On 100th birthday, Baltimore parishioner looks forward to future

Published: 2007-09-07

BALTIMORE (CNS) -- Following a special Mass at St. Gregory the Great Parish in Baltimore in honor of her 100th birthday, Ella Byrd told well-wishers she may have lived through a century of history, but looks forward to events in the future that one day will be deemed historic. "As I look back, I see that we've made a lot of progress in making things fair and equal," said Byrd, who turned 100 Aug. 24. "But more needs to be done. I told my friends I'm starting my next 100 years now and can't wait to see where we go from here." When Byrd was born in the summer of 1907, women in the United States didn't have the right to vote and the civil rights movement was still 50 years away. During the course of her first 100 years, Byrd would enjoy the spoils of her ever-evolving nation, become a community activist entrenched in the Democratic Party, and participate in the legislative process as an elections judge.

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