[dropcap sid=”dropcap-1419362660″]W[/dropcap]hen asked to what he attributes his long life, the College’s oldest alumnus*, 103-year-old Aaron Blecker, jokingly answers, “I was born before they discovered germs.” Blecker earned his BBA in 1936 after taking classes for a decade at City College Downtown (today’s Baruch) as a part-time, night student.
Blecker was born on Jul. 27, 1911, to European immigrants living on East 10th Street in lower Manhattan, a neighborhood he calls “El Barrio.” His father was uneducated and earned his living as a tailor; his mother, whom Blecker cites as the biggest influence of his life, had little formal education but encouraged all four of her sons to continue theirs. Aaron listened, the only son to complete a college degree.
But Blecker had to overcome many obstacles to hold that life-changing diploma in his hands. The biggest: money. “My parents were very poor,” he says. So though he aspired to attend NYU, he couldn’t afford its tuition and in fact couldn’t even afford to quit his daytime delivery job to attend then-tuition-free City College full time. To cover living expenses, he and his family occasionally relied on the local butcher, who acted in the role of community banker/financier.
Fortunately Blecker was very smart: he had earned the requisite minimum 95 high school average that gained students admission to exclusive City. Choosing a major presented another challenge, however. “I didn’t know what to major in. So I told the registrar’s office that my mother wanted me to be an accountant, and they signed me up for accountancy,” he chuckles. Blecker’s packed schedule prevented him from participating in most extracurricular activities, though he joined the Torch and Scroll Honor Society, which he eventually led.
After graduation Blecker faced more obstacles. In the mid-1930s, the large accounting firms would not hire anyone who was Jewish. This left employment at the smaller firms or establishing one’s own practice, both of which paths he took. When asked about retirement, the centenarian is quick to clarify that he still has a few longtime clients, who refuse to change their CPA after 60-plus years.
Blecker is justifiably proud of his accomplishments. “I was determined to get out of ‘El Barrio,’ and I did,” he says. He married in 1937, the same year he passed all four parts of his CPA exam on his first attempt (!), a feat very few accomplish. He and his wife, Sophie—who died in 2008—moved to a house in Great Neck, L.I. He made sure his son’s and daughter’s collegiate lives were easier than his own. Son Robert and daughter Susan are Tufts University alumni: “No loans, fully paid for,” says dad.
Today, at 103 and counting, Blecker spends time with friends and family, including grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Among his favorite activities are playing chess and bridge, which he plays twice a week. He isn’t much interested in talking about his health, simply stating, “I’ve been very fortunate. I have maintained good health—a good body plus a good memory—and an optimistic outlook.” He also has a wonderful sense of humor.
The centenarian is not much for advice, though prompted offered this: “Don’t give up with the slightest disappointment. Determination and will power get a lot of things done.”
—Diane Harrigan
*Mr. Blecker contacted Baruch College’s Office of Alumni Relations after reading the article about Miguel Cruz (’55), who was billed as the College’s and CUNY’s oldest alumnus in the Fall 2014/Winter 2015 issue of Baruch College Alumni Magazine. Blecker, born Jul. 27, 1911, and thus one week older than Cruz, called to set the record straight—with all respect to his fellow alumnus.
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