WA6FID 1917 - 2019

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Richard J. Krekemeyer El Segundo, CA Anaheim, CA Fort Collins, CO Joshua Tree, CA QCWA # 24652 Chapter 58 First Call: WV6FID in 1958

Joshua Tree centenarian celebrates passionate life

JOSHUA TREE - Some people say longtime Joshua Tree resident Richard Krekemeyer could pass for 80, but this would be off by 20 years.

Krekemeyer, a World War II veteran, joined the centenarian club Saturday, turning 100 years young while celebrating with family and friends at the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Joshua Tree.

"Oh my gosh it's been a long time," Krekemeyer said while greeting about 50 guests at his celebration. "It's been a long time since I've seen everyone".

According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, only 620,000 of the 16 million Americans who served in World War II were alive in 2016. Krekemeyer celebrated beating those odds with friends and loved ones.

A delicious array of food with platters of fried chicken, potato salad, ham and turkey sandwiches and two large iced birthday cakes were piled on pool tables.

"It is a good thing we bought so much food," said his daughter, Jan McMahon, who traveled from Fort Collins, Colorado, to celebrate her father's special birthday with her husband, Ken Calkins.

The VFW Post 7264 in Joshua Tree is one of Krekemeyer's favorite spots to hang out and relax. He has been attending regularly for many years.

"He's a clown. He's always has something funny to say," said his nephew Don Schrimpf, an Army veteran who traveled from Huntington Beach to see his uncle for the first time in about 20 years.

While chatting about his uncle passing a recent driving test, Schrimpf said he fondly remembers all the "knuckle rubs to the head" he received as a boy.

Linda Howard, of Joshua Tree, joyfully greeted her friend with a card and bouquet of balloons. Howard has known Krekemeyer for many years and said it was no surprise he reached 100 years old.

"He used to be the instructor for Healthy Generations pool," Howard said. Krekemeyer worked as an instructor at the pool for about 12 years; it was a passion. "He did that for a long time and really loved it," his daughter said.

McMahon, 64, said most of her father's siblings reached their high 90s.

"It's just in the genes," she said. "It is amazing. It just runs in the family."

An only child, McMahon's mother died when she was in the fourth grade, leaving her dad to fill the roles of both parents.

"He was mom and dad to me," she said. "He did everything from cooking and cleaning. Just everything."

Krekemeyer, who was born in St. Louis, Missouri, had a long career in the aerospace industry prior to moving to Joshua Tree in the late 1970s. A widower, he is now single and lives alone.

"I'm the only sibling of eight left," he said Saturday.

Previously, Krekemeyer lived with his daughter for almost three years in Colorado, but never took to the cold winters and returned to his desert oasis in Joshua Tree.

Krekemeyer was in the United States Air Force, serving in the 390th Bomber group as a top turret gunner on a B17 over Germany. He served in the military for 38 months, according to his family.

Krekemeyer joins a growing trend of Americans joining the ranks of centenarians in recent years. The long-lived centenarians were featured in a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2014, there were 72,197 Americans aged 100 or older, according to the CDC report. That number is up from 43.6 percent from 2000, when there were only 50,281 centenarians, the report said.

The secret to living a healthy life into your 90s and reaching the centenarian club is keeping your passions alive and stress levels low, Krekemeyer.s friends and family said.

"Nothing bothers him or gets in his way in life," said his daughter.