Oldest person in US dies in NH at age 114

[CountAllVotes]

Source: Associated Press

WESTMORELAND, N.H. – Mary Josephine Ray, the New Hampshire woman who was certified as the oldest person living in the United States, has died at age 114 years, 294 days.

She died Sunday at a nursing home in Westmoreland but was active until about two weeks before her death, her granddaughter Katherine Ray said.

"She just enjoyed life. She never thought of dying at all," Katherine Ray said. "She was planning for her birthday party."

Even with her recent decline, Ray managed an interview with a reporter last week, her granddaughter said.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_oldest_american

---

Fare you well Mary Josephine Ray.



May you RIP!

:dem:

[HughMoran]

1. Not sure I want to live to be half that old

...but it's good to see that some people can and do it while still enjoying life.

[CountAllVotes]

3. I agree

there is no way I'd care to live to be that old. It might be ok if you are healthy and you have a lot of support behind you, meaning both money and family. You need both of these things if you live to be very old.

It would truly suck to live to be really old and be unhealthy and have no money nor family.

Its one of those things that each person must decide themselves.

In any event, I do wish her well and I hope she does RIP. She will obviously be missed by her family. :)

[Xithras]

5. My great grandmother was active until she was 103.

She lived in her own house, walked every day, read books, and had all of her faculties. She had a great life, and managed to escape the degeneration that usually accompanies extreme age. Then, one day, she just laid down for a nap and didn't wake up.

I only hope that I can be half as lucky.

[CountAllVotes]

6. wow, that is incredible!

I can only hope for the same - to fall asleep one day and simply never wake up. That is how I hope I die, believe me.

:)

[HughMoran]

8. I can only hope I age like that

:D

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

10. Crap, you don't know if you want to reach 57? -nt

[HughMoran]

12. Yep

The deterioration of my knees and other joints is downright frustrating!

[Xithras]

2. Wow. Born in 1895

She was eight years old when the first airplane took to the skies, lived through the Great Depression in her 30's and 40's, and was already 74 when the first humans walked on the moon. It's hard to fathom how much change she saw in her life. Incredible.

[CountAllVotes]

4. she was two years younger than my grandfather

and my grandmother for that matter. I know they lived through a lot and they were basically the last of the Victorians I always thought.

That is a hell of a lot to witness in 114 years no doubt!

:dem:

[yurbud]

9. she had a foot in three centuries

which is three feet.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

26. My grandmother was born in 1895 as well.

Yes, it is hard to imagine all the changes that occurred in her life, isn't it? I doubt that my life will encompass so many dramatic events.

[RaleighNCDUer]

7. Somebody needs to do something about this.

These 'oldest people' are ALWAYS dying off.

This just has to stop.

[Fearless]

11. +1

I suggest creating a panel to oversee the installation of a study group to actively determine the proper course of action so that future panels can enact meaningful changes in this area.


:rofl:

[mahatmakanejeeves]

13. not enough

OSHA needs to look into this. This occupation has a 100% fatality rate.

[Fearless]

24. Oh my! 100%!! Are you sure!?! We may need to involve FEMA too!

[snooper2]

14. Well, as soon as they die they aren't the oldest person anymore..

So even the title of the story is wrong...

"Oldest person in US dies in NH at age 114"

That should start with "Previous Oldest person" :evilgrin:

[No Elephants]

27. True. The headline was enough to depress the hell out of the real oldest person.

[pipoman]

15. The first generation of humans

to light her way without fire, heat her home without fire, cook her meals without fire, enjoy personal transportation without exertion of human or animal, communicate across the street or around the world with the same ease, among many other things which we view as necessities of daily living now. This is the basis for lack of understanding I see everyday. People are so comfortable with our infant 'technological' systems that they fail to realize how many generations of humans before us had none of these conveniences, like 100,000+ years of humanity did things essentially the same way year after year, generation after generation, then suddenly 100-200 or so years ago we started on this journey which has brought us here...it may be more fragile than we realize..

[rasputin1952]

16. Just some history this woman lived through...

Spanish American War
McKinnley Assassination
TR presidency
Automobiles
Airplanes
Jet planes
Rocket ships
Urban and Rural electrification
Urban and Rural telephony
Radio
WWI
The mechanization of farms
Scopes Trial
Women's Suffrage
Great Depression
WWII
Televison
Korean War
Nuclear power
Vietnam
Two wars in the Middle East
JFK Assassination
Man on the Moon

Presidents:
Grover Cleveland
William McKinley
Theodore Roosevelt
William H. Taft
Woodrow Wilson
Warren G. Harding
Calvin Coolidge
Herbert Hoover
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Harry S. Truman
Dwight D. Eisenhower
John F. Kennedy
Lyndon B. Johnson
Richard M. Nixon
Gerald R. Ford
Jimmy Carter
Ronald Reagan
George Bush
Bill Clinton
George W. Bush
Barack Obama

And that just touches the tip of the iceberg...speaking of which, she was around when the Titanic sunk.

Quite the life...RIP Mary Josephine Ray, you've earned it.

[polly7]

17. Aw, she's so cute. RIP Mrs. Ray.

[Mopar151]

18. And got to see the Red Sox win the Series! n/t

[madmax]

19. Hey you guys!

You say you don't want to live that long but, if the Dr. said, sorry kiddo - looks like you are heading for the dirt nap in x (months, days, years) you'd shit a brick. Don't deny it...

[Mari333]

21. i wouldnt. nt

[madmax]

23. Awe geez sweetie

:hug:

[Mike K]

20. I would like to be shot to death -

- in a whorehouse fight or electrocuted by a defective vaporizer. I certainly don't want to hang around so long that I can't even unzip my own fly.

[polly7]

22. Not really funny, but I have an uncle who is 80 and hilarious ....

ie: I took him to the doctor whose nurse asked when his last physical was - he truthfully stated ...... 1945 .......anyway, he told me when I see him going downhill to let him try sky-diving without a parachute. Sad to hear him say that, but a tough farmer all his life, he just can't imagine not being self-sufficient. I've worked in many nursing homes, the first few weeks are really horrible for them, but in many cases they grow to enjoy the company and activities and personal care by others becomes not so important at all. Though there are others who go straight downhill. Hard to get old.

[applegrove]

25. What a cutie.

[No Elephants]

28. Awwww.