Miss Velma Turns 102

Jubilee House on Warfield Boulevard was the site of a special parade recently, as dozens came out to honor Velma Gilliam on her 102nd birthday.

“She was born on May 18, 1918,” Deborah Elms said. “So this is her second pandemic. Miss Velma is very talkative and loves to share stories from her life. She’s very aware of what is happening right now. She talks about all the presidents, all the changes that have taken place. She is amazing to talk to.”

“Velma went to work as a waitress,” Elms said. “And on that very day her husband-to-be, a truck driver, stopped there to eat. As he was leaving, he asked about her favorite song. Velma said, something Hawaiian. He put enough money in the jukebox to play that song over and over again. She said her co-workers were ready to have a fit. They courted for three years, eventually got married, and the two of them ended up buying their own truckstop, which they ran for many years.”Fittingly, a tractortrailer led the parade.