Customer shoves 100-year-old Wis. Walmart greeter

[May 10, 2011]  MILWAUKEE (AP) -- A 100-year-old greeter at a Milwaukee Walmart was shoved by a customer after the centenarian tried to stop the woman to determine if she'd paid for items that were in the lower part of her shopping cart, police said Monday.

Greeter Lois Speelman fell down and went to a hospital after she was shoved on Sunday.

"I'm bruised a little, but I'm able to go back to work Thursday," Speelman told The Associated Press from her home on Monday.

Speelman declined to answer further questions, saying she didn't want to lose her job and the investigation wasn't over. A Wal-Mart Stores Inc. spokeswoman didn't have more details but said that Speelman's health was the company's primary concern.

"Most importantly, our associate is doing OK and we're grateful for that. The actions of this individual are appalling and we appreciate the work of police in this case," spokeswoman Ashley Hardie said.

Milwaukee police spokeswoman Anne E. Schwartz said the case has been referred to prosecutors for a potential aggravated battery charge.

Speelman became a local celebrity briefly when she was profiled by several news outlets after she celebrated her 100th birthday at the store in August.

According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Speelman has been twice widowed and started greeting at the store when she was 90. She retired at 95, but came back at 97 after her only living son died and continues to work an average of 34 hours a week.

[Associated Press]

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