The oldest person in America, Bessie Hendricks of Iowa, who lived through the roaring ‘20s, two Great World Wars, the launch of the Internet and then the pandemic, has passed away at the age of 115 on January 3. When she turned 112, she told a reporter than the secret to her longevity was hard work, staying away from doctors and making sure you eat sweets. Making it to Centenarian status (100+ years old) is rare. According to the United Nations, there were over 97K Centenarians in the U.S. in 2021, almost double the number there were in 2010. In 1950, there were only 2,300.
