In Houston, Texas, 101-year-old Ralph Abercia has a lifelong passion for dancing. His vitality and longevity, he believes, stem from his unwavering faith in God, devotion to his family, and love for his country.
During the era of the Great Depression, Ralph, born to Lebanese immigrant parents, learned to persevere through hard work, compassion for others, and at times, surviving on just a single cent a day.
Ralph’s daughter Sharon, along with her husband John Evans, is putting her Dad’s inspiration into words with a book titled “Only a Penny.”
Sharon said, “I always wanted to tell my Dad’s story. It’s a story of profound poverty and how he came from that to where he is today.”
Evans adds, “Only a penny was survival. We see a penny and the ground, and we just walk by it. To them that was a gallon of milk, a loaf of bread.”
In his early years, Ralph and his sibling would trek long distances along North Main to the Rice Hotel in downtown Houston. There, they would vend the bread their mother meticulously prepared through the night to affluent individuals, earning mere pennies that held immense value.
Ralph served in World War II as an Army/Air Force Corporal stationed in England. When the war ended, he entered the University of Houston Law School, where he met the love of his life, Adelene. They’ve been married for 74 years and raised four children.
As a Houston lawyer Ralph would fight for those in need. He had been in their shoes and was ready to help all.
“He didn’t wait for others to come to him; he went to them. He was simple and humble. He loved people, and people loved him,” Sharon said.