For Waterdown's Jean Millar, family is everything.
Born on a dairy farm on Walker’s Line on Sept. 29, 1924, she has lived in and around the Burlington/Waterdown area her entire life; currently she resides in a cozy home on the edge of town, just off Dundas Street.
She’s turning 100 years old this month, and is only asking for birthday cards. With one granddaughter and four children of her own – two of whom have passed away – her family is small, but has remained close through the years.
Millar sticks to her routines. She's an early riser, and says she spends most mornings sitting on her couch in the main room with the big window, surrounded by photos and talking to her loved ones.
“I do whatever I have to do, which right now is packing boxes,” Millar said, noting she is waiting to move into a local seniors’ residence. “I always get a lot of telephone calls.”
Millar is a longtime member of St. James United Church and a dedicated Blue Jays fan, and enjoys her garden, which has been recognized by the local Trillium Awards program.
As her family is spread across the world – a son in B.C. and a daughter in Arizona, plus a granddaughter in England – she spends a lot of time on the phone. Her niece is close by and helps out with some odds and ends as Millar is hoping to move into a retirement home in the near future.
Being born on a dairy farm had its advantages, Millar says, as it taught her how to take care of herself. When it came time to figure out what her life path would be, there weren’t many options back in the day.
“I only went to one year of high school, and that was a waste of time,” Millar said. “And then a Women’s Institute started having meetings for the farm girls, and that was good. Cooking, sewing...things I would use.”
Millar joined in WI sessions at the agricultural society’s junior farmers' group in Nelson Village. She used what she learned to make clothes for her children, and for her husband Bruce.
The two met at Lowville United Church, where members made their own entertainment by putting on shows or plays, and traveling to other churches to perform.
“We were engaged the day that photo was taken,” Millar said, pointing to a family photo taken on the farm in August 1943. “I’ve got my hand behind my back because Bruce had just given me the ring and I hadn’t told anyone yet.”
They were married two years later, and bought a 100-acre farm for $7,000. Adjusted for inflation, that number is approximately $123,000 in today’s dollars. Of course, there were plenty of wedding presents.
“Bruce’s parents gave him a team of horses,” Millar said. “Oh, he hated horses.”
There were also Jersey cows for butter, that Millar’s dad gave them when he was ready to sell the family farm, as his wedding present to the new couple.
The house the two lived in is still standing. Millar says she knows it has been restored on the inside. The couple raised their four children, two of whom are still alive, in that house. Their daughter died of cancer, and their son lived with significant mental disabilities until he was 37.
“I’ve had some ups and downs,” Millar said. “It was terrible losing that daughter. I’ve lost her to cancer, and lost two husbands to cancer. I’ve seen enough of it.”
Bruce died in 1987, only a year after moving into the house where Millar still lives.
And just like with Bruce, she met her second husband Arthur Hanneson at church.
“We were married in '92, but he died in '93. He was a good man. These are all his kids and grandkids,” she said, gesturing to the wall behind her, covered in about a dozen small family photos from vacations and road trips through the decades.
Through those decades, Millar has seen the area around her grow from a primarily rural community to a bustling city. She said the first mortgage she signed for that old farm in Lowville was written on a piece of school paper.
The things that changed the most during her lifetime, she says, is government.
“The government has got into everything, there was nothing like that when we bought the farm,” she said.
She was quite serious about that, but joked that there were things in her life – and her father’s life to be specific – that she isn’t sure anyone can wrap their heads around.
“I wonder if my dad ever did accept that moon thing,” she said. “It was pretty hard for him to accept they ever could land a man on the moon. He only had three years of school, but he read and read and read.”
Her father was the sheriff of Halton County in his day, and still found time to work the farm for his family.
For Millar’s big day, members from St. James United Church are organizing visits for tea and conversation, and there is a card in the narthex for people to sign.
Congregation members Ruth Nicholson and Jane Lee are looking forward to celebrating their friend.
“Jean is a remarkable, bright woman who can speak on any topic,” said Nicholson. “She is always dressed to the nines, brooches, earrings and all.”
Lee highlighted Millar’s contributions to the church’s crafting group, which sews quilts and other items for the annual bazaar.
“At 99 years young, she was still providing knitted dishcloths, catnip bags she had sewn and the most beautiful bib aprons for adults and children,” said Lee, noting that while Millar no longer sews for the group her handiwork lives on, as many volunteers sport one of her aprons while serving at church luncheons or dinner.
Millar’s home is warm and welcoming, she adds.
“I’ve dropped in for a visit and she’s been baking butter tarts and then gives me one to take home and enjoy,” said Nicholson, noting that Millar’s living room features a display area where she set up seasonal installations, including one for Remembrance Day that includes letters from soldiers she wrote to as a young girl.
“Jean is a valuable time capsule and to know her is to love her,” said Nicholson.
Millar’s family has meant everything to her. She knows the basket by her seat on the couch will soon be full of birthday cards from family members all around the world, as well as certificates of congratulations from government dignitaries – and that she doesn’t really want a whole lot else for the big triple-digit day.
“I don’t need anything, I’ve got all I need.”
