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12 OUR YUCAIPA | AUGUST 2016 William Robert "Bob" Henry of Yucaipa has seen 19 presidents take office, witnessed the invention of the toaster, ballpoint pen, microwave, seat belts and penicillin — and is still eagerly waiting what's next. Bob celebrated his 108th birthday in December and he's already talking about his next one when the city plans to recognize him at a city council meeting. He gave his word he would be there, and Bob made us promise to check with them for permission to write about him before then. That's because a handshake is an ironclad contract, his son Bill Henry explained. "Dad's lived his life in that honest way. He's an all around good guy." At over a century old, Bob is still fully mobile and gets around using only a cane. He's almost blind and very hard of hearing, but thanks to the best hearing aids on the market and his sharp wit, you'd never know. Bob's got a good sense of humor and full head of hair that he says he cuts himself. He says he enjoys his life and likes seeing Yucaipa grow. "Yucaipa is always building and always improving. I like it," he said. It's probably that easy going attitude that's propelled him to 108, Bill said. "He's a mellow guy who was always willing to help others." Plus, Bill points out, his dad has good genes. Bob's mother lived to 100, and his brother to 96. His father died in his 70s, but from an illness that could be easily treated today, said Bill. Bob was born Dec. 29, 1907 in Fredricktown, Ohio, the son of an Ohio Farmer and doting mother. He and his older sister Edna attended what Bob calls a "country school" that was right across the field from his house. He remembers that the teacher offered him $20 a month, a fortune back then, to arrive to school early and fire up the stove. He said he had a corduroy knee length suit with black stockings and black shoes that he wore to school proudly each day. "As soon as I got home I hung it right up and put back on my bib overalls," he laughed. Bob said the students were taken to and from school in a horse drawn carriage, and in the winter, the horses pulled them to school on a sleigh. Bob said he and school "never got along too well," and he recalls the teacher telling him he would miss every recess until he memorized his times tables. "So I learned them in one recess," he said. "He was a good old teacher." In 1928 Bob and his best friend Buzz Clark decided to move to California. Bob borrowed $75 from his mother for the trip. The two friends loaded up Bob's black 1926 Essex and drove the whole way at 35 miles per hour. The trip took 13 days. Today that same trip would be a 36 hour drive. "We put a grub box on the back and had a gasoline stove to cook on," recalled Bob. "We slept in the car. It was quite an adventure and along the way people asked us if we'd like to buy property in their states, but we kept on coming to California. We first went to San Francisco, and then ended up in Los Angeles." After one California winter, Bob was sold on the west coast, and settled in Van Nuys. He married his wife Irene soon after, and Bill came along a few years later. The couple were married 40 plus years until Irene passed away in 1968. Bob worked as an auto mechanic and then at Lockheed Martin building P-38 fighter aircraft during World War II. Bill said his father was saved from serving in the war because Lockheed Martin employees were needed to build the aircraft for the war. "Working on engines just came naturally to me," said Bob. "I never had any trouble finding a job." Chryslers were always his favorite, he said, and his boss Dean Garvey of Chrysler of Redlands was his respected friend and employer. Bob said he decided to retire at 65, and Garvey begged him to stay another few years. "Well, I should have listened to him, because I quit and then got a bad hernia just shopping the next day and landed myself in the hospital for a week," Bob laughed. Bob built several homes in Yucaipa over the years, his first being on Avenue H. "It was the first home with a double garage and people thought I was crazy," said Bob. He said he built it for around $1,500 and sold it in the 1950s for $13,000. He also built the first house on Peach Tree and then another one across the street. Both with then unheard of double garages. He lives in Sun Park near those houses now, enjoying his life at home under the diligent watch of his son Bill and buddies in the neighborhood. He has six grandchildren and seven great grandchildren who visit him often. He doesn't have much advice for living to 108. "The good lord doesn't want me and the devil won't have me," Bill joked. "Other than that, be good. Go to church and love the Lord." Bob Henry Looks Forward To His 109th Birthday By Natalie Palmer Photo by Stuart Semmens

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