JESSIE HEAD
On November 23, 2014, Jessie Head will turn 104/105 years old. She is actually turning 104, but if you ask her, she will tell you she is turning 105. The year difference is because she believes in celebrating her birthday going forward, not the year behind. Jessie, born on November 23, 1910, in Forsythe, Georgia, still speaks with a southern accent. She grew up in a rural area, the country, she will tell you. I come up the hard way, by learning from seeing others and not by going to school. I never been schooled a day in my life.
Jessie learned to cook from scratch from her Mamma. Her family grew everything in their garden. People would come and buy our vegetables. She later became a pastry cook at one of the local colleges in Georgia. In the early 1940s, Jessie moved to the Pittsburgh area where she worked as a housekeeper, cook, and mother to her 5 children. She later became the Head Cook at her church, Metropolitan Baptist Church. She said she cooked for everyone and was well-known for her rolls. Everyone wanted my rolls and sometimes I would not tell anyone I was making them.
Later in life, Jessie moved around. She went to California to live with her daughter, Ella Mae Carter, for 7 years and then to Georgia to live with another daughter for 3 years. Jessie always wanted to come back to the Pittsburgh area. My wheelchair has been all over. She is currently living in a senior citizen building in the North Side along with her daughter, Mary Heath. If you saw Jessie, you would never guess she is about to be 104/105 years old. She is sharp and still able to tell her story. She attends LIFE Pittsburgh's Northshore Adult Day Program 3 days per week where she looks forward to coming. It is nice, glad I can get out of the house. When Jessie is not at LIFE Pittsburgh, she enjoys watching TV and going to her church every Sunday. She is very proud, as she is one of the reigning mothers of the Metropolitan Baptist Church. Thanks to the Lord, what would I do without the Lord, the Lord watches over me.