MONROE — For years, Helen Johnson held court as the oldest resident at Aster Senior Living in Monroe, a title for which she was quite proud.

She was celebrated by staff and fellow residents for longevity, spunk and pleasant demeanor — all traits she continued into her 105th year on her April 13 birthday, a milestone she recently celebrated with friends at Aster.

But recently Johnson’s claim to fame at Aster changed when Gert Voegeli showed up. With Voegeli’s birthday on Christmas Eve every year, Johnson must now share the title as Aster’s most senior resident.  

In fact, Voegeli is even a little bit older than Johnson.

How does it feel?

“To be honest, I feel tired,” said a smiling Johnson, who no doubt has a right to be a little weary after all those years of living. “I was told I was the oldest person here but then she came along and we are the oldest together.”

Johnson sat a table with her new friend recently in a sunbathed atrium at Aster, as the noise from a nearby party drifted in, and several craft and gift sellers held a small bazaar for the residents to shop.

Many in Monroe know the story that each year on Helen’s birthday, Germany’s Ulli (Wagner) Gallon telephones her former foreign exchange host. Ulli was the second AFS student to come to Monroe High School, doing so during the 1964-65 school year, and she lived with Helen and her family.

“Oh my gosh, she’s great, such a neat person” said Sheri Novak, who stopped briefly to chat with Johnson and Voegeli at Aster in Monroe.

It is indeed a small world — it turns out Novak’s father and Johnson’s husband were business partners in town at one point. 

For her part, Voegeli said she owes her longevity to “drinking two cups of coffee every morning, no more.”

“That’s it,” she said, matter-of-factly. “That’s all I really do.”

Voegeli and her family farmed for almost her whole life, save for a brief stint she spent working at Monroe’s Colony Brands. She reared six children, endured the Great Depression, grew up in a home without electricity or running water, and has many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren. They both lived through the moon landing and World War II; and saw the history of technology unfold as households all over the world got electricity, then radios and televisions — and finally the internet and tiny supercomputers we carry around with us.

But still, Johnson admits she doesn’t know what to make of all of the smart phones.

“I wouldn’t know what to do with it,” she said, gesturing to a phone on a nearby table.

Not long ago, at 103, before coming to Aster, Voegeli still would take UTV rides to eat breakfast at Sherrell Jean’s Diner in South Wayne with her family, and get butter pecan ice cream from the restaurant across the street. 

Helen was born in 1910 in Wiota and graduated top of her class at Argyle High School in 1938. She grew to appreciate the news at a young age and had dreamed of being a reporter for the New York Times. 

Now both women enjoy playing cards with their fellow residents as often as possible, plenty of naps, and visiting with family and friends. Helen still reads the newspaper daily and stays up on current events. And Voegeli tries to stay sharp, too

“I have had a really good life,” said Voegeli. “And I like it here.”