JANE CHARMELO PHOTOS
Ann Panattoni got a surprise Sunday, May 10, when family, friends and neighbors recognized her 102nd birthday. Waving while seated in front of her home on East Harding Road, the mother of two and grandmother of three watched as cars drove past and honked, while a stilt walker and juggler from Acrodazzle Entertainment stopped by to sing “Happy Birthday.” According to her granddaughter Sarah Buck-Warner, Panattoni, who was born and raised in St. Charles, moved to the house in 1945 with her husband Frank, whom she married in 1939 (he passed away in 1988). They renovated what was once a real estate office that had been moved onto the block, and she now lives there with her daughter, Linda Hines (standing). Buck-Warner said she was talking with her grandmother on the phone when the cars drove by. “She started laughing. I could ‘hear’ her smiling!” her granddaughter said. Panattoni enjoyed animals and gardening, was a member of the Lombard Garden Club and had been a Girl Scout leader. Buck-Warner said her grandmother’s “secret” to a long life was that she never drove, drank a little wine, ate healthy meals and was always active.
