62 THE QUEENS COURIER • QUEENS BUSINESS • OCTOBER 12, 2017 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
queens business
Bayside bank celebrates customer’s 103rd birthday
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
A longtime Bayside resident continued
his birthday celebrations with
some familiar faces at a local business.
Irving Black, who turned 103 on
Aug. 23, stopped by his Flushing
Bank branch at 61st Avenue and
Springfi eld Boulevard on Oct. 6 for
cake and congratulations. He also celebrated
his birthday at the Catholic
Charities Bayside Senior Center with
two other centenarians in July.
Black has been a Flushing Bank
customer for over 30 years.
“In my opinion, it’s one of the best
banks in the city,” Black said. “Th e
employees are very cooperative and
helpful and they’re always happy to
see you. It’s nice to come in here.”
Flushing Bank Branch Manager
Ling Xu showed Irving and wife
Dorothy the branch’s new Video
Banker technology, which links customers
using the ATM to help via
video conferencing.
Employees then presented the centenarian
with a birthday cake from the
Sweet Treats bakery down the street.
“He’s a really friendly guy,” Xu
said. “Every time he comes in, he’s
smiling.”
A Bayside resident for nearly
seven decades, Black said he’s proud
to have built his life in the welcoming
community.
“Th e neighborhood is excellent,”
Black said. “Th e shopping is good,
the transportation is good and the
people are nice here.”
“In general, it’s a great place to
live,” Dorothy Black said.
Th e couple, who have been married
for 77 years, have three children,
five grandchildren and
10 great-grandchildren together.
Black, who emigrated from
Latvia to the United States when
he was seven, attended Manhattan’s
Cooper Union College and served
as a civil engineer for the U.S. Navy
during World War II creating battleships.
Th e 103-year-old cites a number
of factors as contributing to his
longevity. Number one, Black said,
is love, followed by compromise,
dancing and his wife’s cooking.
“And doctors help too; let’s give
them some credit,” Black said with
a smile.
Aft er the celebration, the happy
couple were headed to the nearby
senior center to dance the aft ernoon
away.