Twins celebrate 100 year birthday together - Philadelphia

Twins, born on December 3, 1912, celebrated their 100th birthday together today in Philadelphia. What makes their story remarkable, aside from the fact they are twins, is the difficulty the faced in youth.

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PHILADELPHIA, PA (Catholic Online) -  An article by Daniel Rubin in the Philadelphia Inquirer featured the story of Ruth Tengood and Alfred Pick, both born in Germany on Dec. 3, 1912. The pair grew up in Germany, but chose to flee after the Nazis came to power.

They left their families behind and fled in different directions. Ruth went to England where she became a domestic servant and suffered through the Blitz, and Alfred headed East into Poland. They lost their father, a World War I veteran, to the holocaust.

As the Nazis moved east, Alfred moved before them, studying different languages and occupations. His primary occupation was that of a pharmacist. Alfred continued moving east until he found himself in China.

After the war, both Alfred and Ruth moved to Philadelphia and married. Alfred married an Auschwitz survivor. Ruth married an Austrian Jew she met in London.

Ruth found work as a secretary in at St. Paul the Apostle Church but remained Jewish. Alfred resumed his career as a pharmacist.

The pair have achieved a rare milestone for any individual, furthermore twins. Celebrating their 100 year birthdays in a nursing home in Philadelphia, four generations of the family were on hand.

According to Rubin, Alfred held his great-grandson in his arms saying to the 5-month-old boy, "Remember me."

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