For his 98th birthday, Carl Werner’s family threw him a big party at the Cherryville Hall.
For his milestone 100th birthday two years later a pandemic was in place, limiting the celebration of Werner becoming a centenarian to just family at his village home with social distancing protocols in place.
Werner turned 100 on Monday, July 27.
“Raise a bunch of kids and let the little buggers do all the work,” said Werner two years ago when asked the secret to living a long life.
Werner was the ninth of 15 kids born to Jacob and Caroline Werner, Cherryville homesteaders. He and his wife, Noreen, raised seven little buggers.
He has lived his entire 100 years in the Cherryville-Lumby area. Werner made it to Grade 8 in school before “working like hell for a living.”
“There’s no better area,” he said in 2018. “It’s been good to me. If I was younger I’d do a few things different but there’s nothing wrong (with) this area. I learned to love everybody and I still love everybody.”
He ran sawmills, logged and farmed, working mostly for farmers in those days doing everything. He worked on grain and dairy farms and milked cows. He operated his own dairy farm later in life.
After getting married, Werner focused on logging and operating a sawmill near Lumby.
He voluntarily gave up his driver’s license at age 97.
Werner’s family recently welcomed its fifth generation, as the first great-great-grandchild, a girl name Myah, was born to great-granddaughter Vanessa.
READ MORE: ‘Little buggers’ help North Okanagan man reach 98
roger@vernonmorningstar.com
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