Progress Village Senior Center is celebrating the 100th birthdays of two of its members. Lizzie Adkins was born on September 10, 1925, and Amanda Page was born on December 29, 1925.
The celebration will be from 10 a.m.-12 Noon on Wednesday, November 5, at the Progress Village Senior Center, located at 8701 Progress Blvd. in Tampa. The birthday festivities will include presenting the biographies of the two birthday honorees, reflections on their lives, a choir performance, poetry reading, gift presentations and the singing of “Happy Birthday” for the 100th time in each of their lives.
Amanda was born in Mississippi. Her father was a corporal in World War I and served in France. Once her father returned from Europe and WWI, her parents married. Amanda was the second of their five children.
After Amanda graduated high school, she moved to Memphis, Tennessee. She married Sutton E. Page. She had a daughter and a son. She completed a course at Nudy’s Beauty College.
In 1951, her family moved to Chicago. She enrolled at Cortez W. Peters Business College and earned a diploma in secretarial science, a speedwriting institute diploma and a certificate certifying a proficiency of 120 words per minute.
Armed with new skills, Amanda landed a job with the U.S. Treasury Department as a clerk typist, typing 800-plus checks daily. She finished her career with the VA Research Hospital as a payroll technician. She retired in 1988. In the summer of 1988, she moved to Tampa to be near her son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren.
Today, she’s a member of the Progress Village Senior Center, where she enjoys activities and spending time with friends. At home, she loves using the computer. She pays her bills online, files her taxes and makes greeting cards for family and friends.
Lizzie Adkins was also born in Mississippi. She graduated from high school in Georgia. She married Claude Chester Sr. They had three children. She later married Fred Adkins in 1950. They were together until he died in 1988.
She now has seven grandchildren. She’s a member of the First Baptist Church of Progress Village, where she was president of the Usher Board for several years.
Progress Village Senior Center offers a variety of activities and events for active adults age 50 and older. Participants must be residents of Hillsborough County and at least 60 years old to qualify for the noontime meal program. Please call 813-671-7773 for up-to-date information. The center is open from Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
