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Veteran to celebrate 105 years

Cullman Times - 10/20/2018

Oct. 20--Lew Paden has seen a lot of years come and go, but each day he has risen and put forward his best through good times and bad.

Sunday, the World War II Army veteran will celebrate his 105th birthday during a celebration at the Veterans of Foreign War Post 2214. Fellow veterans and family members will be on hand to honor his life.

Born Oct. 21, 1913 in Oklahoma, Paden and his wife, Hilda, who is 93, moved to Cullman 32 years to join other family members, like his granddaughter, Karen Farley.

Arriving at 105 years is a great achievement, Farley said, noting that her grandfather is never one to complain and has always been active well into his advanced age.

But like many Americans of his generation, Paden faced uncertainty as a soldier in World War II. During the height of the war in France he was shot in the hand, but he returned to the United States and went right to work building a new life and family.

"He's always been in good shape," Farley said. "He world for Sinclair Oil as a delivery driver and then a custodian at an elementary school before he retired. They moved down here for the weather and to be close to us."

Paden's enjoyment of life and fitness became evident through the years, including when at the age of 98 while cutting a tree his hip broke.

"He's not cutting or trimming trees anymore," Farley said, "but he just bounced right back from breaking his hip and has continued to do the things he enjoys."

Paden's birthday celebration at the VFW is scheduled 2-4 p.m. Sunday.

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(c)2018 The Cullman Times (Cullman, Ala.)

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