Dorothy Radisich’s secret to a youthful look is in her breakfast. Her first meal of the day consists of wheat germ, oatmeal, and flakes.
She formulated her “secret recipe” years ago and that’s what she has been eating for breakfast every day. And how effective is it? The proof is in the pudding, so to speak. At 104 years old, Radisich’s face is so smooth she puts to shame people who are several decades her junior.
Along with her standard breakfast diet is her nightly ritual – applying Oil of Olay to revitalize her skin.
“She also used to walk a lot,” said Dinia Castro, Radisich’s part-time caretaker for the last 11 years.
The centenarian celebrated her birthday on Tuesday at St. Jude Care Center (formerly Palm Haven Convalescent Home) in Manteca surrounded by facility staff, friends and four-generation family members, some of whom came from Sunnyvale and Morgan Hill. Unfortunately, the party took place when she usually takes her nap in the afternoon, so she had her eyes closed most of the time. She did open her eyes briefly, though, and joined in the singing when she heard everyone singing her favorite song, “You are my sunshine.”
Radisich, a retired nurse who worked for many years at O’Connor Hospital in San Jose, has always been a very active person outside of her professional life, said her 92-year-old brother-in-law Anthony Bondi who was among the family members who were at the party.
“She did a lot of knitting for Salvation Army” such as scarves, said Bondi who was one of the family members and friends who received a scarf made by Radisich.
The sleepy Radisich that they saw on her birthday was so in contrast to the usual bubbly person that they know, added Bondi. “She knows she’s 104 today; she’s got it all. They don’t make them like her anymore.”
“She’s so sweet; she never gets angry,” Castro said, revealing another of Radisich’s secret to longevity and youthful looks.
“We’ve always been a close-knit family all these years,” added Bondi who was married to one of Radisich’s two sisters.
Radisich was the oldest of four children – two boys and two girls. “They are all gone; she outlived them all,” Bondi said of the other siblings.
With the exception of one brother who was in his 70s when he died, the rest of the siblings were in their 80s and 90s when they passed away. Radisich’s husband, Mike, died in 1976 and she has never remarried.
The happy centenarian lives with her daughter in Manteca. This is her third stay at St. Jude Care Center in the last three years. Her daughter was unable to attend the celebration because she, herself, was at another care center in Manteca due to illness.
Radisich has two children, five grandchildren, four great-grandchildren and a great-great-grandchild expected in August.
Besides Bondi, family members who came to help Radisich blow the candles and enjoy a slice of her chocolate birthday cake were her grandson Steven Weeks and his wife Vanessa, great-granddaughter Kira Baldovino, niece Gloria Ravetto, and niece Catherine Ellis. For the red-letter celebration, St. Jude laid out a white linen-covered long table with fresh long-stemmed roses and violets for centerpieces.
