Dr. Michelle Smith

At 94 years of age, Perry Flicker is one of few bowlers from his neighborhood league at Valley Center Bowl in Salinas who is over the age of 70.

But the remarkable part of his story is that he continues to bowl twice a week despite having lost a significant portion of his vision.

"I was driving home from bowling at around four o'clock in the afternoon, and I was looking right into the sun, and I was afraid I was gonna hit a parked car," Perry recalls. "When I came to the corner, I couldn't see the signal lights, whether they were red or green. I was only about four blocks from home. When I pulled up to the driveway, I was kind of shaken. I put my car in the driveway and said, 'That's it.' And I quit driving."

Nearly eight years ago, Perry was diagnosed with macular degeneration--a disease that progressively destroys the central portion of the retina but rarely causes blindness. He says he didn't catch it soon enough for a cure, and he declined retinal repair because of his age. Instead, he opted for treatment to keep the condition from worsening. He uses a special device to assist him with reading, but he relies on his experience at the bowling alley.

"What I can see right now is a white triangle down there 60 feet away, and I try to aim right at the center of the thing," he explains.

Perry first started bowling in North Sacramento in 1949, but soon moved to Salinas where he and his wife, Louise (who passed away in 2004), started a sewing machine and vacuum cleaner business. A few years later, Valley Center Bowl was built near his home.

"Then, after 27 years, when we sold [the business], my wife retained her business of garment lettering. ... They didn't have automatic machines back in those days," he says, amused that, after all these years, former Monterey and Salinas High students still remind him that it was his wife who lettered their high school athletic jackets.

Perry takes pride in his ability to compete with league members who are fully sighted. But he's had his fair share of obstacles along the way. Once, while on a Mediterranean cruise, he broke a bone in his hand and was unable to bowl for quite some time.

"It seemed like every time that I was getting pretty good, something [bad] would happen," he says.

Though Perry is no stranger to adversity, it's clear that he's not the kind of man to let a little setback interfere with the enjoyment of his life. He attributes his longevity to the fact that he is a non-smoker and rarely drinks alcohol. His exercise routine includes stretching and the use of weights, and he's been taking vitamins for a good portion of his adult life.

"I kind of watch what I eat," he says, "but I still like to have my desserts."

A longstanding philanthropist, Perry has one daughter, two grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.