Colorado Woman Turns 100 With Simple Wisdom: Learn From It All

At 100 years old, Joy Gimar has no patience for complicated life advice. Her formula for a century of living? "Just good clean living," she says with the kind of straightforward confidence that only comes from actually doing it.

Gimar marked her 100th birthday on June 1 at Good Samaritan Estes Park Village, where she's lived since her husband Jean passed away in 1999. Born in 1926 in Des Moines, Iowa, she grew up playing piano in church alongside famous pianist Roger Williams and attended high school with actress Cloris Leachman.

She credits her longevity partly to being a home economist like her mother. "The eating habits that go along with something like that probably contribute," she explains. But she's quick to add she hasn't avoided alcohol entirely, just practiced moderation in everything.

The Gimars moved to Estes Park in 1985 after Jean retired, converting his parents' summer cabin into their permanent home. While Jean chaired the parks and recreation district, Joy threw herself into community life through the Chamber Ambassadors, Mountainaires musical group, and her longtime P.E.O. sorority membership.

Her community dedication earned recognition when she became a Rooftop Rodeo queen finalist at 98 years old. She also volunteered with Scotfest for years, earning honored volunteer status in 2010.

Sunny's Take

What makes Gimar's story shine isn't just the number of candles on her cake. It's her refreshingly honest approach to wisdom itself.

"It all doesn't have to be good, because you can learn an awful lot from the not-so-good," she says. Growing up during the Great Depression and living through multiple wars taught her that even difficult times offer valuable lessons.

Her greatest joy? "Just plain people. They're not all good, and they're not all bad. But certainly, there's something to be learned from all of them."

When it comes to her proudest accomplishment, Gimar points to her three sons, Jan, Joe, and Jeff. "They've all grown up, and they've accomplished a little bit in their lives," she says with characteristic understatement.

Her advice about judging character is equally practical: trust your instincts about people's goodness, and if you can't tell the difference, you'll learn from the consequences. Even not-so-good people have something to offer, she notes.

A century of living has taught Joy Gimar that the secret to a long, meaningful life isn't avoiding the hard parts, but learning from absolutely everything.