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Centenarian of Blumenau turns 107 years old with clear memory, good humor, and a journey that has spanned more than a century of history in Santa Catarina.
Domingo José Tamasia, a resident of the Vila Itoupava neighborhood in Blumenau, turned 107 years old last Tuesday, May 26, on a date that the family chose to celebrate with a larger party the following Sunday, gathering around him one of the most extensive genealogies in the Santa Catarina region.
The celebration is scheduled for the Our Lady of Sorrows community, in the Alto Treze de Maio neighborhood, in Massaranduba, and will be attended by his 12 children, 31 grandchildren, 54 great-grandchildren, and 11 great-great-grandchildren — a family that has grown over decades and today represents one of the greatest emotional legacies of this centenarian that time seems unable to overcome.
Affectionately known as “Seu Zé”, Domingo is originally from Lageado Baixo, then a neighborhood of Brusque that today is part of the municipality of Botuverá, but has made Blumenau his home for more than four decades, having built most of his adult history there and created the community ties he still maintains with remarkable vitality.
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What impresses those who live with Seu Zé is not just the longevity itself, but the quality of that longevity: the centenarian still preserves autonomy in his daily life, surprises those around him with constant good humor, and can still clearly recall passages from a journey that began more than a century ago, before World War II and all the transformation that Brazil would experience in the following decades.
Widowed three times over such a long life, Domingo bears the mark of someone who has seen the world change at rhythms and intensities that few human beings have witnessed, from the still rural interior of Santa Catarina to today’s urbanized and connected Brazil, without losing the serenity and humor that the family attributes as a central part of his secret.
Simple habits as the key to a long life
For the family, Domingo’s longevity is not a complex mystery — it relies on habits built over a lifetime and maintained with rare consistency, from homemade meals to the constant practice of light physical activities in daily life, combined with a routine of medical check-ups that the family has taken seriously from an early age.
The tranquil life in the countryside, far from the stress of large metropolises and the fast-paced rhythms that characterize contemporary urban life, is also pointed out by family members as a relevant factor in the equation that explains how Mr. Zé reached 107 years without losing his lucidity and without relying on intensive care.
This set of factors — simple and homemade food, moderate and constant physical activity, regular medical routine, and absence of major stressors — coincides with what gerontological science has pointed out as pillars of healthy longevity in studies conducted in various populations around the world, including the so-called “blue zones,” regions where the concentration of centenarians is significantly higher than the global average.
The best-known blue zones — such as the island of Sardinia in Italy and Okinawa in Japan — share exactly this profile: a diet based on natural and regional foods, strong family and community ties, a clear purpose in life, and physical activity integrated into daily life, without the need for gyms or structured programs.
A life that spanned more than a century of history
Born at a time when Brazil was still predominantly rural and the southern region of the country was undergoing intense transformations linked to European colonization, Domingo José Tamasia lived long enough to witness changes that rarely a single generation has the privilege to observe: the mechanization of agriculture, the industrialization of Santa Catarina, the arrival of television, the internet, and smartphones.
This historical breadth experienced by a single human being is what makes the story of Seu Zé especially striking, going beyond numbers and statistics to touch something deeper about the human experience and the ability to adapt over time, qualities that the family recognizes in him with sincere admiration.
The region of Blumenau has a strong tradition of longevity among its population of European descent, with dietary and cultural habits that have historically favored a more disciplined and community-oriented life, characteristics that Brazilian researchers have already identified as positive factors in the health indicators and life expectancy of the southern region of the country compared to other Brazilian regions.
Sunday’s celebration will bring together not only Seu Zé’s immediate family but also members of the Massaranduba community who have witnessed part of his journey and want to be present at a birthday that, with each passing year, becomes more special and rarer, celebrating not just a long life, but a life lived with presence, humor, and gratitude.
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