SAVANNAH, Tenn. (BNC) — The Savannah congregation honored Mrs. Audrey Bowling for reaching 100 years of age June 25.

Melanie Cromwell, one of the saints there, compiled this information about her:

Mrs. Bowling was born June 25, 1919, in the community of Swift in northern Hardin County. She attended school at Swift, Mt. Hope (Wayne Co.) and Phillips Chapel, before graduating from Central High School, Savannah, in 1934. She rode 24 miles by bus to attend high school.

When the river was high they would cross in a canoe and the bus would meet them on the other side.

She was baptized in Hardin’s Creek during a tent meeting held by G.C. Austin.

She was married to Taylor Bowling for 56 years. He died in 1996.

Mrs. Bowling picked cotton in Missouri, worked in the telephone office, and also worked in the Oak Ridge, TN, atomic bomb plant while Taylor was in military service during World War II.

She was a cubical operator, reading meters monitoring heating the uranium for the bombs. During the war there was a lot of rationing; people sold things for more than they were worth.

Taylor was an aviation machinist and was gone for 25 months to Australia. She would get mail and if he had told her where he was that part of the letter would be cut out. When he was on a ship near Palm Isle in the Pacific Ocean he mentioned “Palmolive Soap” to let her know where he was.

She has no deep, dark secrets, has had a lot of ups and downs, but the hardest thing was the loss of her son, Norman. He was a good Christian man. She knew where he was going and that was peace to her.

Mrs. Bowling has been a member of Savannah congregation since 1963, when Jimmy Rogers was the preacher.

She worked for 25 years as a payroll clerk for Savannah Manufacturing.

She has two daughters, Debbie and Sherry.

When asked what would she like to tell young people she said,

  • “Go by the golden rule treat others as you would like to be treated — don’t keep a chip on your shoulder.”
  • “Do the best you can with what you have, when you can.”
  • “It’s better to wear out than to rust out.”

Mrs. Bowling has read to Bible through 10-12 times and has read over 600 books since 2009.

Her favorite Bible verse: “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer” Psalm 19:14.

h/t: Jamie Suiter

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