NORTHAMPTON — Marion Shea may be 104 years old, but she shows no signs of slowing down.
More than 25 family members, neighbors and friends gathered on the lawn of her Massasoit Street home on Monday to celebrate her 104th birthday, although her official birthday was the following day on Tuesday, May 16.
Shea was born in 1919 as one of 12 children to Helen and Joseph Osepowicz, immigrants from Poland who ran a farm in Hatfield. She attended Smith Academy, where she played basketball, and later married Donald Shea and became a secretary for the former Northampton State Hospital, transcribing information from doctors using shorthand and then typing up her notes to add the hospital’s permanent record.
Shea credits the tough farmwork she had to do as a child to the reason for her longevity.
“My doctor, when he was getting ready to retire, asked me, Marion, what’s your secret?” Shea said. “I told him, I don’t know. I grew up on a farm.”
After moving into her current home in 1957, Shea was active in her community, often using her sewing skills to help Smith College students who lived nearby, inviting them into her home and fixing their clothes if they needed it.
“I didn’t get to know her until later, since my kids were a little younger, but I’ve just had the most wonderful visits with her,” said ShauneenKroll, one of Shea’s longtime neighbors. “Her doctors keep retiring, her hairdresser retired, but she’s still extremely healthy.”
“I thought she was a real mentor to me in terms of what she brought to the forefront in terms of our house,” said Missy Shea, Marion’s daughter. “She was the one that would do things in a quiet, unassuming way, and could see through into what our needs were and she just took care of them.”
An avid sports fan, particularly of basketball, Shea continues to watch her favorite teams on television, circling the games featured in newspaper sports pages every day to determine which one she wants to see.
Her favorite teams are the Boston Red Sox, the Boston Celtics, Duke men’s basketball and UConn women’s basketball. She’s currently enjoying the Celtics’ playoff run, with the team having recently advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Asked if she thought the C’s could win it all this year, Shea replied, “Maybe. I don’t want to say for sure. I’d have to see more games to see just how they do.”
As for any advice to give to people from younger generations, Shea had a simple response.
“If they can keep up with me, they’ll be fine,” she said.
Alexander MacDougall can be reached at amacdougall@gazettenet.com.
