Utah's oldest resident celebrated 110th birthday

Utah's oldest resident celebrated 110th birthday

(Kristin Murphy, Deseret News)


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NORTH LOGAN — After both of their husbands passed away, sisters Dorothy and Norma Marlowe traveled the world together, visiting China, Germany, Russia and Greece — just to name a few.

But there was another experience the Marlowe sisters expected to reach together: living to be 100 years old.

Norma Marlowe got close, living to be 95 and exploring more of the world than most could in several lifetimes.

However, Dorothy Marlowe exceeded that number and celebrated her 110th birthday Monday with cake, ice cream and trivia from 1907 — the year she was born — at the Maple Springs assisted living center.

“It was fun. It was a good party,” said Marlowe, Utah's oldest resident, according to the Utah Department of Human Services.

Even at 110, Marlow is able to do "almost everything" on her own, said Angie Sanders, Maple Springs' community relations director.

"You don't find that very often. She's definitely a neat lady," Sanders said.

Marlowe's youngest child and only son, Richard Marlowe, said he is not surprised she has lived so long. She always lived a very healthy lifestyle, he said.

Dorothy Marlowe, an avid reader who enjoys playing bridge, said she is very pleased with the life she has experienced.

"I was very fortunate," she said.

Marlowe grew up in Logan and attended the Agricultural College of Utah, now Utah State University, where she earned a degree in elementary education and home economics.

After teaching home economics and English for two years in Franklin, Idaho, Marlowe taught junior high school in Midvale during the Great Depression.

"I was very fortunate to have a job," she said. "It was hard for a lot of people."

After teaching for two years, Marlowe moved to Seattle in 1931, where she met her husband, Clifford Marlowe.

A photo of Dorothy Marlowe taken when she was about 28 years old is seen in Logan on Tuesday, May 23, 2017. Marlowe is now 110. (Photo: Submitted, Deseret News)
A photo of Dorothy Marlowe taken when she was about 28 years old is seen in Logan on Tuesday, May 23, 2017. Marlowe is now 110. (Photo: Submitted, Deseret News)

The two met at a dance organized by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and were married in October 1933, after Clifford Marlowe sent a “beautiful diamond ring" and a telegram proposing marriage to her father's home in Logan, she said.

Together, Dorothy and Clifford Marlowe two raised three children — Richard, June and Portia — in Seattle, where Clifford worked as a dentist and Dorothy stayed home with her children.

After Clifford Marlowe died of a heart attack in 1974, Dorothy and Norma Marlowe traveled throughout the world together, visiting more than a dozen countries.

Richard Marlowe was drafted into the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War, but his mother "wasn't overly concerned," he said, because she served her community during World War II as a block captain.

In that role, Dorothy Marlowe was responsible for walking around her street every night to make sure there were no lights shining and all windows were blacked out to hide Seattle from enemies during the war.

June Christopherson, one of Dorothy Marlowe's two daughters, described her mother as "very social."

A card printed for Dorothy Marlowe's 110th birthday is seen at Maple Springs Senior Living in Logan on Tuesday, May 23, 2017. (Photo: Kristin Murphy, Deseret News)
A card printed for Dorothy Marlowe's 110th birthday is seen at Maple Springs Senior Living in Logan on Tuesday, May 23, 2017. (Photo: Kristin Murphy, Deseret News)

"She was always with people," Christopherson said.

Verna Marlowe, Dorothy Marlowe's daughter-in-law, said she felt very welcome in the Marlowe family immediately after meeting Dorothy in June 1973.

Dorothy Marlowe took her to pick out china dishes, which came as a surprise to the daughter-in-law because she's "from Bear Lake. We don't have china."

"She just welcomed me like part of the family," Verna Marlowe said.

Since Dorothy Marlowe has been at Maple Springs, an assisted living facility in North Logan, Verna Marlowe, who lives just two blocks away, has been able to visit her four times a day.

"I don't have to come that often because the aides are wonderful here, but she will not let them help her," Verna Marlowe said with a laugh.

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