She turned 95. She spent her day jumping out of an airplane in Hawaii.
A New Jersey woman wanted to spend her 95th birthday doing something adventurous, so she went skydiving, jumping out of a plane at 14,000 feet.
That’s right: This 94-year-old, Marge Wardenski , went skydiving, and she did it alongside her 36-year-old granddaughter in Hawaii.
“People are just amazed,” said the granddaughter, Chelsea Rorer. “They say they want to be like her when they grow up — and also say she’s nuts.”
Word of Wardenski’s adventure has gotten quite the reaction among her neighbors in Holiday City, the retirement community where she’s lived for 18 years after moving from Lacey.
“They think I’m crazy,” she said. “I say, ‘Live your life. Don’t be afraid.’”
It’s great advice, and hard-earned.
Marge’s late husband, Walter Wardenski, discouraged her daredevil leanings during their 64-year marriage — perhaps because he was a World War II veteran who’d survived some harrowing experiences as a tank and fuel-truck driver in the European theater.
After Walter died in 2012 at age 90, Marge embarked on a series of intrepid feats. She went hang-gliding, hot-air ballooning and ziplining.
This actually was her third time skydiving; she jumped when she turned 85 and then again at 90.
“My husband always said 'No, you can’t do things like that,'” she said. “He died, and I did it.”
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Conquering fear
Marge describes herself as a “couch potato,” but Rorer says that’s not true. She plays bocce and bingo in Holiday City. Good genes definitely help; she’s taking just one medication, for her thyroid.
“I eat the wrong things and I don’t exercise,” Marge said with a laugh.
But she does think young, and that helps.
“My philosophy is if something (bad) is going to happen, it’s going to happen no matter where you are or what you’re doing,” she said.
The great irony of Marge’s forays is she’s afraid of heights.
“I don’t look down,” she said. “I look straight ahead.”
When she rode in a hot-air balloon, a much younger friend who came along crouched on the balloon basket’s floor, terrified.
“I said to her, ‘What are you doing? Get up!'” Marge recalled.
“A lot of people, especially older folks, might let fear make their decisions for them,” Rorer said. “She doesn't let that happen. She’s a freakin’ boss.”
The Guinness World Record for oldest skydiver is 103, set last year by a woman from Sweden. That was a tandem jump — a skydiving pro was hooked onto her back. Marge’s skydiving has been in tandem, too, and this was a much better experience than her last one five years ago.
“I didn’t like the guy I was with,” she said of the previous jump. “He hit my fanny on the ground. I had a sore tailbone for about a week.”
No such trouble this time around.
“This was an amazing bonding experience for us,” said Rorer, who also tandem-jumped and landed a few moments before her grandmother. “We’re two peas in a pod. I definitely got her adventurous spirit, for sure.”
'You're never too old'
What’s next on Marge's daredevil bucket list? Her son Walter Wardenski Jr. would love to see her go boat racing, which has been a hobby of his.
“I’ve been doing daring things all my life, so I guess it’s her turn now,” he said.
Marge is thinking about it.
“When I tell people what she’s doing, they all think it’s the greatest thing in the world,” Walter Jr. said. “I’m absolutely proud of her.”
At first Marge was a bit reluctant to publicize her exploits, but there’s an underlying message worth sharing.
“You’re never too old,” Rorer said. “It’s really cool that she’s trying new things, doing things she never thought was possible.”
Will Marge skydive again in five years, when she turns 100?
“If I’m able to, yes,” she said. “ I keep saying, ‘This is the last time,’ because I don’t know if I’ll be there.”
Rorer has a feeling she will be.
“She’s a legend,” her granddaughter said.
Jerry Carino is community columnist for the Asbury Park Press, focusing on the Jersey Shore’s interesting people, inspiring stories and pressing issues. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: New Jersey woman skydives, ziplines and hang glides in her 90s
