AUSTIN — In 1904, the United States began work on the Panama Canal, the first subway line in New York City opened and Ruth Moore Waterman was born in Minco, Indian Territory, Oklahoma.

At 11:00 a.m. Friday, June 15, 2012, staff and residents at the Clyde W. Cosper Texas State Veterans Home in Bonham will throw Waterman a birthday party with a hamburger cookout.  At 2:00 p.m., Congressman Ralph Hall will visit the home and present Mrs. Waterman with a U.S. flag that has flown over the U.S. Capitol.

Clyde W. Cosper Texas State Veterans Home is located at 1300 Seven Oaks Road in Bonham.

Waterman's life has spanned more than a century, and she's still going strong, scooting her wheelchair throughout the veterans home. A longtime resident of North Texas, Mrs. Waterman married Frank C. Waterman of Durant, Oklahoma on Jan. 16, 1932. During World War II, Frank Waterman joined the Army, where he served in a Signals Operation Battalion and fought in six major battles. He died in the late 1970s.

After her husband's death, Mrs. Waterman cared for her mother, Sallie Moore, in their home in Bonham. Moore lived to be 105 years old. Waterman carried on, caring for herself until September 2006, when she checked herself into the Clyde W. Cosper Texas State Veterans Home.

The veterans' home in Bonham is one of seven across the state that provide top-quality care for those who have served our nation. Each home provides skilled long-term nursing care, comprehensive rehabilitation programs, special diets, recreational activities, social services, a library, and a certified, secured Alzheimer's unit with its own secured outdoor courtyard.

For additional information on Texas State Veterans Homes and special home, land and home improvement loans for Texas veterans, call 800-252-VETS (800-252-8387) or visit our Web site at  www.texasveterans.com.