Warwick Valley Dispatch Post Production Manager marks her 99th birthday surrounded by family, friends, coworkers and a grateful community
By Kat Leslie
There are people who retire at 65. There are people who slow down at 75. And then there is Evelyn Card.
On Friday, Aug. 14, Evelyn celebrated her 99th birthday — 99 full years of life, family, work and service to the Warwick community — and began the countdown toward a milestone few are fortunate enough to reach: 100.
And she is still going strong.
For the staff of the Warwick Valley Dispatch, the occasion was particularly special because Evelyn isn’t simply part of the newspaper’s history. She still works here.
As the Dispatch’s Post Production Manager, Evelyn remains an active part of the weekly operation of Warwick’s hometown newspaper, overseeing the subscriptions, delivery routes and distribution work that takes the newspaper from the press into the hands and mailboxes of its readers.
That is a remarkable accomplishment at any age.
At 99, it is extraordinary.
A Birthday Surrounded by Warwick
Throughout her birthday, Evelyn was surrounded by the people whose lives she has touched during nearly a century in Warwick.
Dispatch staff members, family and numerous friends offered birthday wishes, congratulations, hugs and plenty of reminders that 99 is not an ending but simply the beginning of Evelyn’s 100th year.
Among those joining the celebration was Town of Warwick Supervisor Jesse Dwyer, who presented Evelyn with a beautiful bouquet of flowers at Warwick Town Hall.
The setting for the photograph was especially meaningful.
Behind Evelyn and Dwyer stand Warwick’s veterans honor rolls — plaques preserving the names of local men and women who answered the nation’s call to service. Among them is Evelyn’s late son, Barry Card, a Warwick native and decorated United States Army sergeant.
For Evelyn, therefore, the moment was not merely a birthday photograph in Town Hall. It joined several pieces of a remarkable life in a single frame: mother, son, community and country.
“Evelyn represents something very special about Warwick,” Dwyer said. “At 99 years young, she continues to work, continues to participate in the life of this community and continues to remind us what dedication really looks like. It was an honor to wish her a happy birthday, and we’re all looking forward to celebrating number 100 with her.”
Dwyer added with a smile, “I think Evelyn may have discovered the secret to staying young — keep busy, stay involved and never stop caring about the people around you.”
Recognized by the New York State Assembly
Evelyn’s 99th birthday was also recognized by New York State Assemblyman Karl A. Brabenec, who prepared an official New York State Assembly Citation commemorating the occasion.
The citation recognizes Evelyn’s long life as one filled with family, community involvement and service.
It notes that Evelyn began her career with the Warwick Valley Central School District in 1966 as Building Secretary at Kings Elementary School, faithfully serving for nearly 25 years and touching the lives of generations of students, teachers and families.
Beginning in the early 1960s, the citation states, Evelyn also volunteered for nearly a decade with the Queens Village Drum and Bugle Corps, traveling throughout the Northeast and participating in President Richard Nixon’s Inaugural Parade and the Miss America Parade.
Her service to the community continued in countless other ways. The Assembly citation recognizes her devotion to her church, charitable events, senior activities and community gatherings, noting her willingness to lend a helping hand without seeking recognition.
Brabenec’s citation also pays tribute to Evelyn’s long association with the Warwick Valley Dispatch, where she currently serves as Post Production Manager, and to her role as permanent co-host of WTBQ Radio’s weekly Food for Thought, sharing stories and preserving memories of Warwick’s history.
Above all, the Assembly recognized what Evelyn considers her greatest accomplishment: her family — her late husband Percy, their two children, three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
“Evelyn Card represents the very best of the Warwick community — a lifetime devoted to family, hard work, service and helping others,” Brabenec said. “To reach 99 years of age is remarkable in itself. To reach 99 while remaining so active and involved in the community is truly inspirational.”
The Assembly citation concludes with a wish that Evelyn continue to enjoy “warmest wishes for continued happiness, good health, and many more cherished celebrations.”
A Career That Spans Generations
Evelyn’s working life is itself a piece of Warwick history.
After beginning with the Warwick Valley Central School District in 1966, she spent nearly a quarter-century helping generations of Warwick children, parents and teachers at Kings Elementary.
Then came another chapter — the Warwick Valley Dispatch.
Archived editions show Evelyn working in the newspaper’s press department more than two decades ago, during the years when the Dispatch was still printed right here in Warwick. As the newspaper’s production methods changed, so did Evelyn’s responsibilities.
By at least 2011, the Dispatch masthead identified her as Post Production Manager.
Fifteen years later, it still does.
Newspaper production has changed dramatically during those years. Pages once assembled by hand are now built digitally. Printing methods have changed. Distribution has changed. The internet and social media transformed how people consume news.
Evelyn simply kept going.
Today, after the stories are written, photographs placed, advertisements assembled and another edition sent to press, there remains the very practical business of getting thousands of newspapers where they need to go.
That’s Evelyn’s territory.
Subscriptions. Mailing. Routes. Distribution. The unglamorous but indispensable work that ensures the newspaper actually reaches its readers.
For a publication that has chronicled Warwick since 1885, Evelyn has become part of the history she has spent decades helping deliver.
The Mother of a Warwick Veteran
There was another reason Friday’s Town Hall celebration carried special significance.
Evelyn’s son Barry Card was born in Warwick on April 15, 1945, just weeks before the end of World War II in Europe.
Barry later served his country in the United States Army, becoming a decorated sergeant during the Vietnam War. After his military service, he worked as an ironworker and foreman and helped construct some of New York City’s most recognizable buildings.
His name remains among Warwick’s veterans.
So when Evelyn stood smiling with flowers in her arms in front of the Town Hall honor rolls on her 99th birthday, one of the names behind her belonged not simply to another Warwick serviceman.
It belonged to her son.
Ninety-Nine — and Counting
The Dispatch has celebrated Evelyn’s birthdays before. When she turned 93 in 2020, her daughter surprised her at work with food and a birthday cake.
Six years later, Evelyn is still here.
Still coming to work.
Still keeping track of newspapers.
Still sharing stories.
Still keeping an eye on the rest of us.
Perhaps that is what makes this 99th birthday different from simply recognizing longevity. Evelyn hasn’t spent her later years watching Warwick go by. She has remained part of it.
She has watched generations of children pass through Warwick schools. She has watched the community change and grow. She raised a son who served his country. She has helped produce and distribute the newspaper that recorded much of that history.
And at 99, she’s still helping produce the next edition.
For those of us at the Warwick Valley Dispatch, Evelyn is more than our Post Production Manager. She is our colleague, our friend, our institutional memory and, on more than one occasion, the person who remembers how something was done long before the rest of us arrived.
“Working alongside Evelyn puts things into perspective,” the Dispatch Publisher, Eugene Wright said. “She has witnessed nearly a century of history, yet she’s still interested in what we’re putting in next week’s newspaper. Evelyn doesn’t just remember Warwick’s history — she’s part of it.”
As Evelyn celebrates 99 remarkable years, there is already another wonderful milestone on the horizon — her 100th birthday and the beginning of a second century filled with family, friends and the community she loves.
Happy 99th birthday, Evelyn. Warwick will see you at 100.
