Virginia Chesney’s 100th birthday isn’t until November, but the former telephone operators’ annual reunion is always in July, so she and her old colleagues celebrated a little early.
Chesney, who retired from the Bell system as group chief operator of information services, moved to Knoxville in 1947 after starting her switchboard career in Lexington Tennessee when she was 18 years old. Claudette Hall was ready to help Chesney blow out the 10 symbolic candles, but Chesney got ’er done by herself.