Kathleen Hayes Rollins Snavely died Monday morning at the Centers at St. Camillus in Geddes. The woman who traveled alone in 1921 to Syracuse, as a 19-year-old immigrant from Ireland, established her own quiet place on the international stage - an accomplishment she'd reflect upon with gentle disbelief.
She lived for 113 years and 140 days. Kathleen, a native of Feakle in County Clare, was the longest-lived person born in the recorded history of the Irish isle. At the time of her death, she was the 16th oldest person in the world, and the sixth oldest in the United States, according to records verified by Robert D. Young of the international Gerontology Research Group.
Yet for those who loved her, that staggering achievement was incidental.
To them, the most remarkable quality about Kathleen was the way she remained herself, in full, until the final weeks of her life.
"We were fortunate to meet such a person as she," said David Liddell, who became her lawyer about 30 years ago. He quickly transitioned into a longtime friend, won over by Kathleen's quick wit and "razor-sharp" awareness about business and the world around her.
"She was a person of humble beginnings who achieved an elegance in life few of us will see again," said Liddell, who said a memorial service for Kathleen is being planned for 9:30 a.m. on July 14, at St. Patrick's Church in Syracuse.
Karen White, owner of Julie's Place, grew to know Kathleen at the Regency Tower on James Street. White's restaurant is part of the building, and Kathleen - a longtime resident - was a regular visitor.
"She was an absolutely vibrant person," said White, recalling how Kathleen always loved baked haddock, spanakopita - and a good Manhattan. Even after Kathleen moved to St. Camillus, White would bring her a "care basket" of her favorites every year on her birthday.
After arriving in Syracuse, she settled with an uncle and his family on the Near West Side. In the 1920s, she worked at both a state school for children with developmental disabilities and the E.W. Edwards Department Store before she and her husband, Roxie Rollins, who made his living as a cook, decided to found the old Seneca Dairy.
The business was a success, and Kathleen - with little formal education - taught herself to handle the books and served as a full partner. In the 2000s, she donated $1 million toward developing the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University.
She offered that gift, she later explained, to lift up young people who shared her commitment to hard work.
"Not a penny was given to me," she said. "I'm giving them what I didn't get."
Kathleen never had children. Her first marriage ended with Roxie's death, in 1968. She was widowed again by the death of her second husband, Jesse Snavely, and for years she lived alone. Liddell said she died Monday, from causes associated with old age, while surrounded by good friends at St. Camillus.
Sister Kathleen Osbelt, a close friend and the founder of Francis House in Syracuse, said she spent several hours Monday cleaning Kathleen's room. What became obvious very quickly, she said, is that possessions meant little to Kathleen.
What she kept and cherished, Osbelt said, were letters, cards and family photographs, all of them underlining a fundamental truth about Kathleen:
"Her family in Ireland was very precious to her," Osbelt said. "Her family here was very important to her. Her friends were very important to her. It's clear this woman had a beautiful life because she found so much value in relationships."
In March, Kathleen moved past Annie Scott - who'd died in 1996, at the age of 113 and 37 days - to become the longest-lived person, ever, from Ireland. While she enjoyed the parties and attention that came with such extraordinary status, she kept it in perspective.
Her wit and her memory remained at full power well past her 113th birthday, and she offered this observation last winter, when asked to explain her longevity:
"I get so tired of people asking me about my secret," Kathleen said. "I've got no secret. You live and you do it the best you can."
-- Sean Kirst