MARCUS AUGUSTUS CORBIN looks much younger than his 100 years.
So much younger, in fact, that it would have been easy to mistake him for one of the guests who went to French Village, St Peter, to celebrate the event.
Not only does he look younger, but he acts that way too. He lives alone, makes his own breakfast and is active around the house.
“He makes his own breakfast on mornings and the food cooked for him he warms it himself,” said his special caretaker Ester Austin who, along with neighbours in the rural district, keeps an eye on the oldest resident of the area.
Corbin – who in his early years worked at Portland Plantation before moving on to Farley Hill National Park as a general worker, before retiring and working as a shopkeeper at his home in French Village – was hailed as a genuine, kindhearted man.
Those relatives and friends visiting Corbin on his special day spoke of how he routinely gave those purchasing items from his shop a bit more than they paid for.
He also used to go around the village selling NATION newspapers.
The affable Corbin was also visited by Governor General Sir Elliott Belgrave’s aide de camp, Captain Carlos Lovell, who brought greetings on behalf of Sir Elliott and his wife.
Lovell also brought gifts to the happy centenarian, who thanked God for allowing him to live to this ripe age.
Corbin is a widower, his wife Estelle having died five years ago. That union produced one daughter, who lives overseas.
The centenarian, who declared his strong faith in God, is a member of the French Village Pentecostal House of Prayer. (RL)
