ENOCHVILLE — “Enjoy the life that God has given you,” was a popular refrain when twins Carlee Henley and Coleen Thompson spoke about what they had learned and experienced in the past 90 years.

Both Carlee and Coleen celebrated their 90th birthday on Sunday, Feb. 4. The two twins were both born in southern Rowan County, and outside of stints in Delaware for Coleen and Charlotte for Carlee, the two have lived in or near Rowan County for most of their lives.

Both brother and sister had a joint birthday party thrown for them on the day before their birthday. Carlee’s daughter, Carla Plott, said that they invited 150 people to the party and 130 of those showed up. The people who could not make it made sure to contact the family and send their well-wishes.

“I get emotional thinking about it, because it was such a blessing. I didn’t expect, you know you think you have a few friends and I thought we’d just need one table. And then there were 130,” said Coleen.

Carlee echoed the emotion that came from the day, saying that the party more than just a fun gathering of 130 people.

“My daughter made a statement that just absolutely rang clear. She said, ‘Daddy, this is more than a birthday. It’s like a reunion,’” said Carlee.

The twins were born in 1934, 10 minutes apart, although Coleen likes to joke that she is 10 years younger than Carlee.

“It doesn’t seem that long ago that we were four, you know, time flies, it truly does. It’s been a wonderful life, but my twin sister has always proclaimed that she was 10 years younger,” said Carlee.

Coleen joked that now that they publicly announced their 90th birthday together, the cat was out of the bag.

“When I got up to thank everybody for coming, and I was so appreciative of them being there, I said now my secret is out and that is, I never tell my age,” said Coleen.

Growing up, the two were inseparable. Carlee was the only boy out of four children, so Coleen said that he was “petted” and Carlee did not disagree. Even still, the two were together constantly and never once argued, they said.

Coleen and Carlee recounted a game that they enjoyed playing when they were younger, one they invented together.

“Carlee and I invented a game called ‘man,’ and it was called that because, on the radio, we listened to a gangster movie or something that was on the radio. So, Carlee was the gangster and I was the gun moll. So, Daddy cut wood for our big-bellied fire stove and he had an old car sitting in the garage which he had converted into a saw. He’d turn the motor on and it would saw wood. Here we are, with this piece of the car. Isn’t that perfect, that’ll be our getaway car. That was our game,” said Coleen.

The two also share a love for music, even getting together with a friend to create the “Hallmark Trio,” which went around to community churches and sang.

“You can’t say Henley without music. All the way through to their daddy played and sang. It was cousins, everybody,” said Carla.

Carlee also formed another trio with Carla and her brother, Trent Henley, called the “Henley Trio.” Coleen said that Carlee formed the backbone of all of the trios as he had the ability to pick out all of the voices in a group if someone made a bad note. Carlee also had another trio with two of his nephews. He entered into a competition with that group, winning and being offered the opportunity to enter into a recording contract, but Carlee was unable to travel and leave his family for an extended period of time.

Coleen left Rowan County when she got married to Joel Thompson, moving to Wilmington, Delaware, before she was even 20.

“It was amazing, I mean I had never been to a northern city. It was just a great, great time,” Coleen said of her and her husband’s time in Delaware.

Around the time Coleen was moving back to North Carolina, Carlee was moving back from Mecklenburg County after working for the Charlotte City Police Department. He spent approximately 10 years with the department, during which time he became certified as a traffic investigator and even spent time as one of the first members of the city’s newly implemented Harley-Davidson patrol until a bad crash left him in a cast for a year. After serving for those 10 years, he realized that he was making a better living with his side home improvement business than he was as a police officer.

“The police department barely paid enough to live on and I was working part-time for myself doing home improvement, and I realize that I’m making more money working part-time than I was working for the police department. So, I said I’m going to start my own business, and I did,” said Carlee.

Carlee founded that business in China Grove in 1979 as Custom Improvers and he continues to run it 45 years later. Although Carla said she tries to talk him out of climbing ladders and getting on any roofs, he said he still works and quotes jobs. That drive to keep active and working at the age of 90 is part of what he and Coleen said has kept them going and happy for nine decades.

“My philosophy is that I love life. First of all, you must have the Lord and his precious son, Jesus, at the top of your list. There are burdens, there’s heartaches, there’s bumps in the road. Through all of that, I love life and each decade that I enter, I tried to enter it with I’m going to be the best that I can be at 40, 50, 60, whatever decade. Now, beginning the ninth decade, which is just mind boggling to me, it’s surreal and I don’t believe it but it’s here. Here I am, being able to think and speak and walk, keep myself and keep my house. How blessed can a person be?” said Coleen.

Of course, the two could not resist having some fun after Coleen finished speaking. Carlee said “preach it, sister,” while laughing, followed by Coleen joking about “feeling like a sermon’s coming on.”