Several of Gloria Holtschneider's family members joined her for a Mother's Day brunch. She has six kids, and many grandkids and great-grandkids. "I love them all,” Gloria says. Here's her advice for mothers: “Smile and enjoy the moment."

Naomi Peters knows something about being a mother. She has three children, a step-child, six grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren. And during her career, she helped found and grow the child welfare department in North Chicago. So what's her advice for young mothers? “Love that baby every moment you can because they’re only small once.”

At Brookdale Round Rock, Elizabeth Morris has plenty of advice. After her husband died, she raised her three sons, working hard to make sure they had everything they needed: "I went to [the] Dunaway School of Accounting...then I was an office manager...I worked for several big construction companies."

Harrisburg resident Elvira "Mickey" Hudson knows what it's like to have a big family. With four children, nine grandchildren, 19 great-grandchildren, and seven great-great-grandchildren, Mickey says the most important thing to do is to make time for your loved ones. “Stay healthy…be happy...and certainly love your family,” she says.

Over the years, Marie Palladino says she learned to love cooking. To her, the process of putting breakfast, lunch and dinner together is rewarding. As each meal came together, she’d pass along recipes and cooking techniques to her family.

Esther VanWart has eight kids, all in different stages of life. “My oldest is 50 and my youngest is 23,” she says. And raising them hasn't always been easy. Esther divorced when she had six children, and had to work three jobs. “Having to support them by myself was very difficult.”

For the first time, Brookdale Chanate celebrated a resident's 107th birthday. World War II veteran Bob Aumiller is pretty quiet, but he did let his grandson sing his praises. “I think for me it’s more about how he chose to live his life with his kids and his family and the people around him,” he says.

Want to know the secret to a long life? Winona resident Bob Everitt might have an idea: dancing. He's been dancing since he was five years old. And even now, at 102-years-old, Bob still does it every week.

Joanie White only has three children, but she's raised many more. Over 50 years, she fostered 143 babies. “It blessed us in many ways. We are still friends with many, many of these babies,” Joanie say. “One of our babies became our godchild.”

River Road resident Ruth Jackson has a life worth writing about. She lived through the Great Depression, managed a business for 40 years, and raised a family. Ruth's secret? Eating and living healthy. “I learned how to take care of myself to eat the right thing,” Ruth explained, though her son Larry quickly responded that it “didn’t start out that way though. I remember the hamburgers with the gravy.”

Harrisburg resident Elvira "Mickey" Hudson knows what it's like to have a big family. With four children, nine grandchildren, 19 great-grandchildren, and seven great-great-grandchildren, Mickey says the most important thing to do is to make time for your loved ones. “Stay healthy…be happy...and certainly love your family,” she says.

Occupancy and revenue gains pushed Brookdale Senior Living’s operating margins closer to pre-pandemic totals in the first quarter of this year. And Brookdale CEO Cindy Baier says she sees even more opportunities to recover from the pandemic ahead. “Our consistent forward progress each quarter reinforces my confidence that the plans we are executing, combined with industry supply and demand dynamics.”

Margaret Lutz had one wish for her 100th birthday: to have her family celebrate with her. And they did. Margaret doesn't have a secret to a long life - just a happy one: "I tried to be a good wife. And I tried to be a good mother. And that was my goal."

Brookdale Summer Ridge resident Maxine Vines had her 104th birthday party surrounded by friends and family. She was born in 1920, one of eight siblings. One of her sisters - who just turned 100 - was at community to celebrate with Maxine.

Volunteerism is declining, but the need is only growing. Brookdale Monroe resident Anita Sundelin is stepping up. She serves at the Snohomish Community Food Bank. "I just felt like, 'What am I going to do with my life?" Sundelin said. "I need to do something for other people."