SAVOY — At 98, the commute to work for Sophie Buck entails some backward maneuvering down a flight of nine stairs into her basement workshop. There, she’s got a sewing machine set up and cabinets full of supplies. The self-taught seamstress, who once worked at a men’s clothing store as its tailor, still accepts alteration jobs from friends and neighbors and through word of mouth.
Last week, Buck was awarded Savoy’s golden cane in a tradition dating to 1909, the year Boston Post newspaper publisher Edward Crozier gave 700 canes to towns across New England. The point then was that each town was to give the cane to its oldest resident and so on. But Savoy must have lost its original Boston Post Cane along the way, for Buck — Savoy's oldest resident — was awarded the town's hand-fashioned one.
Sophie Buck, 98, of Savoy shares memories of growing up in this June 28, 2024 photo. Her oldest memory dates to her first day of kindergarten. While some are not eager for such honor, Buck is a willing recipient.
She's even promised to hold a party for the town in another two years, when she reaches her 100th birthday. That might make up for her missing the town’s 200th anniversary celebration in 1997, which she designed and sewed costumes for but sat out for personal reasons. And she didn't get to wear the gown — a cranberry print dress — she made for the occasion.
On her 100th birthday, “We’re going to close down the town of Savoy, and I will wear my gown,” she sai.