Asked how he feels on turning 105, Alex Nole said, "Surprised. I never thought I would reach 100, let alone 105."
The longtime Wolcott resident is in excellent health, according to family members. He was joking with friends and even got out of his wheelchair and walked several yards at Town Hall, where a few dozen residents turned out to salute him on his birthday.
A volunteer for several local organizations and his church, Nole is noted for his work supporting the town library. An avid reader, he was chairman of the committee that built the current library, which opened in 1970, according to town historian Florence Goodman.
"When I was a boy, I used to walk down to the Silas Bronson Library... two or three times a week," says Nole, who was born in 1917. "I'd load my arms with books. I loved reading."
The library's youth room is named for Nole.
Nole served in the Army during World War II. He was an ordinance clerk, responsible for loading bombs onto B-24's. "I got home safely, and I'm grateful to the Lord for that."
He later spent more than forty years with Uniroyal Chemical in Naugatuck.
His wife Julia, an Army nurse during the war, died in 2004 at 85 years old. Children Mary Anne, Phyllis and Alex, Jr. attended the Town Hall ceremony on Monday.
"It's been a tremendous life," says Nole. "I can't complain about one thing."
