World War II ordinance plant worker celebrates 100th birthday | FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul

World War II ordinance plant worker celebrates 100th birthday

Any birthday is cause for celebration, but for Bette Larson, turning 100 years old is a major milestone.

Celebrating a century

What we know:

The year Larson was born, Calvin Coolidge was inaugurated as President for the second time, F. Scott Fitzgerald published "The Great Gatsby", and the first National Spelling Bee was held in Washington D.C.

A century later, Larson's loved ones gathered to have a special birthday party for her in the party room at Summit Place Senior Apartments in Eden Prairie.

"I'm glad I made it to 100, of course. I'm the longest living member of my family. But it's just another day in my life. That's how I feel about it. It's simple," Larson told FOX 9.

Not exactly a ‘Rosie the riveter’

The backstory:

Larson was born into a family of Swedish immigrants and grew up in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood in Minneapolis before graduating from South High School.

During World War II, she worked at the Twin Cities Ordnance Plant in New Brighton for a couple of years, inspecting or "rolling bullets" as it was called, to help the war effort.

"I met a lot of nice people out at New Brighton, the girls. But the guys were so smarmy, I just couldn't stand it any longer. I mean they all wanted to take you out and buy you a drink and then take you to bed and that was not my thing to do," said Larson.

Secret to longevity

What they're saying:

Larson says she married the boy next door and raised four children in Bloomington, where she worked for the public school system.

She credits her longevity to regular exercise, which she started when she was 19 and continued until a couple of weeks ago.

"Get off your butt and start walking. Start exercising. Just keep moving," said Larson.

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