North Carolina native Bertie Stanley met the challenge of NYC with aplomb
“One hundred of anything is a lot.”
Bertie Stanley would know. Two weeks ago, the retired Department of Education administrator celebrated her 100th birthday, surrounded by family members, residents, and staff at the Margaret Tietz Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Jamaica Hills.
Stanley grew up in North Harlowe, NC, on what is now the eastern edge of the Croatan National Forest, as the oldest of three girls. She later moved to New York after graduating from Shaw University in Raleigh.
“I majored in social studies,” Stanley said.
She married her high school sweetheart, Aubrey Stanley, a notable college basketball player at North Carolina Central University.
“He was so tall,” Stanley recalled. “He worked for the postal service in Manhattan and was eventually promoted to management.”
The couple had two daughters. One was present at her birthday celebration, along with two grandchildren, while her other daughter is deceased.
Adjusting to life in New York presented challenges for the Stanleys.
“I was a country girl, not a city girl,” Stanley said. “There were a lot of adjustments. The winters were terrible.”
Some challenges, however, were not much different from those in the Jim Crow South, even though they weren’t codified by law in New York State.
“Education wasn’t what I first wanted to do,” she said. “But it was one of the only things available for a Black woman.”
The family lived in Southeast Queens and was denied the opportunity to buy a home in Nassau County, facing discrimination similar to what they had experienced in the South.
Like many two-career households, it took some balancing, but as with everything else, Stanley and her husband made it work.
“I never left my children alone,” she said.
In her personal life, Stanley has enjoyed sewing, crocheting, and needlework. She recalls the first time she crafted a pair of argyle socks after moving to New York.
“That was a challenge,” she said. “I was a country girl. I’d never seen them before.”
When it comes to entertainment, she was never a fan of jazz — “I like the classic songs” — but she frequently attended Broadway shows and musical performances in Manhattan with her work friends.
“Once a month, we’d go in and see a show,” she said.
Stanley has been a resident of Margaret Tietz for about a year and is a member of the Presbyterian Church of Saint Albans. She cherishes the connection, and her church community recently paid her a visit.
“They brought me flowers,” she said. “They were so lovely.”
Her 100th birthday celebration included a sash, a tiara, and of course, a massive cake. Although she enjoyed it, she admitted it wasn’t her favorite dessert.
“I love apple pie,” she said. “With vanilla ice cream.”
And with both the Mets and Yankees in the playoffs, she has a clear favorite.
“The Yankees,” she said. “My husband liked them, and I’d go along.”