This upcoming Halloween, Hollyce Kirkland will turn 102.

One hundred and two!

I caught up with this fascinating 101-year-old the other day.  Hearing bits and pieces of her story along the way, I wanted to take the time to listen and learn more.

First of all, her crisp, clear voice belies her actual age.  Chattering along at a quick cadence, she simply sounds so much younger than her actual years.

After I inquired about her health and activities, she exclaimed that all was well although she wasn’t getting out as much.  But as that statement left her lips, she told me that last fall she and her husband Marv made their annual pilgrimage to their Appalachian group camp gathering.

“You mean last year when you were turning 101”, I clarified?

For some reason, my brain couldn’t comprehend a centenarian traveling about so easily.

“Oh sure.  Marv drives us and he still gets out on the trail to hike, but I stay back and keep camp.  Someone has to do it.”

Marv, her husband and junior of 15 years, serves as a marvelous chauffeur for their many adventures.

Two years ago, she and Marv set out from East Tennessee by car to travel to the 2019 National Senior Games in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  A frantic call from their district Senior Olympics coordinator Melissa urged us all to pray for the couple as they were traveling through horrific flooding in some states.

“ I wanted to get there early so we could get some hiking in”,  Hollyce recounted later when asked about the voyage.

In addition, as she was turning 100 in the year 2019, she was a bit of a rock star as she entered into the very exclusive 100-104 age category.  

Couldn’t miss a minute!

The Race

Another example of her strength and fortitude unfolded during those Games.

Back in Tennessee, we eagerly awaited news regarding one of the most exciting races to come down the pike, a match-up between Julia Hawkins aged 103, and Hollyce aged 100. 

Now honestly, as Julia RAN the 100m and Hollyce typically briskly walked, we pretty much anticipated the outcome.

However, Hollyce did not show up for the race.

Later, we learned that she tripped and fell over a lip in the track the day before, as she strolled to watch another event.  Horribly tumbling and knocking teeth out, her face emerged swollen and bruised.

Rhonda, her ever-present friend, companion, and somewhat of an agent or should I say angel, who organizes Hollyce’s competition schedules, came to the rescue.  Locating an emergency dentist and hopeful for relief, the news came back as a disappointment. 

Urging Hollyce to return to her own dentist in East Tennessee as soon as possible, there was little he could do.

I for one would have been miserable and whining and flat in the backseat of the car, begging to go home.

Hollyce stayed.

You see, as the oldest woman in the Tennessee contingent, she was slated to carry the tri-star flag into the Celebration of Athletes for the Volunteer State.   She was proud to be seen by all and shrugged off the pain.

How many adjectives are there to describe this woman?  Attempting would be futile.

Toward the end of our conversation the other day I queried,

“Miss Hollyce, what would you tell others if they asked about your health and longevity?

Insights from Hollyce

Crediting good genes is part of the story.  But as with other 100+ year-olds who have been studied, there are common threads that weave throughout the lifestyles of these centenarians.

• Hollyce has been active her entire life.  From growing up on a farm in North Carolina, to frequent hikes on the Appalachian Trail,  to swimming regularly (which started back in her late teens), movement has been important.   Although she claims that she is not currently getting out as much, walking and swimming have stayed constant during her older years.
  
  
• Always quick to mention and be filled with gratitude for a support system, Hollyce never fails to mention this key component.  Having people around to support, cheer, help drive, and arrange schedules has been vital.  Her husband Marv and friend Rhonda so beautifully fill these roles right now. Relationships, social ties, and connection with others is important.

• She credits having access to fresh vegetables and produce as a key. “I have never been a big fan of sweets or too much meat”.  I commented that it sounded as if she had been plant-based all of these years before it was a “thing”.  She cackled.
  
  
• Gardening is a love, and has allowed her all of those wonderful vegetables over the years. Benefits to gardening are numerous, as studies show.
  
  
• It’s never too late to compete. Guess when this spunky gal started competing in swim and track meets?  Her 80’s! She met Rhonda at a local pool and was encouraged to register for the TN Senior Olympics.
  

  “There were people who told me that I shouldn’t have started participating and competing in my 80’s. I just shrugged them off. The opportunity to participate in the Senior Olympics (Games) gave me courage as I participated at the local, state, and national levels.”.

• Competing is not just for elite athletes.   For track, Hollyce’s typical attire consists of a baggy pair of capri-type pants and a white blouse.   Her lifelong love of hiking has enabled her to compete in every event, one after the other.  Not particularly fast, she walks instead of running as she clicks off the 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m, and 1500m events in a two-day period.  Jaws drop as this energizer bunny keeps making her way to start line.

• Swimming is a wonderful lifelong activity, easy on the joints and gravity-free. As with track events, Hollyce amazes all in attendance as she swims her way through just about every event in the competition.

• As with her support system mentioned above, friendships made while competing have been cherished.
  
  
• She is thankful for her fitness, faith, and friends.  A grateful heart is good for one’s health.
  

  Invariably, a popular comment that emerges when  hearing the story of this captivating woman is:

  “Hollyce, I want to be you when I grow up”!

It’s never too late!