Former Kaua‘i High School basketball coach Buzzy Cox kept his promise Tuesday in Hanama‘ulu.
Former Kaua‘i High School basketball coach Buzzy Cox kept his promise Tuesday in Hanama‘ulu.
“I told her (his mother Flora Cox) that if she reached 100 years old, I would call The Garden Island newspaper,” Buzzy Cox said. “Today is her birthday, and she is 100 years old.”
Flora Cox’s birthday is celebrated on May 10. She was born in Koloa.
“I was born in Koloa and grew up around Lawa‘i before moving to Lihu‘e,” the matriarch Cox corrected the information being passed around the room.
Buzzy said Flora actually as two birthdays, one on May 10 that everyone celebrates, and her real birth date which is around May 29.
“Her father had a problem with getting the paperwork to the right people,” Buzzy said. “Now, she has two birthdays.”
Before retiring at the age of 70, Flora worked for the state Department of Education as the secretary to the superintendent, serving several generations of Kaua‘i school superintendents.
Surrounded by her housemates — Asako Ebata is 100, Alice Yamada is 103 and Nancy Roberts, the mother of former Kaua‘i High School girls volleyball coach Rich Roberts, is the baby at 93 years old — Flora spent a quiet day with her family and companions.
“Today is her 100th birthday,” Buzzy said. “I kept my word.”
