Just before the celebrations kicked off for the 104th time in her life, Della “Sally” Allison turned to her son Robert and said, “It takes a lot of work to get to 104 years old.”
On Saturday, the celebration came to Sally, with her family organizing the surprise for her to honor the occasion.
Family came from far and wide, including her son from Northern California, to sit at spaced apart tables, for the birthday brunch, Robert said.
Robert noted his mother was born in 1916, which means she was around when the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic blew through the world. But no pandemic had slowed her down still to this day, he said.
“She’s bookending her life, so to speak, with another world pandemic,” said Robert. “But she was whooping it up.”
During the party, the Los Angeles County Fire Department Engine No. 124 drove by and wished Allison a happy birthday over the loudspeaker, Robert said.
“It was really fun,” said Robert. “It was really special.”
