One of the first Black women to work at Campbell Soup, this 100-year-old is known as ‘the Queen’

A retired Campbell Soup Co. employee who helped break racial barriers at the company’s flagship plant in downtown Camden, Daisy Riley began celebrating her 100th birthday last week in grand style in her Parkside neighborhood.

Although she never believed she would reach this milestone, Riley has embraced her new status as a centenarian and credits healthy living and daily meditations with God for her longevity.

“I don’t even feel like I’m 100. I know I am,” she said during an interview. “I say ‘Lord, I thank you!’”

Wearing a rhinestone-studded tiara and a sash, Riley was heralded on the stoop of her rowhouse on Haddon Avenue with a convoy led by a Camden fire truck, sirens blaring. Riley, known by nearly everyone in the neighborhood as “the Queen,” smiled and waved as motorists honked their horns. Passersby shouted greetings.

“She’s a blessing, a nice lady,” said Aleta Goodwater, 58, a school crossing guard walking by on her way to her post.

A fixture in Camden for more than 80 years and the matriarch of a large family, Riley is beloved by generations of children in her neighborhood where she gave out peach and vanilla ice cream.

Born on Oct. 3, 1923, in Wadley, Ga., Riley recalled how she played with mud pies growing up with two brothers and a sister. In 1942 when she was 18, she moved to Philadelphia, following relatives who migrated here. A few months later, she moved to Camden, where she landed a job at Campbell Soup Co. during World War II.

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Among the first Black women hired on Jan. 14, 1943, in the soup manufacturer’s plant on the Delaware River, Riley endured the sting of racism. Because men were deployed to fight the war, the plant was largely operated by women. The plant produced rations for soldiers.

“They weren’t hiring any Black women at that time,” Riley recalled. “I broke the ice.”

Riley said her white coworkers refused to sit with her in the lunchroom, where a platter cost 25 cents, so she ate alone. They also banned her from using the same bathroom facilities, she said.

“It was really rough. They treated me terribly,” Riley said. “Those white girls didn’t want me there.”

Riley said conditions improved when more Black women were hired. She worked the production line for more than 18 years, making lids for soup cans, and in the canned division packing soup into cases. At the start, she was earning 51 cents an hour.

“I got $25 for my first paycheck. I thought I had some money,” Riley said with a smile.

Working in the plant could be grueling, standing for eight-hour morning or afternoon shifts, grabbing cans as they moved down a conveyor belt. It was noisy and hot in the factory. But Riley said she loved working there, especially helping other Black employees get hired. She brought Campbell’s products home to her children — especially Swanson TV dinners and Pepperidge Farm cookies.

“We were the Campbell’s kids,” joked her daughter, Alicia Riley, 63, a Camden teacher. Her mother never remarried after she divorced.

Eventually, Daisy Riley was sent to work in the kitchen, preparing meals for Campbell executives in the company’s headquarters. She retired with 43 years of service on Jan. 1, 1986. (She recalls the exact date and day of the week for most life events.)

After retiring from Campbell’s, Riley was a lunch aide at then-John Whittier Elementary School in Camden and Bishop Eustace Preparatory School in Pennsauken. She later worked at the Adventure Aquarium and would take neighborhood children like Yaniece Spencer to the waterfront attraction.

“She has been a pillar on our block all of my life,” said Spencer. “I’m glad to know Ms. Daisy and I look forward to more years of her wisdom.”

Riley has resided in the same neatly-kept rowhouse since 1966. She fondly recalls Camden’s glory days, shopping on Broadway, a once-bustling strip downtown dotted with markets, movie theaters and Lit Brothers, a popular department store based in Philadelphia.

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Riley lives with her daughter, but maintains her independence as much as possible. She begins every day with prayer and meditation, prepares her own breakfast and gets fully dressed with her hair meticulously coiffed. She stopped driving several years ago after undergoing three cornea transplants. She had a double-knee replacement, too, but walks without a cane. “I don’t know where that cane is.”

“I’m driving Miss Daisy these days,” quipped her daughter.

Known for her stylish dress, Riley has been a highly sought after senior model for fashion shows. She is the founder and Queen Mother of the Ladies of Royalty Chapter of the Red Hat Society, a social group for women over 50. She also started a travel group, “Traveling with Miss Daisy,” in 1995, organizing trips to Europe, as well as cruises and cross-country bus trips.

“I’m the Queen,” she proudly proclaimed.

Riley faithfully attends First Nazarene Baptist Church where she has been a member for 72 years. She is the oldest member and has served under four pastors. She sang with the senior and gospel choirs and was president of the usher board. She stopped ushering during the pandemic.

On Sunday, the congregation gave Riley a standing ovation during a presentation by the Rev. DyheimT. Watson to honor her birthday. Riley was overcome with emotion as she marched down the aisle to the altar. Watson presented her with a plaque and $100 — a dollar for every year. Her extended family, which includes five grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren, has planned additional festivities later this week.

“Thank God, Hallelujah!” she said.