A glass of homemade red wine each night on the way to 99

Photo by James A. McBride

William Perla of the Manor at St. Mary’s, Cherry Hill, cuts hair four days a week at Daniel Pucci Hair Studio on Camden Avenue in Moorestown. He recently celebrated his 99th birthday.

CHERRY HILL — Often when someone reaches an advanced age, that person is asked his or her secret to a long life.

William Perla of the Manor at St. Mary’s, who became 99 on Oct. 4, has no secret, except perhaps he never smoked and, being of Italian extraction, he was raised on health foods: red wine, olive oil and garlic. All of which have been shown today to be three of the best ways to stay healthy.

“I started drinking homemade red wine when I was young,” he said. “Today I have one glass every night and use olive oil on my salads, which I have every night, and garlic in my cooking.”

He takes daily medication “but I have never taken a vitamin,” he pointed out.

What’s more remarkable than reaching the age of 99 is that Perla works part-time four days a week as a barber and still drives his own car. He works from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at Daniel Pucci Hair Studio on Camden Avenue in Moorestown.

Perla said he started barbering at the age of 16 in Camden. He abandoned his profession for a short time when he got out of the service after World War II to go to school under the GI Bill to study TV repair. “But I stopped that after two years to go back to being a barber,” he said.

Originally from North Philadelphia (“25th and Allegheny,” he said) he moved to New Jersey with his wife, Madelyn, in 1960. He had his own barber shop here for years.

“I got married late, 37,” Perla said. “Madelyn was from Pittsburgh where her father used to be a miner.” She was a child when the family moved to Moorestown, he added.

His wife passed on in 2001, said Perla, and he moved to St. Mary’s in 2006. He lives independently and is the oldest resident there.

Does he ever expect to retire from barbering?

“I’ve been thinking about it,” he said. “Maybe the end of this year or next.”

Whatever he decides, he’ll be ready to do something else. Maybe he’ll take up dancing as a profession. The word is he cuts quite a rug at St. Mary’s dances.