'This little light of mine': Jupiter bash celebrates Alberta Bailey's 107th birthday
She wore a white, wide-brimmed hat, a gold tiara and shiny red heels as she smiled from ear to ear and raised her hand toward the sky, singing "Thank you, Lord!" as about 100 friends and family members gathered around on July 3 outside the Edna W. Runner Education Center in Jupiter.
There even was a sermon, delivered by the Rev. Charles Nesbitt of Lake Worth Church of God, about taking care of elders, followed by renditions of "Amazing Grace" and "This Little Light of Mine."
The nonprofit's staff members threw the party for the West Palm Beach resident because her great-great grandchildren attend the center.
Bailey's relatives said the day matched the legacies that one of Palm Beach County's oldest residents wants to pass on — the importance of prayer, of family and of living an exuberant life.
"I feel happy," said Bailey, who spent much of the party chatting with her guests and receiving greetings from firefighters and Jupiter police officers and a certificate of recognition signed by Palm Beach County Mayor Maria Marino.
"I have my grand children, daughter and I love them all. . . . I don't have a pain in my body. I thank God just for living. I know one day, I am going home. I have nothing to worry about."
Legacy lives on: A Jupiter after-school center kept going after its beloved founder died. Thank her nephew.
Bailey grew up in the 1920s an hour's drive north of Tallahassee in Boston, Georgia. For much of her life, she did field work picking pecans, cotton and other Georgia crops, according to her granddaughter, Pam Booker Pettis.
Segregation was prevalent at the time.
'There are stories of them doing field work because that's all that was available to people of color,' said Pettis, 56, an attorney who lives in Fort Lauderdale. 'Kids were also required to work at that time. They went to school some, not much, and they worked.'
This left an impact for generations. It led Bailey to teach her kids and grandchildren about the value of education. Many of them grew up to become doctors, attorneys and teachers. She had eight children and now has at least 150 grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great grandchildren.
When Pettis' daughter started medical school, Bailey repeatedly told her, 'God is going to take care of you and take you through whatever you're going through. Just don't forget to pray.' The lesson stuck with her. It is the same one that Bailey taught her grandchildren ever since they were young, and it carried Pettis through law school.
"Since we were 3 or 4 years old, we would hang out at her house, go to church or shop at Goodwill (and) she would be singing and praying and teaching us lessons," Pettis said. "She'll pray in the store. She'll pray in a parking lot. It doesn't matter where."
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Bailey moved to West Palm Beach about 65 years ago, just after her sons Jasper Jr. and Willie C. made Florida their home. She brought her green thumb and favorite recipes for biscuits, cornbread and chicken and rice along with her. While Bailey does not cook as much as she used to, she still tends to a thriving flower garden in her backyard.
She lived with Jasper, her husband and the love of her life, until he died in 1998. She never dated again after that. Bailey now lives in West Palm Beach with her granddaughter, Mary Williams, who prepares meals for her and helps her take any medications she needs.
'I enjoy watching her grow her own vegetables in the garden, listening to her pray early in the morning and singing her hymns late at night,' said Williams, 55. 'It's just a joy.'
Bailey's great-granddaughter knows Bailey as a giver.
'She doesn't like to see anybody without, and she doesn't like to see people hurt, so she tries to help out no matter what,' said Qushanta Williams, 35, of West Palm Beach. 'That's just who she is.'
Maya Washburn covers northern Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida-Network. Reach her at mwashburn@pbpost.com. Support local journalism: Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Alberta Bailey celebrates 107th birthday with prayer, party in Jupiter
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