OLDEST AMERICAN MS. ADELE CELEBRATES 114 YEARS
Adele
Dunlap of Pittstown, New Jersey resides at the Country Arch Care Center where
she celebrated her 114th. Dunlap, who has been a resident of New Jersey her
entire life, became the oldest living American approximately six months ago.
Adele Dunlap, who assumed the title
of oldest American five months ago, marked her 114th birthday Monday with
a balloon bouquet and a "Happy Birthday" serenade from fellow
residents of the Hunterdon
County care center where she has lived since age 99.
But Dunlap made clear
through her facial expressions and her answers to questions that she
didn't appreciate the fuss. Asked what she was thankful for, Dunlap said,
"Gee, how should I know?" And asked what her birthday wish was, she
responded, "I've never thought of such a thing. I don't wish for
anything."
She also declared
that it was her 105th birthday. It's her habit to shave about a decade off
her age, according to nursing home staff and her family.
Dunlap was born in Newark on Dec. 12, 1902. Her birth date has
been validated by the Gerontology Research Group, which
tracks "supercentenarians," or people older than 110. Among the
documents attesting to her astonishing age is her diploma from South Side
High School in Newark. It is dated June 27, 1921 — 95 1/2 years ago.
There are believed to be several hundred supercentenarians
in the world. In addition to being the oldest American, Dunlap is the world's
ninth-oldest person. The oldest, according to the Gerontology Research
Group database, is an Italian woman, Emma Morano-Martinuzzi, who
marked her 117th birthday on Nov. 29. The next-oldest American is Meta Dishman
of Virginia. She turned 113 on June 1. Of the world's 46 oldest people in the
Gerontology Research Group's database, 44 are women.
Dunlap moved up to oldest American when Goldie Michelson of
Worcester, Mass., died on July 8, one month shy of her 114th birthday. She
said at the time that being the oldest American didn't make her feel any
different.
On Monday morning at the Country Arch Care Center in
Pittstown, Dunlap sat in a wheelchair with a blanket from the Tewksbury
Women's Club over her lap and moccasins on her feet. She had her usual oatmeal
for breakfast and then attended the "coffee club" in the dining room,
where staffers and a dozen other residents sang "Happy Birthday" to
her. That was the extent of the celebration. Country Arch recognizes birthdays
en masse, and the 15 residents with December birthdays were feted last
Wednesday.
The center has
111 residents, including five centenarians. The other four are more than a
decade younger than Dunlap.
"Ms. Adele has
requested that the celebrations become fewer because she says we are all
important, and that speaks volumes about who she is," said Susan Dempster,
Country Arch's marketing director. READ MORE
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