California's Oldest Person now 114
American Woman Gertrude Baines Celebrates Her 114th birthday
Supercentenarian Gertrude was born in 1894, and is now recognised as the third oldest living person on Earth at the grand old age of One Hundred and Fourteen.
When Gertrude Baines celebrated her most recent birthday on 6th April 2008, she did so as the oldest person in the state of California, the second oldest person in the USA, and the third oldest person in the World, according to researchers at the Gerontology Research Group, who study the World’s oldest people, and inform the Guinness Book of Records as to who are the oldest living human beings whose age can be verified.
Living for 114 Years
Mrs Baines was born in the US state of Georgia on April 6th 1894 to Judge and Amy Baines, who were former slaves. She married when she was very young to a man named Sam Conly and the couple had one daughter, who sadly passed away at the age of just eighteen years. Mrs Baines lived independently until the age of 105, and now resides at a nursing home in Los Angeles.
She has been acknowledged by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger as the oldest person in California, and has been cited in the Guinness Book of Records as one of the oldest living people in the World. She is now listed as third oldest living person by the Gerontology Research Group. Only Edna Parker of Indiana, and Spain’s Maria de Jesus, are older than Baines. Mrs Parker should turn 115 later this month, and Maria de Jesus will hopefully celebrate her 115th birthday in September. They are the last two living people whose birth date in 1893 can be verified.
Mrs Baines is one of only three known living people whose birth date in 1894 can be verified. After Baines, French woman Clementine Solignac, and American woman Catherine Hagel are the last known surviving people from that year.
Belated Fame as one of the World’s oldest people
As well as her acknowledgement from Governor Schwarzenegger, she also receives a letter every year on her birthday from the American President, George W. Bush. She was also featured in a documentary on the World’s oldest people in 2007, and has been visited by reporters on her birthday for the last few years as she has risen up the ranks of the oldest people to become one of the three oldest people alive.
Secrets of Longevity
Many of us wonder how someone achieves such remarkable longevity. Is it down to the genes we inherit, or is it the lifestyle we lead, or our diet, or perhaps a combination of all these things with a little luck thrown in? When asked about her own long life, Mrs Baines recalled “I tried to smoke and drink but it did not agree with me so I quit”. With regards to her diet she explained “I eat everything if it tastes good, and I enjoy sweet cakes and pies but not at every meal.” (1)
Perhaps the most important aspect of her life is her strong religious faith. She remains an active member of the church, attending services every Sunday as she has done all her life. The advice she gives to others about how to live life is simple and timeless; “Treat everybody right, and ask God.”
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References:
(1) Los Angeles Sentinel Article
