Hamilton's Ann Konkel is an 'inspiration' as she turns 108

Ann Konkel, a beloved matriarch, Second World War survivor and former emergency room nurse who has lived in Hamilton for 71 years,willcelebrate her 108th birthday on Friday.

This will be her third birthday while living at St. Joseph's Healthcare on Charlton Avenue, and her family said they aregrateful for the time they have with her.

"She's so greatly loved and so greatly respected," daughter-in-law Robin Konkel told CBC Hamilton.

"We have tried everything to always keep her well and we are extremely grateful doctors have done everything to keep her well."

A long, full life

Ann was born in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, in 1915.She has survived two pandemicsthe first one was the Spanish flu, which started in 1918,when she was three years old.

She also survived the Second World War, but not without losing her father to starvation during the Dutch famine of 1944.

She met her husband, Edward, a prisoner of war campand concentration camp survivor, during the war. The couple married and moved to Hamilton in 1952.

Her family said they lived in a rooming house, buying each room until they owned the whole lot. Ann was a cleaning ladywhile her husband worked at Stelco.

She eventuallyretrained and became an operating-room nurse at Henderson Hospital.

Her husband died in the 1990s, but she continued living in their home, which her daughter-in-law says Annstill ownsdespite a long hospital stay following a fall in 2020.

"She still has her house on Sherman AvenueNorth, and her house is still intact because it's her house, and I always want her to know that she has her home," Robin said.

Robin saidKonkel was still volunteering with the Catholic Women's League and the Good Shepherduntil age96, and didn't stop volunteering with local churches until after that.

"She had the keys to Saint Stan's until she was 100 for the Cabbage Fest they ran every year in Hamilton," Robin said, referring toSt.Stanislaus Roman Catholic Polish Church.

If there is any lesson to learn from her mother-in-law's long, full life, Robin said, it's to be caring to others and keep your word.

"Ann Konkel is an inspiration," she said.

Family appreciates cards for Ann

In 2020, Konkel receivedalmost 2,000 cards for her birthday.Robin said the cards meant a lot to Ann and the family.

Konkel recently received a certificate from Ontario Premier Doug Ford, congratulating her on another birthday, and police chief Frank Bergen will visit Konkelon Friday with police horses a yearly tradition the family says Konkel loves.

Anyone wanting to send a birthday card to her can mail them to: P.O. Box 10066, Don Mills, Ont., M3C 0J9.