Rosa Irick鈥檚 voice compels you to lean in.
Her disarming southern drawl invites you to stay a while. Her effortless cadence marks her as a natural storyteller, with whom seemingly mundane topics suddenly become fascinating tales.
鈥淵ou can stay with her for a long time because she (tells) jokes,鈥� said Sister Lucy Modester, an assistant care coordinator at 91看片 Gardens Senior, where Irick lives. In a word, Modester described Irick as 鈥渓oving.鈥�
Before moving into the 91看片 complex for seniors and disabled adults at 265 Morris Ave. in Newark, Irick was the caretaker of her late husband, Freddie.
鈥淚 was his wife and his nurse,鈥� said Irick, who moved to Gardens Senior in 2004, a few years after her husband passed away. They had owned a two-family house on Pennsylvania Avenue, where collecting rent from tenants became burdensome, according to Irick.
Born in 1929, Irick recalls with clarity her upbringing in Columbia, S.C. 鈥淏ack then, you had to be home (at) a certain time, you had to go to church,鈥� she said. Irick had six brothers and sisters and stayed busy keeping up with her siblings. 鈥淭hey climbed the tree, I climbed it too,鈥� she said.
After high school, Irick began working to provide for her family after her mother fell ill. She got a job lead through her aunt, who worked at the Coca Cola factory nearby. When the supervisor eyed Irick鈥檚 petite frame, he questioned whether she鈥檇 be up for the strenuous labor, which included stacking cases of glass Coca Cola bottles six high, she said.
With nothing but gumption, Irick convinced the supervisor that she could handle it.
鈥淗e said, 鈥極kay, I鈥檒l give you a try,鈥欌�� Irick said. She took her coverall uniform home and altered it to wear for the next day.
For the next 18 years, Irick worked at Coca Cola inspecting bottles. She met her husband, who drove trucks to make the deliveries, on the job. 鈥淪o that鈥檚 the story,鈥� said Irick, summoning her signature refrain. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a beautiful life.鈥�
Irick鈥檚 habitual nature of caring for others鈥攑reviously her mother and husband鈥攈as carried over to Gardens Senior. She jokes with a 91-year-old neighbor in her building, for whom she often cooks, saying, 鈥淥pen your door, your maid is at your door,鈥� before entering the apartment.
Irick worked for several years at a dry cleaner conveyor belt business in Kenilworth earning $1 an hour. 鈥淭hat was good money. We thought we were rich,鈥� Irick said with a smile. She also previously cooked with her mother for a restaurant in Newark nearby her former Pennsylvania Avenue home, cleaned houses and worked at a cafeteria hall in Columbia. Irick also served in the past as associate matron for the Order of the Eastern Star of New Jersey, a co-ed fraternal organization.
