America’s oldest person Bessie Hendricks dies at 115
Ryan King
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Bessie Hendricks, the oldest person in the United States, died at the age of 115 in an Iowa nursing home.
Born on Nov. 7, 1907, Hendricks became the oldest American in January 2022 and was the matriarch of a massive family of five children, nine grandchildren, 28 great-grandchildren, and 42 great-great-grandchildren.
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Hendricks was a school teacher and had been residing at Shady Oaks Care Center in Lake City, Iowa. She was a member of a rare group of supercentenarians — individuals 110 years old or older. Roughly 300 supercentenarians were identified in the U.S. census back in 2010.
She married Paul Hendricks in the 1930s. He later passed on their 65th wedding anniversary. Her exceptionally long life spanned 21 U.S. presidents, two world wars, the pandemic of 1918, the Great Depression, the COVID-19 pandemic, the birth of the internet, and a trove of other historical events.
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In 2018, she received recognition from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for working with the department for a whopping 80 years. She credited hard work for her longevity, and she was an avid crocheter and Iowa Hawkeye fan, per the Hill.
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Tributes for Hendricks began pouring in on her Facebook fan page, with users giving their condolences to her family.
“Rest in Peace Bessie Hendricks. My deepest condolences and sympathy to all her loved ones. She will be missed by all of us,” one user wrote.
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With Hendricks’s passing, the mantle of oldest American now reportedly gets passed to Edie Ceccarelli of California, who will turn 115 years old on Feb. 5. Currently, the oldest verified person in the world is French-born Lucile Randon at 118 years old, according to Guinness Book of World Records.
Funeral proceedings for Hendricks are set to be livestreamed and will take place at Lampe and Powers Funeral Home in Lake City at 2:30 p.m. on Jan. 7. She died Tuesday, according to officials.