Minnie Burdock turned 103 Tuesday, Feb. 12, and she’s sharp as a tack — especially when it comes to politics.

Minnie became a Democrat in 1944 and she doesn’t hold back with her enthusiasm about her politics. Currently, Minnie is a staunch supporter of Democratic Sen. Hillary Clinton.

“She’s a godsend to mankind,” Minnie said of Clinton during an interview on her birthday.

Minnie also likes Bill Clinton.

This year, Minnie met Hillary Clinton at a rally in Ottumwa, and Minnie said she told Hillary, “I really like Bill.” In Minnie’s book, Bill Clinton is “a town and country boy. Bill’s a

good boy.”

While Minnie keeps track of current politics, she also is a treasure trove of stories from her life experiences that spans more than a century.

Although she currently lives at North Mahaska Nursing and Rehad Center in Oskaloosa, Minnie has always been a What Cheer girl.

Minnie was born on Feb. 12, 1905, a day she said her father, Henry Van Patten, called the “coldest day” ever. She was born in What Cheer, and later the family moved to the country and lived on a farm.

Minnie’s family included her father; mother, Elizabeth “Lidia”; and four siblings Rob, Elbert, Pansy and Frank.

Minnie attended a one-room country school — Rinehart — from the first- through eighth-grades. She didn’t attend high school. She lived about three-quarters of a mile from the school.

Minnie remembered that if it was snowing bad, her father would come to the school with a bobsled to pick up the kids.

There are two Rinehart teachers that stick out in Minnie’s mind — Cleland Wells and Conrad Recktenwald.

Minnie particularly remembers playing a prank on Wells. Wells had told the class that he had a treat for them but wouldn’t reveal what it was. Well, Minnie and some of her friends gathered near the coal house at noon. When Wells went in to get some coal, Minnie and her friends sneaked up and locked Wells in the coal house until he gave the kids the treat, which turned out to be a picture postcard.

While the students had a little fun with Wells at his expense, Minnie had fond memories of the teacher. He was never cross with his students and he never scolded them, although the students teased and distract the teacher, she said.