100 Years of Memories: Eastern Oklahoma VA Celebrates Veterans Turning 100
Can you Imagine all the memories and life experiences you would have if you lived to be 100 years old?
Think of all the lives you would have touched, the lessons learned, and the successes along the way.
The Center for Development and Civic Engagement (CDCE) at the Eastern Oklahoma VA Health Care System believes 100 years is a milestone worth celebrating, and they are on a mission to recognize as many of our Centenarians as they can!
The CDCE Centenarian Celebration Project is a special initiative honoring Veterans turning 100. It was inspired by another project which began in 2020 by the VA Secretary to recognize Centenarians with a personalized birthday letter.
That project is still going strong and has been made a part of the celebrations in Eastern Oklahoma with each Veteran celebrated receiving a letter from the VA Secretary, along with a birthday party surrounded by the guest of honor’s family and VA health care teams.
The service has already celebrated many Veterans and they are looking forward to recognizing many more!
“The feedback from Veterans has been so touching,” said Candice Jordan, CDCE chief. “One Veteran wrote us a letter of gratitude stating how her party was a great morale booster for and told us how much she enjoyed all the staff, hugs, and of course the cake! This is a small program, but it’s making such a big impact and helping us in our mission to create a culture of kindness, inspiration, gratitude, and positive messages through out our health care system.”
Among the first Centenarians to be celebrated was Frederick Behn, who appreciated being able to share his birthday with others. He said he really enjoyed the party and hadn’t had one like it in a long time.
Staff listened closely as Behn shared a bit about his experience during World War II, during which he served four years in the Army Air Corps.
He also talked about how much he now enjoys the country life, adding that some of his hobbies include hunting and fishing with his sons and spending time with his family.
VA Staff and Veterans were all excited to join in the fun and thanked Behn for his service and congratulated him on reaching such a special milestone.
The CDCE team says they are excited for the positive feedback and are just getting started.
“Mr. Behn is just one of the amazing people with extraordinary life stories who we have the privilege to serve at the VA.” said Tana Wilson, CDCE Specialist. “We owe so much to our Veterans and this is just another way we can give back and show our appreciation.”