Beverly J. Clark, Publicity Director
Email: Beverly.Clark@RLACEI.org
Carrie’s Corner
Carrie A. Gabriel began working for the City in 1946 and retired in 1978. She celebrated her 100th birthday in 2022. With all the wisdom, experiences and changes she has seen throughout the 20th and now 21st centuries, we thought it would be interesting to get her perspective on various topics of the day (part of a continuing series). If any reader is interested in her opinion or viewpoint on a certain topic, please contact Beverly Clark at Beverly.Clark@RLACEI.org.
I asked Carrie for an update on her incredible life. Here’s her latest report:
I have been blessed to see yet another year, and I am looking forward to celebrating 103 on Jan. 28, 2025. I am awed that God has smiled on me to see so many years and experience so many events in my life.
I am so thankful that I was able to get out and socialize more last year than I have in the past few years due to the Covid restrictions. I love to talk and spend hours on the phone talking, and I love meeting people. So this past year was especially exciting for me.
I do need to let you know that with age comes health challenges, and I have had a few. However, I am blessed to be able to walk without a walker or cane, and I can hear well even though I have hearing aids and do not need glasses since my cataract surgery. I continue to cook my own meals; I use my computer and my cellphone, and I’m still sharp. I use public transportation or Access to get to my scheduled healthcare appointments.
I attended RLACEI’s Christmas party in 2024 and enjoyed Santa and the Christmas caroling. I also had a wonderful time at the Spring Fling and the end of summer fiesta. Attending these events, meeting people and socializing with others is so refreshing.
One of my goals was to attend the LAPD Ebony Picnic, which I had been wanting to do for a few years. When I started with LAPD in 1946, there were very few women and minorities working in the department. Additionally, very few minorities held high-ranking positions. So I was amazed and overly excited to attend the picnic and meet women and men who were retired from high-ranking positions. I was in awe. And they were in awe of me as well with so much history to share. Since the picnic, many have befriended me. They have taken me to lunch several times, and they call and check up on me regularly and have assisted me with some of my healthcare provider challenges.
On Dec. 11, the United States Air Force provided a military honors flag ceremony at Inglewood Park Ceremony for my only son, Robert Rainey, who passed away in July 2023 and served in the Air Force from June 1977 to September 1984. This was a very emotional event for me, and it meant so much to see him honored in this way.
I am looking forward to 2025 and enjoying all the wonderful and supportive friends I have met and enjoying my two grandsons and my granddaughter, although they do not live in the Los Angeles area.
Please join the RLACEI Board of Directors in wishing Carrie a very happy and blessed 103rd birthday. You may send well wishes directly to Carrie at cgabriel18@roadrunner.com or post on RLACEI’s Facebook page.
Happy 103rd Birthday, Carrie!
