LONGVIEW, Texas — Mae Horn is "full of life" and on Monday, she celebrated both her full life of 99 years and her legacy as the oldest Kilgore Rangerette with help from the drill team's 84th line.
Family, friends and staff at the senior living community Buckner Westminster Place in Longview came together to honor Horn, who became a Rangerette in 1941. The current Rangerettes coming in was a special surprise for her.
Westminster Place staff coordinated with three Rangerettes to come celebrate Horn, and photographer Holly Patterson, a former Rangerette, made this surprise tribute possible.
"The Rangerettes came in as we sang 'Happy Birthday' to them, and you see the surprise on their face. They had no idea that it was happening," said April Wright, lifestyle associate for Buckner Westminster Place. "We kept it very secret."
Horn was born Mae Polaski on Aug. 24, 1924, in Marshall and graduated from Longview High School. She has three children, five grandchildren, and nine great grandchildren. She has lived in Westminster Place since March 2015 and the staff says she is “full of life.”
The new class of Rangerettes gave her a hug and as she thanked them for coming by, she pointed out how her skirt was longer than the current attire.
"Thank you, thank you! You know my skirt came down to here," Horn said. "But I can still kick!"
The party featured cake, punch and music and was themed “Red, White, and Blue.”
Also celebrating with Horn was this month was Westminster Place resident Frances Hall, a Rangerette in the 1950s. She will be turning 90 on Aug. 25. Another Westminster resident and former Rangerette 96-year-old Grace Raney was also at the celebration. She'll be 97 in October.