CHEERS TO AGGIE — Agnes “Aggie” Delaine Phillips of Deltona is pictured celebrating her 101st birthday on May 5. Phillips was honored with a tradition of a party while enjoying some delicious Greek cuisine. “The gathering was a hit! Cheers to 101! Sipping her ouzo — the secret to longevity,” said Phillips’ friend of 10 years, Liz Morse.
101-years-young Agnes “Aggie” Delaine Phillips is living the good life in Deltona. On May 5, Phillips’ 101st birthday was honored with a tradition of a party while enjoying some delicious Greek cuisine.
“My 100th birthday was amazing — we had over 60 people surprise me with a dinner, and I thought, ‘I’m not 110 yet — I’m only 100,’” Phillips said.
“[I’ve started] lying about my age, because you know, when you’re 100 or over 100, people carry on so. ‘What are you doing? How do you walk, and what do you eat? And when do you go outside?’ So if I tell them I’m only 90, then they don’t ask such dumb questions,” Phillips said with a laugh. “Then they say, ‘Oh — you’ll soon be 100.’ And I say, ‘Yes, I certainly will be.’ And that’s the end of that.”
Beacon staff had the opportunity to speak with Phillips as she looked forward to turning 101 — and the conversation flowed with stories filled with history, humor and humility — eloquently shared by Phillips.
“The most important part of my life right now is right now. I’m enjoying life very much,” Phillips said.
Phillips starts each day with a cup of coffee,and is a voracious reader. “I drink coffee every morning… there’s no life before coffee, so that’s the first thing I do, and I try to sit in the sun,” Phillips said. “I read all the time… I read The Beacon, and I get The New York Times every Sunday… it takes me all week to read The Times, and I enjoy that. I also get the daily USA Today, and I get a lot of library books,” Phillips said.
Phillips is of Greek heritage, and her parents emigrated from Greece in the early 1900s. Phillips grew up in the small town of Burlington, New Jersey. She reminisced on her schoolyard days.
“There was no kindergarten back in those days — so I went to school at 5years old and in first grade. I could hardly speak English, and my mother could hardly speak English. She talked to me in broken English, and I talked to her, sometimes, in broken Greek… so that was tough. But I shouldered it,” said Phillips.
“When I graduated from high school… I was very rambunctious, and in my yearbook, it said, ‘Aggie is happy and full of fun, a friend to almost everyone,’ and that’s exactly how I feel about life,” Phillips said.
Phillips served as a Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) executive director for 35 years. Other professional ventures that Phillips excelled in included running a “little sailing school in the summertime in New Jersey,” as well as real estate following her retirement from the YWCA.
Phillips reflected on the challenges she faced and lessons she learned as she entered the workforce as a young woman.
“Growing up as a woman is the toughest thing I have been through,” Phillips said. “My parents wanted me to [pursue particular career paths]… like they do with all women. ‘Well, you’re going to get married and have babies… and you’re going to get a nice job as a secretary, or a nurse, but you can’t be anything else because you’re a woman,’” Phillips said.
“And, you know, it was frustrating… I combated that as much as possible. I tried to do things that men thought women shouldn’t be doing… and I was fortunate to do a lot of things — I tried everything,” Phillips said.
Some secrets to Phillips’ longevity and good humor? Phillips enjoys reading the newspaper, drinking coffee each morning, occasionally cooking with her partner and not allowing herself to get upset about anything.
“I’ve had a good life. I can’t complain. I’ve done so many things, and I’m surprised that I have. All of them were good. Some of them could have been perfect, but I wanted to do too many things, so I never did anything perfectly,” Phillips said humbly. “I am very happy with the life I’ve had. I have no regrets really. I’ve had some mistakes, but not many of them, and I call them experiences.”
Happy Birthday, Aggie!
