A century of song: At 105, Strasburg woman keeps on singing

At her 105th birthday party, Loretta Rutz Campbell gave her family and friends a gift — she sang them a song.

Campbell, who turned 105 in late October, marked the occasion by singing a favorite song, "Time Has Made a Change" at a 1920s-themed party.

“I told them I was going to sound like a frog, but I sang anyway,” said Campbell, sitting inside her cozy Strasburg living room, surrounded by decades of photographic memories and memorabilia.

From her childhood in Strasburg and early musical memories, to living through the Great Depression and then raising a family during wartime, the song and its words are more than a birthday tune; it mirrors her life in every way.

“I’ve lived a great life,” she said, quietly humming. “Lord, I would say so.”

Childhood

Born on Oct. 30, 1920, Campbell wa