Nashville women turn 105 years old. Here's how they partied together.

Just how old is Opal James? Well, she'll tell you.

"I'm 105 and feelin' fine," James said with a smile.

And she's not the only one.

This week, at a centenarian celebration for the ages, six Nashville women partied like they were no longer 99.

The ladies, all born before the year 1918 and all residents of the same senior living facility, ate cake and grasped the hands of well wishers at a day of gratitude and congratulations in their honor.

Three of those women were 105 years old.

James, born April 12, 1914, was born and raised in Tennessee, growing up in Grundy County. "I've had a lot of pleasure in my long life," she muses, pulling the knit sweater wrapped over her shoulder just a little tighter. "And I've had a disappointment, too.

"I never smoked, and I never did drink, and I've been a church goer all my life," she adds. "I've just lived a good life, and a pretty happy life, too."

Sitting next to James in a room filled with party goers at The Meadows Lakeshore, Marion Lyon looked down fondly at the pink and purple corsage on her wrist.

She's been asked many, many times, "What is the secret to her long life?" The answer, for her, is simple: Staying active.

"I don't feel like I'm 104," says Lyon, her Long Island accent still coming through after more than 25 years living in Tennessee.

Lyon has never used a walker or a wheelchair. She needs glasses only when she reads. And, until a few years ago, she drove herself once a week from west Nashville to stay with her niece in Clarksville.

She finally did surrender her car keys — when she turned 101.

Now, she stays active by crocheting, quilting and tatting, which is handcrafting lace. "Young people never ever heard of it," she laughs.

And it's not just her hands that are active, but also her mind, playing solitaire and doing puzzle books.

Her advice for the younger generation: "Get away from the iPhones and get outside and play and get some activity," she says, remembering her childhood growing up near the bay where she swam and canoed.

"Technology is different, nowadays. I think in another 50 years, maybe we will be living on the moon."

'They have lived through the many defining times of our nation's history'

The entire celebration, with it's shiny silver balloons and the sepia-colored photographs of the women from decades past, was thrown by the Century Club of Greater Green Hills.

The Century Club is one of several across Middle Tennessee created to honor the lives of those who have lived through 100 years and beyond.

"Anyone with three digits in their age should be celebrated," said Kathy Bennett, a Century Club liaison and overseer of client services for Family Staffing Solutions, the personal care and in-home assisted living service that helped found the clubs.

"They have lived through the many defining times of our nation’s history. ... From Rosie the Riveters to Air Force pilots, who were just simple farmers before the wars began."

The first Century Club began in Rutherford County in 2012 with the help of then-mayor Tommy Bragg. Then In 2017, Bedford County Mayor Chad Graham proclaimed the beginning a Century Club in the southeastern county.

A year later, in 2018, the Century Club of Greater Green Hills joined in. All of members received a Centenarian Award from Governor Bill Lee and an official proclamation from Mayor David Briley.

With the six centenarians celebrated on Thursday, the Century Clubs together have now honored 58 centenarians whose lives date back to 1910 in birth dates.

The oldest centenarian is 107 years old, with a birthday in October this year.

"The most wonderful and memorable are the stories of family, church and love for country," Bennett said. "I am a very happy to hug them, hold their hand, hear their stories and find a new friend.

"They are amazing people."

Reach Jessica Bliss at 615-259-8253 and jbliss@tennessean.com or on Twitter @jlbliss and please support local journalism.

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