That's what Mary Schumacher told someone on her birthday Friday. She seemed quiet and thoughtful as relatives gathered and cameras flashed at Valley Eldercare in Grand Forks.
But she was in a party mood when cake was served, and she was surrounded by family and friends. Her feet were moving in time with the music when Art Heinze, Thief River Falls, played "Red Wing" and some old German songs on his harmonica. His wife, Joan, is the oldest of Mary's 19 grandchildren.
Mary also has 35 great-grandchildren and eight great-great-grandchildren. Nine-year-old Tyler Linneman, Emerado, N.D., was one of the grandchildren at the birthday party. A niece, Teresa Von Reuden, who is 103, also was at the party. And one of the guests was friend Delia Huard, who was celebrating her 99th birthday Friday.
Mary is believed to be the oldest person in North Dakota. She wore a white sweater over a brilliant blue blouse and black slacks. She has thick white hair and wears glasses. She sits in a wheelchair when she is out of her room. She is a thoughtful woman who has said she doesn't want people to fuss over her. When they ask how she has lived so long, she usually says, "Everything in moderation."
She and her twin brother, Joseph, were born as the youngest in a family of 12 children. She grew up on a farm near Reynolds, N.D., and later lived in Reynolds before deciding to move to St. Anne's Guest Home in Grand Forks.
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Two of her four children still are living. They are Lucille Rohman, who came from Sunnyside, Wash., and Don Schumacher, Grand Forks. He remembers getting a spanking now and then from his mother when he needed it. A niece, Ruth Nienas, Grand Forks, remembers living near Mary in Reynolds and playing the card games whist and smear. In those days, Mary always wore a net over her hair.
Memories filled the room during the party. And Mary told someone that this Herald reporter asks the same questions every year. "Doesn't she write that stuff down?" she asked.
