A life spanning two centuries to be celebrated Saturday
To live to 100 is quite an accomplishment. To live to100 and not be the oldest member of your family is practically unheard of. It sounds like the life of Julia Nichol, 99, of Rogers City, who was born a century ago this Saturday. Nichol, through the 100 years of her life, has endured a lot. She survived being hit by a vehicle, beat cancer, has had two daughters die of cancer, and has outlived nine brothers and sisters. The only living family member older than Julia is her sister Anna Epsey, who lives in Lincoln, not far from the original family farm.
?Considering all that ails me, I am grateful the Lord let me live this long,? Nichol said Monday from Tendercare of Rogers City. ?I don?t have my health but my mind is good.? A party is planned at the Lighthouse Restaurant Saturday, at which time the Nauticals will serenade her and a representative of the city will present her with a proclamation.
NICHOL HAS lived in Rogers City for more than 50 years, with most of the time spent in a home on Second Street. ?I?ve always liked Rogers City,? said Nichol, pausing a second or two before answering questions. ?People were friendly to me. It?s a nice clean town to live in.? Very few questions had to be repeated to her for The Advance interview.
?I was a good citizen. I didn?t cause anybody any trouble.? Julia was born January 31, 1904 to John and Josephine Cubalo, Polish immigrants who lived in Germany. The women in the Cubalo (Cube-a-low) family have lived full lives.
Anna, who will turn 103 July 6, and Julia have lived the longest, but their mother Josephine lived to 98 and three sisters lived to 89, 94, and 98. The family raised chickens, pigs, and cattle on their farm and Julia said her father was proud of the fact that he ?raised a family and never went into debt. We were always well fed.? Nichol graduated from Oscoda High School and earned a teaching degree in Detroit. She didn?t like teaching, so she took a business course and went to work for a Detroit firm until she married James B. Nichol, May 16, 1925 at the age of 21.
JAMES WORKED for the U.S. Coast Guard and the family lived in the Hammond Bay area for a short time before moving to Rogers City. The couple had four children: John, James, Colleen, and Carol. The toughest times of Julia?s life were the loss of her daughters Colleen and Carol, who both died at the age of 59.
?It was very bad,? said Nichol. A car accident in 1945 nearly cut her life short, and she hadn?t even reached the halfway point. ?Doctors didn?t think I was going to live,? Nichol said of a severely injured arm and shoulder. Nichol went on to become a master seamstress in Rogers City, making dresses for some of the town?s most prominent citizens. ?I was considered the best,? she said.
In fact, Nichol was offered a good-paying seamstress job in Bay City, but turned it down because the couple didn?t want to leave. Her husband passed away more than 40 years ago, in 1963. About three years ago, Julia moved to Tendercare of Rogers City where she currently shares a room with Nancy Gabara. ?She?s a good roommate,? said
?IF YOU ask her she?ll recite the alphabet backwards,? said Roger Rouleau of Alpena, who was married to Carol before she passed away. Roger remarried, but still visits Julia. ?Not only that, but she can recite the Gettysburg Address. She might forget some of the parts…but after this many years she can do that,? Roger said. Nichol talks fondly of the days when she grew good-sized raspberries and tended to her garden and flower bed and her home on Second Street, something she misses dearly. Turning 100, she said, isn?t as glorified as everyone makes it out to be.
?You get to 100 and you find yourself quite alone,? Julia said. ?It?s hard when you can?t go to the phone and call a friend.? The secret of her longevity might be linked to the medicine chest full of vitamins she has carried with her, as well as prayer that plays an important part in her life. ?I?m a great believer in prayer,? Nichol said. Her birthday wishes are for improved health and for happiness within her family.