How to live a long and fulfilling life, advice from Agawam’s centenarian

April 26, 2018 | Jordan Houston
jordan@thereminder.com

Vivian Roberts, a centenarian living in Agawam, shares her tips on how to live a long, fulfilling life.
Reminder Publications by Jordan Houston.

AGAWAM – Vivian E. Roberts celebrated her 100th birthday on April 16.

Friends and family members joined Roberts at the First Baptist Church of Agawam, where she has been an active member for 83 years, for a light-hearted birthday bash. The centenarian also received a surprise visit from Agawam Mayor William Sapelli. The mayor presented Roberts with an official proclamation from the town of Agawam to honor her milestone achievement.

 “I didn’t want a specific birthday present, I just wanted my kids and my family there,” said Roberts. “It was so powerful. I’ll never have them all together in the same room again – it was the first time that every one of them came. I joked that the next time we all get together will be at my funeral, and I won't even know about it." 

Roberts was born in Springfield in 1918. She moved to Agawam two years later and has lived there ever since. She went on to study education and play basketball at Westfield State College, where she graduated in 1939. After graduation, she taught 4th and 5th grade at the Phelps School in the Agawam Center until she retired in 1978. She taught there for 44 years.

The former teacher met her husband, Norman Roberts, when he was playing football at Agawam High School. They married in 1941 in a double wedding with her sister, Arlene. The couple remained married for 65 years, raising a son, Dale Roberts, who lives in Massachusetts and Florida, and a daughter, Judie Phillips, who lives in Maine. She has four grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.

During the course of her life in Agawam, Roberts was dedicated to the town and the welfare of others. She continues to bake for charities and works at the Trading Post in her church every week. She is a lifetime member of the Agawam Lion’s Club and has been a Lioness for over 50 years now. She was actively involved in the Agawam Bicentennial celebration and the Agawam Historical Society.

“I watched Agawam grow from a little farming town with open spaces to a big town, and now, a city,” said Roberts. “I never thought I’d reach 100, but I did. My son always said to me when he was little, ‘you’re going to live to be 100, ma.’”

Reminder Publications met up with the centenarian to learn more about her secrets to a long and healthy life. While research does suggest that genetic factors play a role in longevity, lifestyle plays a part too – and Roberts definitely has some tips to offer.

1. Be active

Roberts said her number one piece of advice for a long life is to stay active. The Agawam native works at the Trading Post at the First Baptist Church of Agawam, which is a consignment shop that sells used garments and household items, once a week. On sunny days, she walks up and down the sidewalk in front of her home on Central Street.  She also does her own grocery shopping and rides the PVTA bus every Friday to get her hair done.

“Most hundred-year-olds are in nursing homes – there’s a lot of them, but very few of them are real active,” she said. “Don’t sit around or sleep a lot. Clean out drawers or closets or something.”

2. Eat healthy

Her second piece of advice is one that is frequently given, and that is to eat healthy. Roberts said she loves to continue to cook for herself and stays away from all types of “junk food.” She added that she believes this is why she doesn’t get sick very often

3. Surround yourself with people

Another one of Roberts’ keys is to interact with other people. She is quite the social butterfly, she explained.

“Being social – it gives you a stimulus and keeps you up with world happenings and town news. You’ve got to be with people and discuss things to keep you alive and your mind alert – don’t be a hermit. Be social and gregarious,” she commented.

Roberts said she loves to be with people, and although she lives alone, she makes an effort to leave her house almost every day. She is involved in a variety of clubs, and meets with a group of widows once a month to go out to dinner.

Working at her job at the Trading post allows her to meet and mingle with the customers, she said.

“I meet a lot of people over there, and several times I’ve had people come in and say, ‘oh, I had you in the fourth grade,’” she said. “When you taught 31 years – and you had 36 kids every year – that’s a lot of children.”

To give an idea of Roberts’ popularity, she had three different birthday parties with three different groups.  One of her parties was a pizza party, per her request, put on by her hairdresser and salon.

4. Join a church

Lastly, Robert’s final piece of advice is to have some-sort of church affiliation. She attributes her church to her blossoming social life.

“I have loads of friends from church, and that’s what is keeping me alive,” she said. “My daughter lives in Maine, my son lives in Florida and Massachusetts, and none of my grandchildren and great grandchildren live here,” she explained. “It’s important to keep in touch with your family and have a good family relationship, but it’s hard when they are far away. It helps to have a church family.”

Roberts finished the discussion by saying she has no regrets in life.

“I feel like I’ve lived in a good era because I’ve seen the little towns grow. We didn’t have radios, televisions, washing machines or any of the modern conveniences – perhaps that’s why I am so attached to my family,” she expressed. “It seems like it went very quickly, like it was yesterday I was going to school in Westfield. It goes fast, but it was a great 100 years.”

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