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SALT LAKE CITY — A Salt Lake City man celebrated his 100th birthday on Tuesday. And family members say he has lived a full life.
Alma Boyce was a lawyer, worked counter-intelligence for the Air Force, and served an LDS mission with the late LDS President, Gordon B Hinckley.
Plenty of family and friends went to Celebrate Boyce's 100 years. A lot of people wanted to make a big deal out of it, but Boyce said he's not a fan of all the attention.
Boyce has three living children, 10 grandchildren and a century of life to show for it. But he has no idea what has kept him around and healthy for so long.
"I don't know the answer," Boyce said. "You just hang around."
His family says his determination may have something to do with it.
"When he was in physical therapy, they would say 'Go up and down the hall 10 times,' and he'd go 20 times," said Boyce's daughter, Carolyn MacKenzie.
He made a career as an attorney in Salt Lake City specializing in property law. And he still lives in his original house that he built in 1947 which now, sticks out like a sore thumb.
- Only 0.0173% make it to 100
- 80% of centenarians are white, females born in the U.S.
"We came out here, and there weren't houses," Boyce said. "There was hay fields and weeds."
But his own little claim to fame goes back to when he was 19 years old. He served as an LDS missionary overseas, and he got to know a young Elder Gordon B. Hinckley.
"We never served as companions, but we were in England, the British mission," he said.
But through that experience, Boyce says he became lifelong friends with the LDS Prophet.
Then, during World War II, Boyce investigated crashes for the Air Force to ensure that the enemy wasn't involved.
"I never did like to investigate air crashes where people were killed," he said."
He met his wife, Jean Bradshaw, at the University of Utah, and he says that he never expected to outlive her.
"She was without a doubt, the best thing that ever came into my life," he said.
Still, after a long lifetime of experiences, Boyce prefers to stay out of the limelight.
When learning about being spotlighted by KSL, Boyce said, "You people are nice, but why didn't someone warn me? I could have left town."
Boyce still lives on his own at his Salt Lake home with some help. He does a lot of reading. But what he says keeps him going are two things; oatmeal for breakfast and an afternoon nap everyday.
