When Dr. Howard Rose looked out the window on the morning of Sept. 14, he was “flabbergasted and amazed” to discover signs in the yard wishing him a happy birthday.
His neighbors were quick to take note.
“Friends have been coming by and saying, ‘For some reason, I think it’s your birthday. Happy birthday!’” he said.
The signs were the idea of Rose’s daughter, Laurel Rose Walker, who wanted to surprise her father on the 90th anniversary of his birth.
The family had originally planned for a big celebration in Orlando with nearly two dozen relatives flying in from all over the United States. It was to be as much a family reunion as a significant birthday. A year ago, Rose and Muriel, his wife of nearly 68 years, rented a large house that had room enough for the whole group.
But then, COVID-19 crashed the party.
The gathering had to be cancelled and the Roses have been self-quarantining as the pandemic spread. It hasn’t been easy for a man who is as active as Rose.
“We’ve been hunkered down for months now,” he said.
Walker said her father is very family-oriented and was disappointed that the gathering had to be called off. Still, she wasn’t going to let such a milestone birthday pass without some kind of celebration.
The only one of the Roses’ offspring to live locally — Walker’s brothers are Mark and Mitchell — she arranged for the signs to be posted in her parents’ yard and a pizza party later in the day.
Rose hails from Miami Beach and went on to become a renowned ophthalmologist in Jacksonville, where he practiced for 50 years. After he retired, he joined Volunteers In Medicine for 15 years and received a lifetime achievement award for his volunteering from President Barack Obama.
He is an avid gardener, winning a prize for the top garden in Northeast Florida, and a hobbyist who once built furniture to fill his apartment and still goes to the gym.
“My mantra is: diet, exercise and a positive attitude,” he said.
In fact, he remains an advocate for good health and has been involved with the Dietetic Department at the University of North Florida.
The Roses have lived in Sawgrass for the past 40 years.
Rose said he is looking forward to his three-digit birthday.
“I’m looking forward to being on the Smuckers show,” he said, referring the portion of NBC’s “Today” show during which centenarians are honored and their pictures appear on a jar of Smuckers jam.
