What do you get a man who has everything?

Answer: A handshake and best wishes will do just fine.

Roy Harrington is celebrating his 101st birthday Saturday. He will be the guest of honor at an open house 1-3 p.m. Saturday at First United Methodist Church in Austin.

The entire family will be there. Some of the old friends will drop by, such as Chuck Thompson and Jim Bigelow.

The guest of honor will be the tall, slender man, wearing the red and black cap.

It's a Milwaukee Road railroad cap and it's worn with pride.

Nobody has more of the latter than Mr. Harrington.

"I went to work for the Milwaukee Road when I was 18 years old and I worked for the railroad for 66 years," he said. "There aren't many of us left anymore. The old times are all gone it seems."

That isn't quit true, but when you reach 101 years of age, there probably aren't going to be a lot of people your age left to reminisce about the good old days of railroading.

Mr. Harrington left his apartment along West Oakland Avenue a week ago to move into an assisted living apartment at St. Mark's Lutheran Home in southwest Austin.

His actual birthday was Wednesday. Oct. 23.

He was born in Farmington, the son of a farmer. Longevity runs in the family.

He had six brothers and one sister.

The railroad was figuratively and literally his life. He worked as a fireman and a locomotive engineer in the days of the coal-fired engines.

The sons have organized special birthday parties at various milestones: 90, 95, 100 and now 101.

His son, Duane, shares the elder Harrington's love of railroading. Duane worked for the Milwaukee Road railroad himself for six years. Each summer, he lectures visitors at the Mower County Fair on train history at the popular Milwaukee Junction train exhibit.

Mr. Harrington drove the famed Locomotive 1004 engine on display at the Milwaukee Junction exhibit.

Lee Bonorden can be contacted at 434-2232 or by e-mail at lee.bonorden@austindailyherald.com