100 YEARS: Centenarian
keeps the faith and
stays positive
Continued from page 1
Hearing the news of
Zemko9s birthday cancella-
tion, friends decided to put
together a birthday surprise
that outdid anything Zemko
could have imagined
<How it would all come
together was anybody9s
guess. It was a surprise,=
said her granddaughter, Lori
Flanders. <I told her there9s
someone outside that wants to
see you, and her dear friend
Laurie Vanderbeek handed
her flowers. Dr. Kevin Miller
and his daughter drove by,
too. Everybody had signs on
their cars and balloons with
birthday greetings. We main-
tained our social distancing
through it all.=
Zemko was overwhelmed
with gratitude and amaze-
ment at how many people
helped her celebrate.
<It was the most outstand-
ing birthday that I9ve ever
had,= she said from her home
outside Sisters, where she
lives with Flanders and her
husband.
<It was unbelievable,=
Zemko said, laughing. <I have
never experienced anything
like that in my life. I felt like
a movie star! Friends showed
up that I met since I moved
here from Sisters, Redmond
and Powell Butte. It just blew
my mind; I was so shocked
and so pleased to know that
many people thought of me.
I have flowers and cards still
coming too. I9ve met some
of the sweetest people since
I moved in with my grand-
daughter seven years ago and
have lived in Oregon for 40
years.=
Zemko moved from
Springfield, before that she
lived in Southern California
for a short time and was born
in Oklahoma. She came to
Oregon 40 years ago.
Zemko considers Central
Oregon a little piece of
heaven.
<Everyone9s so good to me
here,= she said. <I couldn9t be
treated any better.=
H e r c h i l d h o o d i n
Oklahoma was full of hard
work and lots of love. She
grew up with seven siblings,
four older and two younger,
and they all picked cotton
<We were sharecroppers
and Dad was a blacksmith,=
she said.
Her family lived through
the Dustbowl, the Depression
and World War II.
<I remember my Mama
hanging wet sheets over the
windows to try and keep the
dust from blowing in,= she
said recalling the Dustbowl.
<We did everything we could
to keep the sand out, but there
was a cloud of dust coming.=
Zemko says when she
remembers her past, her
memories are all good.
<I love everybody,= she
said.
Flanders says she admires
her Nana and how she doesn9t
focus on the rough times.
<She remembers them but
it9s not her focus,= Flanders
said. <She celebrates the
happy times.=
Zemko knows God is in
control and he9s not ready for
her yet.
<She9s a woman of strong
faith in good times and bad.
It9s been her relationship with
Jesus Christ that has helped
her have a journey where she
didn9t worry. She knew that
God had a story for her, he
knew it and he wrote it. She
read the Bible to me when
I was a little squirt and I9m
almost 60,= said Flanders.
<That9s what I think of when
I think what has carried her
through. She is a woman
of prayer and prays morn-
ing, noon and night. She9s a
prayer warrior.=
<I have had so many
answered prayers. Living to
100 I9ve gotten to see them,=
Wednesday, May 6, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
said Zemko. <One is that I
can still see.=
She still does embroidery.
She prayed that God would
allow her to keep her sight so
she could do artwork on her
embroidery and support other
people through letter writing.
Every week Zemko drinks
a gallon of whole milk and
eats biscuits and gravy, bacon
and eggs for breakfast
<And I still have my teeth,
honey!= she chuckled.
Her favorite place in their
home is in the living room
and family room where she
can look out and see the
mountains: <They are abso-
lutely beautiful, and I love
the sun.=
Flanders takes her grand-
mother into Sisters for outings.
<We like to go to Bi-Mart
and eat at Takoda9s,= said
Flanders. <That9s her favor-
ite stomping ground and she
always gets their Marionberry
cobbler. She also likes to go
to Three Creeks Brewery.=
The Sisters Movie House
still amazes Zemko. She
loves ordering her food and
enjoying it while she watches
a movie.
Zemko has friends all
over the U.S. and keeps in
touch with her best friend
who lives in Springfield and
is 103. They can9t talk on the
phone anymore, but she cher-
ishes their friendship. One of
Zemko9s favorite activities
is brightening other people9s
day. Until her 90s, she visited
nursing homes and encour-
aged residents by spending
time with them. Eight years
ago, she stopped driving, so
she writes three to 15 cards
per week to whoever she can
think of to bring a little joy
into their day.
<It9s a blessing to me to do
it,= she said.
A Partnership
Beyond Your
Expectations
Stop by and visit with Tiana Van Landuyt & Shelley Marsh.
220 S. Pine St., Ste. 102 | 541-548-9180
23
BY KATHY DEGGENDORFER

THE ARENDS & SCOTT REALTY GROUP
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