'I never expected something like this': 100th birthday surprise for Langley, B.C., senior
June 24 marks a milestone birthday for Langley senior John Kromhoff: one century on earth.
“I figure I’ve reached a goal,” he said. “And my next thing is, how long can I last?”
Due to the pandemic, Kromhoff initially wasn’t expecting too much for his 100th birthday celebration, according Katherine Ferguson, general manager of Chartwell Langley Gardens, the retirement home where Kromhoff lives.
“Maybe about a month ago, he came to me and he said he’s come to terms that it’ll be a little bit quieter than what he had hoped for,” she said.
Kromhoff said he knew health restrictions at the time meant his large extended family wouldn’t be able to gather.
“With the pandemic going on, the coronavirus, we couldn’t have certain amounts of people,” he said. “And we’ve got so many that we couldn’t have a party.”
That’s when Kromhoff’s granddaughter reached out on Facebook asking for cards, Ferguson said.
“That just kind of snowballed,” she said. “I believe he’s received over 1,200 cards now from all around the world.”
Kromhoff said he’s heard from people in Japan and Germany, and also received many cards from local schoolchildren, as well as from former clients from his real estate career.
“They’re saying in their cards how they enjoy their place,” he said. “I was 94 when I did my last deal.”
On the big day, staff decked out the retirement home’s lounge in honour of the space enthusiast, complete with stars, planets, and a virtual presentation from the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre.
“I remember when Sputnik was up and I actually heard it on the radio, the signal,” he said. “They’ve done so much in the past few years with learning more and more about space travel, and they’re seeing way farther right now than they did even, say, a couple years ago.”
Outside, a parade of visitors came to wish Kromhoff well, including first responders.
“All the police here, I got a kick out of that,” he laughed. “I never expected something like this, but I appreciate it very much.”
He does have advice for longevity, but it’s not something he typically shares.
“I don’t tell anybody, because they don't receive help, because it annoys them more than anything,” he said. “So I have to just be quiet.”
He did reveal it involves healthy eating.
He’s also considering exploring a new frontier: Facebook.
“It’s a good way of getting around,” he said. “I’m going to join, I think, too.”
Best of all, with the most recent lifting of restrictions on June 15, Kromhoff is now looking forward to a family gathering in a couple of days, the first one in a long while.
“We haven’t had anything going for so long, it was getting pretty monotonous, I’ll tell you,” he said. “But it’s good now.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
BREAKING Police will not be charged in death of Indigenous man in B.C., mother says
Three Mounties in British Columbia will not face charges in the killing of a 38-year-old Indigenous man on Vancouver Island in 2021, according to the man's mother.
Douglas DC-4 plane with 2 people on board crashes into river outside Fairbanks, Alaska
A Douglas C-54 Skymaster airplane crashed into the Tanana River near Fairbanks on Tuesday, Alaska State Troopers said.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
“It's just so hard to let it go. I mean, everyone is telling me, ‘you have to move on,’ but I know someone is not here [anymore]. So I don't know how I will move on." That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
NASA hears from Voyager 1, the most distant spacecraft from Earth, after months of quiet
NASA has finally heard back from Voyager 1 again in a way that makes sense. The most distant spacecraft from Earth hadn't sent home any understandable data since last November.
Saskatchewan households will continue to receive carbon tax rebate: Trudeau
Households in Saskatchewan will continue to receive Canada Carbon Rebate payments, despite the province refusing to remit the federal carbon price on natural gas, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday.