The 115-year-old woman who had lived through 21 presidents, the Spanish Flu, and the Great Depression was the oldest person in America.
Tuesday saw the passing of Bessie Hendricks at the Shady Oaks Care Center in Lake City, Iowa, according to her funeral home.
The supercentenarian, who assumed the title of oldest woman in the nation last January, was born on November 7, 1907, and just turned 115 two months ago.
Before she passed away this week, she was also thought to be the fourth-oldest living person in the world.
Hendricks stated in an interview at the age of 110 that the key to living a long life was “hard work,” and her son added that she enjoyed eating sweets.
The native of Iowa experienced both World Wars, the Cold War, the Korean War, and the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
She was born and raised on a farm, and throughout the years, she worked at various jobs while raising Shirley, Joan, Roland, Glenda, and Leon, four girls and two boys.
She began her career as a teacher before moving on to fill shells with gunpowder on an assembly line at an ammunition factory during World War II.
When she turned 110 years old five years ago, she told the Fort Dodge Messenger that “hard work” was the key to her longevity.
However, one of her offspring also disclosed that his mother “loved her sweets.”
Hendricks “appreciates life so much,” a care center manager told the Fort Dodge Messenger on her 101st birthday.
She continued, “A strong will and love of family keep Bessie going.”
Prior to her death, Hendricks was not only the fourth-oldest living person in the world, but also the oldest known living person in the US.
She outlived two of her children and lost her husband in 1995, a month before their 65th wedding anniversary.
Three children, nine grandchildren, 28 great-grandchildren, and 42 great-great grandchildren are among her survivors.
At Lampe & Powers Funeral Home, a funeral service for Hendricks will be held on Saturday.
According to the Gerontology Research Group, Edie Ceccarelli, 114, of California is now the oldest living person in the nation as a result of Hendrick’s passing.
»Oldest woman in America supercentenarian Bessie Hendricks passes away at the age of 115«