Great-grandma turns 22

February 29: Her birthday keeps her young

Neighbors Rosemarie Eibl (left) and Theresia Sturm are both celebrating their very special birthdays today.(Bild: ANDREAS TROESTER)

Theresia Sturm from Salzburg is celebrating her 22nd birthday today - even though she is already a great-grandmother! Greta from the Innviertel region is celebrating her special day for only the third time.

When I say I'm turning 22, nobody believes me," laughs Theresia Sturm. In fact, the pensioner from Wals, who was born in 1936, can only celebrate her 22nd birthday on February 29. However, she doesn't feel any younger because of her special birthday. This may also be due to the fact that she already has 14 grandchildren, eleven great-grandchildren and now also a great-great-grandchild. Today, the sprightly senior citizen is celebrating with her family at her home in Wals, with cake, of course, and in a leap year, a particularly big one.

Her neighbor, Rosemarie Eibl, is also celebrating her "real" birthday again after four years - for the 14th time! But she doesn't want to be that young again. "Everything has its time. It's good the way it is," she says. This year there will be a big celebration with the family. In other years, she celebrates on March 1. "I wasn't there on February 28," says Eibl. Actually, all birthdays are the same anyway, she thinks, but the 56-year-old recognizes one big advantage: "Hardly anyone forgets my birthday." Almost everyone remembers this very special date.

(Bild: Coloures-Pic - stock.adobe.com)

This is only the third time Greta Varadi has celebrated her birthday on the correct date. She decided to have a big party at her parents' home. "I invited 15 school friends. I want my cake to be a heart-shaped cake in pink and white that my aunt bakes," the twelve-year-old tells the "Krone".

The Innviertel native knows that her birthday is something special: "But when everyone talks about it, it sometimes makes me uncomfortable." Outside of leap years, of course, she has not gone away empty-handed. In the past, presents were usually given on February 28 or at the weekend.