WOODLAND, Maine — 94-year-old Elizabeth Cochran, a beloved member of the Woodland community, received the Boston Cane, an award reserved for a town’s oldest resident, on September 3rd.
All seats in the Woodland Consolidated School cafeteria were packed with friends and relatives for the Saturday presentation.
Cochran’s daughter, Pat, said she was pleased to discover her mother had qualiied for the award.
“She deserves it,” said Pat. “Today has been a nice honor for her.”
Cochran’s daughter recalled her mother’s outstanding work ethic as a notable memory from her childhood.
“During potato harvest, my mother would get up at five, get breakfast ready for us, pick up the potato pickers, then come back and drive the truck, fix lunch, go back out in the field to work, come back home to have supper ready for us, and at night she would make sure we had clean clothes for the next day,” Pat said. “She is quite a lady, and a hard worker.”
The Boston Cane began in 1909, when Edwin Grozier, publisher of the Boston Post, sent out hundreds of canes to the selectmen of various New England towns, excluding cities, with the intent that they be awarded to the oldest man. In 1930, towns began awarded the cane to the oldest resident – male or female.
Tom Drew, chair of the Woodland Selectboard, was proud to continue this tradition in his town, saying that it will be the highlight of his three-year tenure on the Board of Selectmen.
Drew, like many other Woodland natives, first encountered Cochran in kindergarten, where she was a teacher’s aide. Before presenting the cane, he shared an anecdote about his early school days with Cochran, emphasizing the impact she had on his life.
“Every day, someone would get to be the child of the day,” Drew said. “Oh, how I loved to be child of the day. You would get to spend time with Mrs. Cochran and learn things in a fun way.”
“As the years fly by in life,” Drew continued, “we grow up and get busy. Time moves us along. I remember, when I was maybe 30 years old, there came a knock on my door while I was eating my lunch. I went to the door and there stood Mrs. Cochran. She said, ‘Tommy, my church is having bring a guest day, and I was wondering if you could join me in church next week and be my guest.’ Now, how could you say no to that? I smiled, kissed her on the cheek, and said ‘I’d love to be child of the day again.’”
Drew closed by saying the opportunity to present the cane has once again given him the chance to be “child of the day.”
“She’s into her 90s now, and she is as smart as ever,” said Drew. “She is such a wonderful, beautiful soul. You’ll get to Heaven’s door, just for having known her.”
