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BELLAIRE -- Wayne Hill, a World War II veteran and resident of the Carnes Senior Apartments had never had a birthday party in his 97 years.
On Tuesday, dozens of friends, fellow veterans, area first responders and officials gathered to break that streak. The atmosphere of the senior center common room, situated below the apartments, was exuberant as Hill unwrapped each gift and thanked the guests.
"In all my 97 years, I don't remember ever having a birthday party," he said. "This is a dandy."
Originally from Wheeling, Hill served in aviation ordinance with the U.S. Navy in the Pacific Theater of WWII.
"It's so nice to see the veterans. We dwindle each day. We get fewer and fewer, but I'm happy to see them all out here with me today, celebrating my birthday," Hill said. "The first responders, whatever. Everybody in this room I appreciate and love, and I feel so happy to be here.
"It's great to see the veterans. There's that brotherhood that never goes away and it's just a part of us," he said.
In civilian life, Hill worked as a furniture repairman for the Reichart Furniture Co. He added that today, he considers his fellow seniors family.
"I'm just happy to be alive and happy to be here and hope to see all of you next year and the years to follow," he said.
Tish Kinney, director of the Bellaire Senior Center, organized the party. She described Hill as "ornery."
"But we love him," she said. "He is definitely a character. He keeps us all laughing. He fires me at least twice a week, but he always hires me back. He is definitely the cornerstone of Bellaire Senior Center.
"He's never had a birthday party, and we wanted to make sure that we made this one special today. When he walked in today and we had things all decorated, he had tears in his eyes and he said: 'I've never had a birthday party before.'"
Kinney thanked the veterans who stopped by, along with first responders and Belmont County Commissioners J.P. Dutton and Josh Meyer took part in the celebration.
"This is great that they all took time out of their day to come see this man. It means the world to him," Kinney added. "We have a nice following at Bellaire Senior Center. We do a lot of things with our seniors."
Senior Services driver Jewel Hammond agreed.
"He is amazing. He is a leader of our center by all means. I look forward to seeing him every single day. He always says some wisecrack or something, but he's a very, very good man," she said.
Leslie Thompson, administrator for Senior Services of Belmont County, said Hill makes an impression.
"He's the heart of the center," she said. "He impacts the lives of everyone who attends our center and visits our center."
Bob Farmer of the St. Clairsville post of the American Legion said it was an honor to be present.
"He, like all the other World War II veterans, definitely earned the title of the Greatest Generation. We couldn't have served today if they hadn't served," he said.
Hill was presented a quilt by Sue Olinski of Ohio Valley Quilts of Valor.
"There are two of us who worked on that one. We've been saving it for a special occasion, and this was considered a special occasion. I have a group of ladies, there's about 30 of us that work on these quilts for veterans, and we've been doing it since 2015. We've probably given out a little over 300," she said.
"When we make our quilts, we sit and think who they're going for -- any quilter does that," she continued. "He liked it. Usually the veterans do. They really appreciate them, and it makes us feel good that we're doing something to show them that we appreciate what they did for us."