Last month, on a Saturday afternoon, friends surprised Norwood resident Louise Ertel with a party to celebrate her 100th birthday.

Ertel, a longtime Bronx resident, was born September 20, 1908 on her family’s farm in Steinbach, Germany, a small community about an hour from Frankfurt. Ertel’s hardworking mother ran the farm while her father managed the local post office.

After receiving an invitation from her older sister 82 years ago, Ertel came alone to New York and has remained here ever since. Only a few years into Ertel’s new life in America, her sister and brother-in-law returned to Germany to help manage the family farm. Ertel made the tough decision to stay in the States.

Those challenging years were followed by happy memories. In 1935, Ertel married her husband. They shared a warm and happy life together for 47 years. Some of her happiest memories, she says, are of times spent with her husband and friends, sharing food, conversation and singing.

People at the event said they see Ertel as a friend, role model and community elder and felt her life should be celebrated. —Reporting by Adi Talwar