Welcome to Social Security Administration of Northwest Indiana

103 Year Old Gary Resident is Northwest Indiana's
Nominee for Social Security's 65th Anniversary
National Centenarian Booklet

This year marks the 65th anniversary of the signing of the Social Security Act. Social Security representatives interviewed people who were age 100 and older to obtain their views on the impact of Social Security. Mrs. Percy Anderson-Barber was recently nominated for inclusion in Social Security's 65th Anniversary Centenarian Booklet. Mrs. Anderson recently celebrated her 103rd birthday with a balloon launching at her Gary residence, and a formal banquet at St. Timothy Community Church in Gary, IN.

Mrs. Anderson-Barber stated, "I remember President F.D.R. (Franklin Delano Roosevelt) well because I left the poverty of Clarksdale, Mississippi during the depression. Those were hard times. People didn't have anything. I came to Gary, IN during 1929. It was hard times in Gary too. I did day work and the most that you could earn was $1.00 a day. Women had it hard because they were trying to raise families and could only make 50 cents a day."

"President Roosevelt brought in Social Security, and this has been a big help to me. Without Social Security, my daughter and I would have to depend on my grandchildren to take care of us."

Mrs. Anderson-Barber was interviewed by local news media and major television stations when she went on the "Million Woman March" at Philadelphia, PA during October 1997. She is also the oldest member of the Indianapolis Chapter of the Gospel Workshop of America, Inc. She travels as her health permits and participates in African American history celebrations.

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For more information contact:

Gary Office
Social Security Administration
808 S Lake Street,
Gary, IN   46403
1-866-593-2911
1-800-772-1213
TTY: 1-800-325-0778
www.socialsecurity.gov