Family and friends throw a parade for Lois’ 106 birthday
Story & photos by Laurie Bullock
laurieb@lwsb.com
Friends, family, former co-workers and neighbors all stopped by to wish Lois Campbell of Mutual 17 a happy 106th birthday on Nov. 7. Lois’ family had orchestrated an outdoor party featuring vintage and luxury cars from around Seal Beach along with a visit from a Seal Beach police officer and Andrew Digiovanna, Congresswoman Michelle Steel’s Deputy District Director.
Lois was born on Nov. 1, 1915, in Indiana and was the eldest of four children. She moved to South Dakota with her family at the age of 2 and then moved back to Fairbanks, Indiana, where she went to high school.
During a routine trip to the dentist, Lois was encouraged to further her education after high school to become a nurse. Her dentist had even offered to help pay her tuition, with the expectation that she would be able to pay him back once she became a nurse. After speaking to her father, who said he would be able to fund her studies, Lois studied nursing at Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis. Thus beginning her life long love of caring for people and helping them heal from their injuries.
Lois moved to California with her husband in 1952, and they eventually had two children, Anne and Jim, when Lois was 40 and 42. “Becoming a mother was the best thing,” she said. “All my life, I wanted to be a mom. I worshiped my kids because I had waited so long to have them.”
She remembers driving past Leisure World before it was built when it was just a field of onions and rabbits. She would drive past it on her way to the hospital for one of her nursing shifts. She has lived in Leisure World since 1985.
Lois’ 100th birthday stands out as one of her favorite memories, as it was the first time anyone had thrown her a surprise party. She said that she also has fond memories of birthdays during her childhood, when friends would spend the night at her house and they would celebrate by eating homemade angel food cake.
“I’ve had a great life,” she said with a smile.
Lois Campbell
