SARASOTA -  Ask 99-year-old Thelma Gulden the secret to life and she’ll tell you.

“Keep this busy, keep it busy,” says Gulden.

And puzzles for their therapeutic properties.

“I can say damnit this and damnit that,” says Gulden.

Her laughter permeates the room and leaves you thinking, there’s no way this woman is nearly 100 years old. But she is, and there was no slowing down this WWII Cadet Nurse.

“I had a large group of friends that I could visit and play cards with and keep me busy, so I didn’t stay home much. My hardship living alone was not bad,” says Gulden.

That was until Hurricane Ian ripped it all away from her. Her home in Oakwood Manor nearly leveled, Gulden now staying with her great niece.

“I can’t wait to get back to my home, because I had so many friends in the park,” says Gulden.

Getting back into her home will be a large undertaking, that’s why we’re making Gulden November’s $1000 dollar Helping Hand recipient sponsored by Carl Reynolds Law.

“There you go dear to help toward rebuilding and getting back to your social life and your friends that need you so much,” says Reynolds.

With the community rallying behind Gulden, her GoFundMe  continuing to grow and her new found fame on TikTok, Gulden is praying to get back to life’s most basic need; a roof over her head before she hits a very special milestone.

“I don’t know what I'm going to do for my 100th birthday. I rode the elephant, and I’ve been up in the helicopter. I think I want a hot air balloon," says Gulden.