This is Essie, my vibrant 102 year old grandmother, who has lived the quintessential American Jewish arc from Brooklyn to Boca Raton. Born in 1923 in Williamsburg to Jewish immigrants from Austria and Poland, she grew up in Brooklyn, raised her three children there, and even worked at the legendary Stage Deli on 7th Avenue. She kept working until she was 97, becoming one of the best saleswomen a Boca Raton clothing store ever had. Even now, she never leaves the house undone, is up for whatever and whenever, and brings humor and joy wherever she goes. At 102, she has seen everything and still laughs every day, sometimes all day, with whoever is lucky enough to be sitting next to her.
Source: Philip Kafka
