Rose has lived by herself for 27 years in a house she takes pride in, caring for every detail inside and out. At age 80, she just retired eight years ago from her job working at a department store. She’s quick to give credit for her health and independence to her primary care physician Dr. Michael Farrell. He has worked closely with Rose for almost 15 years to prevent any major issues with her health through annual wellness visits, flu shots, and tests for anything suspicious.

“He takes wonderful care of me. I feel very strong. That makes me have confidence in myself, and it makes me feel like I want to live longer.”

Rose says she is very careful about balance and walking; she tries to be careful not to fall and get injured. But that doesn’t mean Rose sits around.

“I do what I love. I go line dancing and I was having a ball doing line dancing. Then I made a simple turn with the music, blew out my knee, and down I went to the floor.  But I'll tell you, Allegheny Health Network made sure that they took care of me. They came to the house, and they got me through this. They take all this worry away from you.”

Rose has three children and six grandchildren who are scattered around the country. Recently, she taught herself how to use an iPad and Facebook so she can keep track of her family and comment on everyone’s posts, which her family says has made her a celebrity in their social circles.

“They are proud of me, and they are the love of my life. And I’m going to show them that I’m going to live a long healthy life independent.” 

She thinks that with the right care and the right attitude, it’s possible she’ll continue to have a good life until she’s close to 100.

“If Betty White can do it, why can't we?”

#LivingProof