102-Year-Old Marks Birthday By Walking Across New Bridge, Reveals Wish For 103rd Birthday

Rita Georgeff, a Canadian centenarian, recently turned 102, and what she did to celebrate the special day has gone viral on social media. According to People magazine, she checked an unusual item off her bucket list to mark the milestone, which was walking across the newly built Gordie Howe International Bridge. Georgeff, who hails from Windsor, Ontario's Sandwich Town neighbourhood, celebrated turning 102 on August 28.

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Gordie Howe International Bridge

The bridge, which connects Detroit in Michigan to Windsor in Ontario, Canada, has been under construction for years. For local residents who watched the massive steel structure slowly stretch across the Detroit River, seeing it finished was a momentous event. But for this centenarian, it was deeply personal.

Having lived through more than a century of history in the area, she had followed the bridge's progress from the very beginning.

"I was seven years old, and I lived on the corner of Peter and Indian Road, and there were just mounds and mounds of people on the bridge," Georgeff said, as quoted by CTV News.

"But at seven you really don't know what's going on."

As her 102nd birthday approached, she told her family that she didn't just want to look at the bridge from afar; she wanted to stand on it and cross it herself.

"Oh gosh. I'm doing it!" Georgeff said, as quoted by CTV News. "I wanted to really do this when I was 100, and I had to wait two years to do it."

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Crossing the landmark

Surrounded by family members and supportive bridge workers, she made her way. Equipped with a walker and accompanied by loved ones, she steadily made her way across the bridge, taking in panoramic views of the river and the two cities on either side.

"At my age it's difficult to actually go down to Sandwich Street but every time I do I appreciate how much The Gordie Howe Bridge has done for the town. It's fantastic," she said.

Wish for next birthday

She was also asked about the wish for the next birthday. "That I reach my birthday, actually," she said as quoted in the report.