On Nov. 4, Gertrude Findley, a 35-year member of the La Mesa Woman’s Club, celebrated her 100th birthday. In lieu of an indoor party, club members honored her by driving by her home in a caravan of decorated cars, honking and cheering.

Gertrude was born in Des Moines, Iowa to parents from Norway and Denmark. She grew up with three brothers and a sister. After graduating from high school, she worked as a bookkeeper. She met her husband Paul, who was a farmer in Grimes, Iowa. They married in 1942, and then Paul was drafted and sent to England with the Army Signal Corps. He spent the next four years working with military photographers and was assigned to photograph various concentration camps following their liberation at the end of the war.

Gertrude and Paul moved to Burbank in the ‘50s with their daughter, Jean Pauline McCoy. After Paul’s death in 1985, Gertrude moved to El Cajon and joined the La Mesa Woman’s Club. She has been an avid golfer and world traveler. She enjoys spending time with her family of two grandsons and two great-granddaughters.

She keeps alert and active by playing bridge several times a month. With her elegant and sophisticated demeanor, Gertrude is a well-respected member of the La Mesa Woman’s Club.