Sherwood Content’s Hortense Levy still dancing at 100

Western Bureau:

Sherwood Content, in Trelawny, the home district of track icon Usain Bolt, has churned out another newsmaker, the sprightly Hortense Levy, who celebrated her 100th birthday on September 23, and is full of life and quite active.

During a birthday party in her honour at Water Wherl in Martha Brae, Levy was her usual lively self, chatting, laughing and dancing as she soaked up the congratulations bestowed on her by family and friends who turned out to celebrate with her.

“I never left the district to live anywhere else. All of my 10 children were born at home. In those times, someone would go and call nurse Byfield, who would come to the house and deliver the baby,” recounted the newly minted centenarian. “You and the baby spent nine days in the room before coming out. In these days the baby born in the morning and by afternoon mother and baby leave hospital.”

Levy has now joined 105-year-old Sylvia Bernard as the only centenarian in Sherwood Content as fellow centenarian, Evelyn Johnson, died April 2024 at ag 105 years old.

SECRET TO LONG LIFE

Quizzed as to why the residents of Sherwood Content are living so long, with several persons now in their late 90s, she credit eating natural food, which is grown without fertiliser.

“We eat all natural foods, no fertiliser. The yam, cassava, the corn, the fowl meat and eggs are all home grown ... take a look at the yolk in our common fowl egg, it is rich yellow not like the eggs from nowadays fowl, where the yolk and the shell are the same colour,” said Levy

“I eat sweet cassava, yellow yam, cornmeal dumpling [a mixture of grated corn with little flour]. This is mixed with my packersa [a mixture of run dung coconut custard with salt fish and bush cabbage], what sweet suh,” said Levy with her usual laughter.

A devout Christian in the New Testament Church of God, Levy has outlived her four daughters.

“I walk every day to any distance in the district. I have never spent a day in the hospital and I read my Bible without glasses,” said Levy.

Her granddaughter, Donna Johnson, said her grandmother is quite agile as, while she loves her church, she also loves to dance.

LOVE FOR DANCE

“When the music starts you will see her on the dance floor,” said Johnson, who noted that her grandmother is always encouraging her to eat right, and “still makes my coconut oil”.

Joyce Brown, a resident of Sherwood Content, in toasting Levy said she was an exceptional woman.

“You are a true testimony of God’s grace and mercy. Nothing about you shows you are 100 years old. I hope to be around next year when you celebrate another birthday,” said Brown.

Despite her age, Levystill embraces her love for politics and is a staunch supporter of the People’s National Party.

“I was 14 years old when the People’s National Party was formed. I have been a supporter since that day. However, politics changed. The representatives no longer care for the people. You only see them at election time. I am unhappy, but I will still be voting,” she said.

editorial@gleanerjm.com