetie.” Glen worked for North American Aviation as a welder for 35 years. Sweetie stayed home to raise their three children. They moved to Sacramento twenty years ago and Sweetie passed away seven years ago. Their eldest son, David and his wife live in Lexington, KY. Youngest son, Stephen and his wife live in San Diego and daughter, Merilee and her husband live close to Glen.
When asked what a typical day of a “not so typical” 96-year-old consists of, Glen gave me his schedule. He rises at 6am, does his Bible study, fixes his breakfast and works in his yard. That is, except on the days he drives to the mall to go mall walking. Yes, Glen still drives, does not have to wear glasses; no hearing aid and is in good health. He is very active at Arcade Church.
He attributes his health and longevity to his faith in God, good genes and lots and lots of vegetables. He grew up with lots of vegetables and has had a garden wherever he has lived.
While I listened to Glen tell his story, I was captivated by his zest for life, family and God. Every detail, from ages to addresses was impeccably communicated and stories were so rich, I felt I was reliving them with him. What a great treasure we have in the rich history of our seniors. We should not let this history pass us by without capturing it somehow. If you have any seniors that you would like us to spotlight in the North Sac News, please let us know.