FULLERTON : She’s 107 and as Full of Life as Ever

Gretchen Fleming turned 107 on Thursday, and there seems little debate on the reason for her longevity.

“I’m too mean to die. God doesn’t want me,” the smiling, gravel-voiced woman said with a smile. Fleming is known by the folks at the Fairway Convalescent Center for her pointed repartee and her numerous attempts to sneak out of the facility for lunch.

“I think she’s lived so long because she’s got a bit of the devil in her,” said her grand-niece Rita Kunselman, who, along with other family members, center employees and residents threw a birthday party complete with cake, balloons and memories.

And Fleming is a woman with plenty of memories. She’s lived through six wars, and she broke into tears as she discussed a seventh, the Civil War, in which her father fought as a Union soldier.

Fleming was born in 1885 during the first presidency of Grover Cleveland. She has seen 17 more presidents come and go. But none stands out for her. “A president is a president. If he ever did something for me, then I would have remembered him,” she said.

Fleming, who has not remarried since her second husband died in 1953, worked as a helper at several Los Angeles private schools until she was 77.

“This is a woman who at 100 years old still walked to the grocery store at the corner of Union and Olympic” near downtown Los Angeles, said John Kunselman, another relative. “She’s really something.”

Fleming dressed up for her party in a shiny pink and black dress with white beads and a new hairdo. She moved to the convalescent home two years ago after she became unable to walk. But her wit remains sharp, her laugh hearty and her energy seemingly boundless, friends and relatives say.

“She’s a very sweet lady. She’s spunky and has a unique sense of humor,” said Joanne Piraino, head of administration for the convalescent center.

Fleming’s continuing quest to roll her wheelchair onto the sidewalk, catch a bus and go to a restaurant has become a legend at the center.

Not all of Fleming’s birthday memories revolved around fun and antics, however. She fought back tears as she discussed her parents, who died when she was still a child. But suddenly, without warning, the tears disappeared and laughter erupted once more.

She said she suspects her long life has something to do with the fact that her heart can’t fail. “I don’t think I have a heart,” she said with chuckle.