Woodridge Village Board | Woodridge City Website
Woodridge Village Board | Woodridge City Website
At its Jan. 19 meeting, the village board of Woodridge honored the village's newest centenarian.
In honor of Anna Marie Reed's centennial birthday, the mayor proclaimed Jan. 19 through Jan. 22 as her weekend.
“Nona, I feel obligated to call you Nona,” Mayor Gina Cunningham said. “We have a beautiful proclamation here for you. And this is yours to keep and proudly put wherever you want to. Well, we're so glad. And we're so excited that you have a weekend named after you. You know, I'm the mayor. I do not have a day or two days, so this is special.”
Reed thanked the village for celebrating with her, promising that the proclamation plaque would be going straight on her wall: “Well, this is quite a surprise for me. I was coming here to celebrate with Michael, but I was so surprised with all the folks here. And I appreciate this very much. I want to thank all of you for celebrating with me.”
The board was told Reed was born on Jan. 17, 1923 in Springfield. She was a first-generation Italian-American and grew up in Illinois with her two older siblings before marrying her husband Robert in 1941. They were married for 72 years and had five children, 11 grandchildren, 20 great grandchildren, and six great great grandchildren who all still refer to her as Nona. They lived in Woodridge for many years and Reed returned in 2016 to stay permanently near her children. She still enjoys spending time with her family, playing card games, going for rides in the car, and shopping.
The board also held a moment of silence for a beloved resident who recently passed away. John Jay, better known as Jack Kelly, was a lifelong Illinois resident. He worked for General Motors Chevrolet until age 55 when he retired, and then soon became the fire commissioner for the Lisle-Woodridge fire department until the age of 90 in 2020. He passed away on Jan. 1 at the age of 92 and is survived by his wife Joan, their four children, ten grandchildren, and seven great grandchildren.
The council also discussed an ordinance to amend the village’s water service rate and charges from $1.10 to $1.20 per thousand gallons.
The council will meet again at 7 p.m. on Thursday at the Village Hall on 5 Plaza Drive.
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