Olive Este celebrates her 105 year birthday with friends and family. The party was held at Northwest Dade Seventh Day Adventist Church on Saturday, March 28.DANIEL BOCK / FOR THE MIAMI HERALD
Posted on Friday, 04.03.09
A North Dade resident recalled some of America's many changes as she celebrated her 105th birthday among friends and family at church.
BY MARGARITA SWEETING
Special to The Miami Herald
Adventist Church member
In the past 100 years the United States has been in seven major wars, has endured the growing pains of the civil rights movement, has had a president assassinated, and has undergone social changes that are being felt today, especially with the advent of the first black president in the White House.
Olive Este, who celebrated her 105th birthday on March 29, has seen it all and more.
At a gathering after church last Saturday, as more than 100 members cheered her milestone, Este reflected on the many changes she has witnessed over the years.
''There has been so much, so many changes, but probably what is the most different are the people. It used to be that people knew one another. There was concern for one another,'' said Este, who lives in Miami Gardens.
``Now, people could be living in the same building and not know each other's name. We used to be a close-knit people.''
Este was born in 1904 to Edwin Robbins and Victoria Joseph in Antigua, West Indies. She was raised in a strict household and attended Cedar Hall Methodist School. She was always a good student, but very shy.
''I remember we had to recite things in school and I didn't like that. One time, I even went under my seat to hide,'' she said.
``In the early 1900s, school consisted of individual chalkboards and all of the students, grades one through seven, were taught in a large auditorium.
Even though the teachers were strict and could mete out discipline to the students with a cane, Este still found time to play practical jokes on her peers.
''I remember this one girl who always copied from me. So, one time, I wrote all the wrong answers. When they were checked of course, she got in trouble but all my answers were correct,'' Este said with a chuckle.
Her father sent her two older sisters, Ethel and Virginia, to the United States in order to earn money and send it back to Antigua. However, the depression had set in and no money was available.
Eventually, the sisters sent for Este too, and at age 19 she moved to Harlem, New York. With tear-filled eyes Este remembers the racial divisions of that time.
''Oh, there was so much going on. There was the Garvey movement, the back-to-Africa movement, and housing was not open to colored people. White people lived in other areas and they didn't want coloreds. With all the segregation, there were no suitable jobs and there were so many prejudices,'' said Este.
As a result, she went to Toronto with her husband, Eugene Este, who died of heart disease in 1967. She became a nurse and worked in that field until she retired.
Este also raised six children: Eugene Jr., Marianne, Ruby, June, Edwin and Charles; from her children came seven grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
Este moved to South Florida with her sister, Ethel, in the early 1970s and has been a member of the Northwest Dade Seventh-Day Adventist Church ever since, where she celebrated her birthday.
''She is a happy fundraiser, organizing everything. And she was, and still is, a main contributor to this building,'' said friend and church member Esther Nelson. ``She also has a sense of humor that is out of this world.''
By all accounts, she is a funny, giving person who still has time to bake and cook and serve as an inspiration to those around her.
''She bakes two cakes along with a covered dish and brings them to church every week. She even baked my wedding cake,'' said Michele Carrington, Este's great niece.
``She's an incredibly strong woman whose belief and faith has gotten her through many adversities. She's an example to have faith and be true and kind to the bitter end. That's how she lives.''
Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/miami-dade/north-central/story/981948.html
Special to The Miami Herald
Adventist Church member
In the past 100 years the United States has been in seven major wars, has endured the growing pains of the civil rights movement, has had a president assassinated, and has undergone social changes that are being felt today, especially with the advent of the first black president in the White House.
Olive Este, who celebrated her 105th birthday on March 29, has seen it all and more.
At a gathering after church last Saturday, as more than 100 members cheered her milestone, Este reflected on the many changes she has witnessed over the years.
''There has been so much, so many changes, but probably what is the most different are the people. It used to be that people knew one another. There was concern for one another,'' said Este, who lives in Miami Gardens.
``Now, people could be living in the same building and not know each other's name. We used to be a close-knit people.''
Este was born in 1904 to Edwin Robbins and Victoria Joseph in Antigua, West Indies. She was raised in a strict household and attended Cedar Hall Methodist School. She was always a good student, but very shy.
''I remember we had to recite things in school and I didn't like that. One time, I even went under my seat to hide,'' she said.
``In the early 1900s, school consisted of individual chalkboards and all of the students, grades one through seven, were taught in a large auditorium.
Even though the teachers were strict and could mete out discipline to the students with a cane, Este still found time to play practical jokes on her peers.
''I remember this one girl who always copied from me. So, one time, I wrote all the wrong answers. When they were checked of course, she got in trouble but all my answers were correct,'' Este said with a chuckle.
Her father sent her two older sisters, Ethel and Virginia, to the United States in order to earn money and send it back to Antigua. However, the depression had set in and no money was available.
Eventually, the sisters sent for Este too, and at age 19 she moved to Harlem, New York. With tear-filled eyes Este remembers the racial divisions of that time.
''Oh, there was so much going on. There was the Garvey movement, the back-to-Africa movement, and housing was not open to colored people. White people lived in other areas and they didn't want coloreds. With all the segregation, there were no suitable jobs and there were so many prejudices,'' said Este.
As a result, she went to Toronto with her husband, Eugene Este, who died of heart disease in 1967. She became a nurse and worked in that field until she retired.
Este also raised six children: Eugene Jr., Marianne, Ruby, June, Edwin and Charles; from her children came seven grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
Este moved to South Florida with her sister, Ethel, in the early 1970s and has been a member of the Northwest Dade Seventh-Day Adventist Church ever since, where she celebrated her birthday.
''She is a happy fundraiser, organizing everything. And she was, and still is, a main contributor to this building,'' said friend and church member Esther Nelson. ``She also has a sense of humor that is out of this world.''
By all accounts, she is a funny, giving person who still has time to bake and cook and serve as an inspiration to those around her.
''She bakes two cakes along with a covered dish and brings them to church every week. She even baked my wedding cake,'' said Michele Carrington, Este's great niece.
``She's an incredibly strong woman whose belief and faith has gotten her through many adversities. She's an example to have faith and be true and kind to the bitter end. That's how she lives.''
Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/miami-dade/north-central/story/981948.html
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