Then there’s Merle Baynes. He gives some of us a little more hope.
On Tuesday, Baynes will celebrate his 105th birthday and credits a nightly cold beer, a Hudepohl — remember “It’s Happy Hudy Time” — for helping him move well into the Centenarian Club.
With all the medical advancements, it’s becoming more common for people in the U.S. to celebrate their 100th birthday. There were 2,300 centenarians in the U.S. in 1950, and that number surpassed 93,000 in 2018, according to the U.S. Census.
But 105? That’s reason to celebrate. Maybe with a Hudy.
“I have good days and bad days,” said Baynes, born in Hamilton on Dec. 1, 1915. “I have had a good life. There have been some ups and downs.”
Patty Seaton, who cares for her father in her Hamilton home, said he drank a nightly beer when he was younger and now may drink one a month.
“Don’t care much for the taste now,” he said.
Baynes graduated from Hamilton High School in 1934. Let’s go out on a limb here and say he would have been the only attendee last year at his 85th class reunion.
“Most of my friends are gone,” he said quietly. “I miss the ones that are not here.”
Longevity seems to be in his genes. His parents lived to be in their 90s. His sister died when she was 101. And his two brothers lived to be 75 and 65. The youngest brother was a heavy smoker, Seaton said.
He and his wife, Marguerite Zimmerer, met on a blind date and married two years later in 1938. They were married for 67 years until her death in 2005.
They have four children, all of whom are living. The oldest, Don, 82, lives in Fairfield; Betty Trauthwein, 78, lives in Arizona; Mike, 70, lives in North Dakota; and Patty, 67. He also has 12 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren and 13 great-great-grandchildren.
Baynes, who worked at Champion Paper for 43 years until 1978, lived alone in Lindenwald until he fell about 18 months ago. He rehabbed at a care facility, then moved in with his youngest daughter. She said her father’s mind remains sharp, and he constantly reads.
“We keep Half Price Books in business,” she said with a laugh.
He has been a member of St. Ann Church in Hamilton for 80 years and is an avid Ohio State and Notre Dame fan, his daughter said.
While some of us are reluctant to buy green bananas, Baynes planted a tomato garden until he was 100.
“He’s amazing,” Seaton said. “I can’t imagine being 105. I really can’t. He has taught us so many lessons. To be honest and treat others like we like being treated.”
Of course, because of the coronavirus, there will be no 105th birthday party. Seaton has arranged for family and friends to send her father birthday cards.
Baynes was asked what he cherishes most of his 105 years. No homes, cars or vacations made the list. Instead, he mentioned his family.
“That’s my life,” he said.
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