102 and going strong

SPORTING HER NEW BIRTHDAY SHIRT, Alice Maas, a resident at Prairie View, celebrated her 102nd birthday on Aug. 1. Photo / Per Peterson

She’s never touched a cigarette and rarely ever drank alcohol, except a sip of wine every now and then or when she and her late husband would share a beer.

Other than that, Alice Maas admits she hasn’t done anything special to earn the longevity she continues to enjoy.

This past Tuesday, Alice, a resident at Prairie View in Tracy for two years now, turned 102, with a big smile on her face and birthday shirt to boot.

She has no secret to how long she has lived, but perhaps genes have something to do with it (her sister, Cora Steffen, who lives in Alpine, CA, turns 100 at the end of the month).

When asked to what she attributes her longevity, the answer was waiting at the tip of her tongue: orneriness.

“I really don’t know, I’ve just been a blessed person,” Maas said.

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