Wellington resident Helen Gollins turns 104 years old on Dec. 27. To put that in perspective, World War I had just ended, and the “Roaring Twenties” were just getting underway when she was born. Sliced bread hadn’t even been invented yet, and Charles Lindbergh was a teenager who had not yet learned to fly. The entire population of Palm Beach County was only about 18,000.
“We must have some sort of longevity gene,” Helen’s daughter Judith Altheim-Huntley said. “Her mother lived long, as have other family members, and I hope I get to be that old, too.”
When asked whether diet or lifestyle played a role in her impressive longevity, Helen thought for just a second and said, “I loved to play basketball when I was younger. Now I love lunch meats. I love salami, bologna and candy.”
When told this, her daughter laughed and said, “That sounds just like mom. She has always had such a sweet tooth.”
Helen’s son Martin lives in Boynton Beach and visits about twice a week. He seemed surprised at the lunch meats and candy comment and pointed to the secret family recipe for spaghetti and meatballs as more typical of the food he ate growing up.
“She makes such a delicious dish from scratch from a recipe that has been handed down for generations. Now I have the recipe,” he said.
Helen Gollins was born in Brooklyn in 1920. Her mother Anna was born in Russia, and her father Jacob was born in Poland. While her older brother Mark is deceased, her younger sister Selma, 10 years her junior, is excited about her sister’s milestone birthday. “Please tell her happy birthday and that I love her,” Selma said.
Their father passed away at a young age, so Helen and her siblings were raised by a single mother who worked in sewing factories around Brooklyn.
Helen met her husband Charles, the love of her life, while on a blind date. They were married one week before the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Charles enlisted in the U.S. Army’s 3rd Armored Division. For a period while the war raged, she accompanied Charles as he traveled the country as an instructor in tank warfare. After D-Day, he was sent to Europe, where he participated in many major ground battles of the war, including the Battle of the Bulge. He was awarded a Purple Heart before leaving the service to start a new life with Helen.
Helen and Charles had their two children, born in Brooklyn in 1947 and 1951, before the family moved to Franklin Square, New York. As the children got older, she was able to begin the job she loved. Helen beamed when recalling some of her great professional memories working for the Nassau County Police Department. “I was a transcriber assigned to the detective bureau,” she explained.
The detectives would speak case details into tape recorders, where Helen would transcribe case details. She was in on all the details of major murders and high-profile investigations. She smiled wistfully and said, “Those were such happy years being a member of an important team.”
Helen has been living in Florida since 1989. Besides the two children, Helen now enjoys her seven grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.
These days, Helen spends her time with friends at The Club in Wellington, an assisted living facility. As Helen sat down to be photographed, her friends Lidia Spremulli and Sherry Hofer joined her. As she snuggled up to Helen, Lidia could be heard whispering, “Oh Helen, you look so beautiful today!”
The Club at Wellington Manager Pandora Alguno said of Helen, “I can only aspire to be as quick-witted as Helen. She is truly a gem, and I feel incredibly lucky to know her and be a part of her story.”
Administrator Maria Santiago agreed that Helen is a wonderful addition to the community. “Staff and residents dote on her daily,” she said.
Santiago added that Helen enjoys an evening ritual. “Every night, Helen enjoys a shot glass of Manischewitz wine. It has been her routine of several years,” she said.
