U.S. to claim world’s oldest person January 4, 2009

Women generally live longer than men. That we generally know (yet seldom admit).

Just last week, America’s oldest man passed away at 112 years old. But a 114-year-old woman is slated to become the oldest person in the world.

Gertrude Baines from California said she led the life God wanted, which has contributed to her life’s longevity.

Baines takes the title from Portugal’s Maria de Jesus, who held the title for just more than a month. Prior to that, the record was back in the United States with Indiana’s Edna Parker, who had the title for more than a year.

It just so happens that Parker is a local Philadelphia celebrity. She was featured in the very popular Cut to the Chase column, “Notable deaths of 2007: gone but not forgotten.”

Small world, eh?