When asked what it takes to live 102 years, Leah Crook Ivie Bitton's answers keep circling back to the same two places: her family and the temple she visits every week.

Bitton, born Aug. 23, 1924, turns 102 Sunday. Her family will mark the milestone a day early, gathering Saturday, Aug. 22, for a celebration of not just her longevity but the quality of her life and the impact she has had on all of them.

Bitton was born in Freedom, Wyoming, to William and Annie Crook, and grew up as one of six children — three brothers and two sisters, all of whom have since died.

She married her first husband, Jack Ivie, at 16, while she was still in high school. She spent most of her life in Star Valley, where she ran a farm and raised four children while remaining a devout member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — a status she remains today.

She has served two missions for the church, one in the Philippines and one in Virginia. At 101, she still lives alone in Iona and attends church and the temple in Idaho Falls weekly, keeping her faith and her love for God close.

"I want to be remembered that I was a churchgoer and that I loved my family," Bitton said.

She has one other thing she would like understood about her.

"I'm forgiving when people do wrong," she said. "I don't hold a grudge."

Family matters as much to Bitton as her faith does. Four generations of descendants have followed her, beginning with her four children: Roseann Stout, Tony Ivie, Eddy Ivie and Wylene Bateman, who died.

Her descendants also include granddaughters Anndrea Ashcraft, Miranda Bird and Debbie Wheeler.

"She's loving and enjoys life to the fullest. Enjoys every day," Bird said.

So what is the secret to a long life? For Bitton, the answer is simple.

"Not going to the doctors, that's the truth," Bitton said.

Her other secret — besides staying away from doctors — is herbs, which she uses to this day.

"She's spunky and she's pretty healthy for the most part. Like, she's healthier than I am," Ashcraft said. "She would still be driving to this day if she wasn't such a horrible driver."

But living a long life is not the same as living a fulfilled one, and Bitton has done both: staying close to her family, remaining devout in her church and meeting each day with a smile on her face.

"Well, that's life. That's good life," Bitton said. "Living close to your family and loving it."

Her legacy lives in the people around her, and for her family, the impact continues.

"Now you're going to get me crying," Ashcraft said. "She's always been a really strong and spiritual person. That personally is the thing that inspires me."

Everything Bitton has seen and experienced is remarkable, but the most important things in her life remain the same: the people around her and God. A lot may change in the world, but those will be with her forever.