Sadie Inez Smith Fry didn\u2019t used to feel cheated, but the more she thinks about it, the more slighted she feels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although Sadie turned 96 years old Tuesday, she\u2019s only celebrated 24 birthdays. You see, Sadie was born on February 29\u2014 leap year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n| <\/strong>After 96 years of life, former Granbury resident celebrates 24th birthday<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n “I\u2019m mad \u2018cause I\u2019ve been cheated,” laughs Sadie, who\u2019s as sharp as a tack with a sense of humor as wide as her smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sadie was born in Blum, Texas in 1904 and never let any grass grow under her feet. A very active woman, Sadie has traveled the world and has numerous stories to tell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When Sadie was 40 she went to TCU to earn her degree in nursing. She didn\u2019t receive much support from the college officials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “I was told, \u2018You\u2019re too old and it\u2019s a waste of time and money,\u2019” recalls Sadie. “I told them, \u2018It\u2019s my time and my money!\u2019”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Seven years later, Sadie earned that degree and began a career in nursing that lasted close to 20 years. She worked at General Dynamics as a nurse for five years and then went in to nursing on both the state and foreign levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sadie moved to the Glen Rose nursing home last year after living in Mambrino for over 50 years. She still calls Mambrino Baptist Church her home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sadie\u2019s nursing career spanned the globe and supplied a wealth of interesting stories\u2014nursing at a logging camp where she was the only woman among over 1,000 lumberjacks; the Mescalero Apache reservation; nursing at the American Embassy in Afghanistan where Sadie shot a bear with one shot, she proudly states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During her 96 years of life, Sadie never celebrated her birthday unless it was the actual date\u2014she never allowed a party on Feb. 28 or March 1. When friends would stop by to say \u2018Happy Birthday\u2019 to her on those days, Sadie emphatically says, “It\u2019s not my birthday!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n As far as presents went, Sadie admits to receiving presents for most all of her 96 years, “but they were little gifts,” she laughs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “All I got was spankings! I had three brothers!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sadie\u2019s looking forward to her next birthday\u2014Feb. 29, 2004. She\u2019ll be 100\u2014or will she be 25?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u00a9 2000 Hood County News and HCN Online Services – All Rights Reserved<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Sadie’s Celebration by Kathy Smith, Lifestyles Editor Hood County News On-Line Edition – March 6, 2000 Sadie Inez Smith Fry didn\u2019t used to feel cheated, but the more she thinks about it, the more slighted she feels. Although Sadie turned … Continue reading |