Edwin L. Ross is looking forward to his next nine birthdays, not so much for the distinction of living for a century, but for the good he wants to accomplish.
“My job in this life is to make people happy and keep them happy, and I want to die happy,” said Ross, of Coconut Creek .
A retired musician, Ross is legally blind as the result of age-related macular degeneration, an eye disease caused by hardening of the arteries that nourish the macula or central retina. It is the most common cause of vision loss in the United States in people 50 or older, according to the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute in Miami.
Ross was completely blind until he underwent a procedure last year performed by a team of Bascom Palmer surgeons working under contract for the Miami Veterans Administration Medical Center.
A man of modest means, he nevertheless has established the Edward L. Ross Foundation to honor people who help the visually impaired and blind.
“I give a little luncheon and a plaque around my birthday,” Ross said. The February event, which Ross calls a reunion, takes place at the Daniel D. Cantor Senior Center in Sunrise, where Ross teaches music appreciation.