Inside Rochester Regional Health’s Edna Tina Wilson Living Center in Greece, Ida Agnello is being visited by her granddaughter, Emily Agnello.
"Take me for a walk," the elder Agnello requested. Her granddaughter immediately began to push her in a wheelchair through the halls of the nursing home and rehabilitation center where Agnello has been receiving physical and occupational therapies.
"She really has no ailments," Emily Agnello said Tuesday about her grandmother. "It's kind of impressive. She's really doing well."
"Impressive" may be an understatement when you consider that just two days earlier, the native of Italy celebrated her 109th birthday.
"The good Lord is my secret," Agnello responded when asked the key to living such a long life.
Michael Bernard, Agnello's occupational therapist, believes that it's important for his oldest patient to keep her body in motion. He said seniors spend a lot of time "stuck" reading or watching television.
"That's good because it keeps them safe," Bernard said. "But we need to keep those muscles, joints, and tissues moving."
Bernard said Agnello is proof that staying active, among other things, can result in a long and healthy life.
"Keeping your brain working, doing games, puzzles, things like that, truly shows that you can be independent at any age," Bernard said.
Agnello’s family said the goal is to get her back living independently as soon as possible.
