Sister Andre celebrated her birthday in a retirement home in the southern French city of Toulon, talking to her family via video call in the morning, David Tavella, head of communications at the home, said.
Born in the southern French town of Ales on Februray 11, 1904 as Lucile Randon, Sister Andre is listed as the second-oldest woman alive by the Gerentology Research Group, and the oldest in Europe.
She currently only comes second after Kane Tanaka from Japan, who is 118 years old.
Sister Andre, who has survived two world wars and the outbreak of the Spanish Flu in 1918, was tested positive for the coronavirus in January. However, she didn’t have many symptoms, Tavella said, adding that there had been a large outbreak in the retirement home that claimed the lives of about 10 residents.
“I was very, very tired for some time,” Sister Andre told French broadcaster BFM TV, adding however that she hadn’t been afraid of dying. The nun, who uses a wheelchair and has had trouble with her eyes for several years, was in good health on the morning of her birthday,Tavella said.
Sister Andre worked as a private tutor in her youth and only joined a religious community in her early 40s. She is an honorary citizen of the city of Toulon, where she has lived in the retirement home for several years.
The chief of the World Health Organization’s European office, Hans Kluge, congratulated Sister Andre on Thursday, calling her a “Covid-19 survivor” during a press conference in Copenhagen.
During her illness, she had been more concerned for her fellow residents than for her own life, he said. — dpa
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