New York City Council Member Andy King presented a NYC Council Proclamation to Ann Eliza Codrington of the Bronx in celebration of her 100th birthday Saturday, July 23, at Dreiser Community Center, 177 Dreiser Loop, Auditorium B, Co-op City, Bronx.
Codrington was born July 23, 1916, in Estate Grove Place, to parents Lillian Sutton and William Codrington, on the beautiful island of Saint Croix, in the U.S. Virgin Islands. She attended Diamond School until the sixth grade, when she was taken out of school and sent to work cutting cane for the Diamond Rum Distillery while helping to raise her five siblings. It was challenging work and she earned 25 cents each day.
For approximately 10 years, Codrington worked as a nanny for several Dutch families, all while raising her own three children. Daughter Lucida, who she calls “Lue,” and son Winston, better known as “Lano,” are both deceased. Her daughter Dr. Lillian Matthew lives and works in New York City.
Seeking a better life for herself and her children, Codrington began working at Carlton Hotel, in Estate Carlton, and provided exemplary service until the hotel closed in the early 1960s. In 1964, she worked briefly for Saint Croix by the Sea Hotel, but her big break came on Oct. 6, 1966, when the Eulalie Rivera Elementary School (the former Grove Place Elementary School) was built. Throughout her distinguished tenure there, she received numerous certificates of appreciation, as well as a grand celebration for her retirement in September 1986.
Codrington was dedicated as an infant in the AME Church and was an active member throughout her youth and part of her adulthood, until she joined the Faith Seventh-day Adventist Church in 1962, in Fredricksted. She spent her Saturday afternoons generously giving her time and energy for community outreach in the girls Juvenile Detention Center, the prison, the hospital and the nursing homes. Even now, she continued to use every opportunity to tell others about her “Papa God.”
“Now at the blessed age of 100, Ms. Ann is to be commended for distinguishing herself not only for the length of her incredible life but for the impact she has had in so many lives,” said King, as he presented the City Council Proclamation to Codrington before family and friends. “While she has excelled in so many roles over the years, she continues to prize several titles, most of all mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and to generations of loved ones. This beloved matriarch has truly enriched our entire community with her passion, faith and kind heart, and she has earned the esteem of all New Yorkers.”