The world’s oldest recognized individual, French nun Sister André, has died on the age of 118, her spokesperson confirmed to AFP Tuesday.
Sister André, whose actual identify is Lucile Randon, died in her sleep in Toulon, France, in line with David Tavella with the Sainte-Catherine Laboure nursing house.
“There is great sadness, but…it was her desire to join her beloved brother,” Tavella instructed AFP. “For her, it’s a liberation.”
Sister André, born on Feb. 11, 1904, was believed to be the oldest residing individual on this planet, in line with Guinness World Records, which acknowledged her standing in April 2022 after the dying of 119-year-old Kane Tanaka of Japan.
Daniel Cole / AP
The record-keeping group introduced the news as nicely, saying it was “saddened” to listen to concerning the nun’s passing.
“How incredible that we shared the same air as someone who was born just a couple of months after the Wright Brothers’ first powered flight – and a few months before the New York subway system opened,” mentioned Craig Glenday, editor-in-chief for Guinness World Records, in an announcement.
Glenday added that Sister André was the “fourth oldest person ever authenticated” by Guinness.
Sister André held data for “oldest nun living” and the “oldest COVID-19 survivor,” per Guinness, in addition to the second-oldest French individual and the second-oldest European ever recorded. She was simply three years away from incomes the file of oldest individual ever, which is held by France’s Jeanne Louise Calment, who lived till 122, Guinness mentioned.
Hubert Franco, the mayor of Toulon, additionally confirmed Sister André’s dying in assertion through which he shared about his common visits with the her. Franco mentioned that Sister André was acknowledged as an honorary citizen of Toulon 4 years in the past, and had been on the Sainte-Catherine Laboure nursing house since 2009.
Before dedicating a lot of her life to her spiritual service, Sister André spent practically three a long time working with orphans and the aged, Guinness mentioned. She additionally lived by way of the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918.
Sister André’s life spanned 18 French presidencies and 10 completely different Popes.