Friends of Palmerton resident Nancy Nothstein didn’t want the dreaded coronavirus pandemic to interfere with the woman’s 90th birthday. A drive-by celebration organized by a neighbor and others helped to make sure that didn’t happen.

A retired nurse at the Palmerton Hospital, Nancy observed her 90th birthday on April 9. She celebrated it happily on April 11, when the paradelike celebration took place.

Organized by neighbor Sherry Pancoast, the drive-by gave Nancy great thrills as she sat on her porch wearing a tiara and waving to passers-by.

“I thought it was fantastic,” the new nonagenarian said. “I was so surprised. It couldn’t have been better. It made my day.”

Nancy said she didn’t want her family to do anything special for her 90th birthday. A party planned by her son was canceled because of the pandemic.

That’s when Pancoast decided to organize the celebration. She said she and others who helped make the parade possible set a goal of “90 cars for her 90th birthday.” Pancoast said she didn’t know if the goal was met, but, she noted, cars parked in lot of First Northern Bank and Trust, and it was full.”

Pancoast originally canvassed the neighborhood, block by block, to see who would participate. Others posted the plan on Facebook, which helped the plan gain momentum.

Sherry said when the event was over, she asked the birthday celebrant if she counted the cars. Her reply was, “No, I was too excited to count,” Sherry said of Nancy’s reply.

The event “was a blast,” Pancoast said. “She’s quite a special lady.”

She added, “The look on her face was priceless. She was just so overwhelmed with joy and love. It was beautiful. Ninety years, you know, you got to celebrate her.”

The retired nurse, meanwhile, acknowledged the hard work being done by health care workers during the pandemic.

“I think it’s wonderful that they’re doing it,” she said of health care workers battling COVID-19. “I just can’t believe that this is going on. It’s unbelievable,” she said.