DETROIT – A World War II veteran from Detroit had major heart surgery this year at 102 years old, but continues to fight and he hopes to hit the dance floor again.
Houston Pritchett of Detroit may be 102 years old, but he hasn’t missed a step.
In 1944, Pritchett was in the Philippines and was assigned to be a motor mechanic, “I was supposed to be a motor mechanic, and I couldn’t even drive,” he said.
By the time the war was over, Houston could drive. He came home to Detroit and went to work for Ford. When Pritchett was about 80, he went to a seniors’ gathering.
The host of the event, a man named Fast Freddy, got Houston on the dance floor.
“He says, ‘come on, let’s do this thing,’ and I’m looking at all those seniors, what are they fixing to do? And the people got up and those seniors got out on the floor and went to dancing and turning and I’m sitting there in amazement.”
He’s been dancing ever since. “I just like to dance, and I want to dance, and I got a girlfriend to dance with, and we were wearing it out while we were doing it til I messed around and got sick.”
Houston had a heart attack at 102 years old. He needed a new heart valve, and 102-year-olds aren’t always up for that.
“A 70-year-old can look a hundred, a 100-year-old can look 70, and nowadays with the technology we have, we can get patients through procedures that would have been a pipe dream even just ten years ago,” said Dr. Tiberio Frisoli, an interventional cardiologist at Henry Ford Health.
Pritchett underwent a Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR) surgery.
He made it through the procedure, and now, with the help of cardiac rehab, he’s again looking for the dance floor and waiting for the music.
“Yeah, I was real worried about it. I’m still worried about it. And I’m waiting, I think it’s the 29th I’ll see this doctor again, and I’m going to remember to ask him when I get back to dancing,” he said.
Not only is Houston facing health challenges, but he’s living with his daughter after living independently for 65 years. He and his daughter are hoping a veterans assist group will step in to help keep him living independently.