Celebrating the turn of the year is even more significant when it’s the hundredth one you’ve seen. That’s the case for Helen Jenkins of Hamilton, who recently celebrated her 100th birthday with a party given by great grandchildren, Valisha and Mike Needles, and other family members.
She was born on December 18, 1915. Jenkins was the youngest girl of nine children born to Rilla Mae and James Haley. She grew up in the Stevensville area where her mother was a midwife. She sometimes accompanied her mother and helped with the births. Her father worked for the Forest Service and she stayed with him at different lookouts. While in high school, she cared for children, helped the sick, and liked to attend barn dances.
She met Clayton Boone Jenkins at one such dance. They were married on Christmas Eve in 1933. After they were married, they purchased a farm in Corvallis. Three of their children were born here. After that, they moved to Sula where they bought a ranch and lived without running water and electricity for two years. Later they managed Lost Trail Hot Springs and she cared for 50-60 camp children.
She has been a lifelong member of the Seventh Day Adventist Church of Darby and Hamilton. She and several ladies from the church went to England where she saw the Queen. She has also been to Paris, Rome, Switzerland, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Canada, as well as Alaska and Hawaii. She made several trips to Arroyo Grande, California to visit her brothers Bob and Earl Haley. She cared for both until their deaths.
Jenkins and her husband had four children – Dorothy Johnson (deceased), Barbara Kline, James Jenkins, and Donald L. Jenkins. She has 17 grandchildren, 31 great grandchildren, and 35 great, great grandchildren. In addition to keeping up with her family, she still maintains an independent life. She does her own shopping, walks a mile in the summertime, and loves to play pinochle.
