An immigrant who retired at 93, this 104-year-old’s journey is one of perseverance
By Charles Perez
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ASHEVILLE, North Carolina (WLOS) — Part of the American story is shaped by those who’ve arrived from distant lands seeking opportunities they could not have found in their home countries.
For this Amazing America 250 feature, we talk with Asheville’s Sophie Steinberg, who, at 104 years old, is a living testament to that immigrant journey.
Born in 1922, in what is now Ukraine (then part of the Russian Empire), Steinberg arrived in America as an infant aboard the RMS Aquitania. She traveled with her mother and two brothers, fleeing the violent anti-Jewish attacks of the time, known as pogroms. It was part of a broader wave of persecution that forced millions of Jews to leave Eastern Europe.
For Steinberg, it was a journey away from the life she might have had if her family remained in what became part of the Soviet Union.
The family settled in Baltimore, and Steinberg grew up during the Great Depression. During World War II, her brothers and cousins served overseas, and her younger brother was killed in Italy in the Battle of Anzio.
At the age of 28, Steinberg became an American. It was a milestone she describes as deeply meaningful.
“I really felt good about that,” she said, recalling the pride of officially becoming an American.
Over the decades, she witnessed defining moments in U.S. history, from the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963 to the triumph of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing.
Over the years, she built a career at a law firm, where she finally retired at the age of 93. Today. With four grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren, she remains ever forward-looking, hoping their generations will chart a course to a hopeful future.
“Let’s get back to caring for each other,” she said. “Thinking about each other— what’s good for us.”
By “us,” she emphasizes, she means everyone, including those who have come looking for a better life.
“Most everybody is an immigrant in some way,” she said.
Her personal philosophy is simple: She never focused on her age, only on doing what needed to be done.
At 104, Steinberg’s life tells a distinctly American story — one of perseverance, opportunity, and the enduring hope that the future can be better than the past.
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