Comedian George Burns, who lived to be 100, once said, “You can’t help getting old, but you don’t have to grow old.” For local Ocean City resident, Mary Alice Campanaro, no truer words of wisdom have ever been spoken. As Campanaro approaches her 88th birthday this coming May, life is active and purposeful. She enjoys watercolor classes at the Ocean City Arts Center and also teaches knitting and crocheting there. For Mary Alice Campanaro and many others like her, the thought of slowing down and growing old isn’t even on their radar.
Campanaro has found true love in her twilight years. She and Ron met at the Ocean City Arts Center and have been dating for over a year. “It’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me,” she beamed. “We like to paint and cook together, and we also enjoy taking walks on the Ocean City Boardwalk.” Ron, who is 18 years younger than Campanaro, gave her a ring in a medicine bottle. “He said, ‘I would like you to wear this ring,’” she explained. “I knew it wasn’t a marriage proposal. I believe he was trying to say, ‘I was his.’ And that’s good enough for me!”
Arthur DeMarco, 93, a resident of Brigantine, benefits from taking art classes at the Brigantine Community Recreation Center. He finds art classes with other students fun, relaxing, and therapeutic. De Marco is a retired anesthesiologist and has been happily married to Mary for 64 years. He recently passed his eye test, so he can continue to drive. De Marco also consistently lifts weights in his home gym. When the weather permits, he enjoys a pleasant walk and sailing in the warm sunshine. “I used to own a 30-foot sloop sailboat,” De Marco commented. “I used to sail all the time, but now, I like being a crew member on a boat.”
Nora McDonald, who resides in Somers Point, is 94 years young. She is an avid watercolorist at the Ocean City Arts Center. She has painted many pictures, which she has proudly given to her children and grandchildren as gifts. “I love to paint flowers, landscapes, and scenes I remember growing up in Ireland.” McDonald dances the tango and loves Irish music. Her humor is witty and mischievous, making her friends in art class blush a bright crimson. On March 17, she attended Philadelphia’s St. Patty’s Day Parade, where she danced an Irish jig, landing her a cameo spot on Channel 6 News. This coming May, McDonald is scheduled to travel to Dublin, Ireland, with her daughter. “I’m going to look up an old boyfriend. He’s 93. I know he still likes me,” she said with a wink.
Thomas Brehm, 83, a resident of Brigantine, works out with weights twice a week. “I’ve been going to the gym for over two years now,” Brehm said. “I can do more things around the house and outside in my garden because I lift weights.” A retired industrial arts teacher, Brehm also enjoys tending to his backyard vegetable garden, complete with a built-in compost pile. “I like growing asparagus, radishes, and sugar snap peas. As the summer gets hotter, I grow scallions, green beans, and sweet peppers,” he explained. He also has a woodshop in his basement and likes fixing things for friends and neighbors.
Golden-agers in their 80s and 90s refuse to fade into the background. Instead, there is a vibrant “refiring” of the soul. The hard work at the gym transforms into the fountain of youth. A simple art class becomes the site of radical self-discovery. The golden years just aren’t a sunset to be watched, but a high-definition, technicolor masterpiece that, for many, has yet to reach its pinnacle.
