A Houston, Texas, woman turned 115 last month and is now the oldest living person in the United States.
“She would tell you it was the grace of God,” her granddaughter Ethel Harrison, 69, also of Houston, told Fox News Digital.
“That’s why she lived so long. She was very spiritual.”
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Elizabeth Frances was the second-oldest person in the United States until the death on February 22 of former record holder Eddie Ceccarelli, 116, of Mendocino County, California.
Elizabeth Francis, 115, from Houston, Texas, is currently the oldest person in the United States and the fourth oldest person on record in the world. (played by Ethel Harrison)
Francis is also the fourth-oldest person in the world, according to the Gerontology Research Group (GRT). study.
“Supercentenarians” are people whose life span exceeds 110 years. While more than 97,000 people in the United States are classified as centenarians, the number of supercentenarians is much smaller, according to the World Economic Forum, a Swiss nonprofit research organization.
Frances lives at the home with her 95-year-old daughter, Dorothy Williams.
The two had multiple caregivers, including Harrison.
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Harrison said Frances always believed in family loyalty and taking care of his family.
Ben Myers (pictured far right) of LongeviQuest, a global research organization that tracks human lifespan, gathers with the family of Elizabeth Frances to present her with the award for America’s Oldest American (played by Ethel Harrison)
“She was a caregiver herself,” Harrison said.
“She actually took care of her father until he died at age 99. And then she had a sister who lived with her. She always said, ‘Treat people the way you want people to treat you.'” That’s her motto , we have always used this as our guideline.
Ben Meyers is the CEO of LongeviQuest, a global research organization that tracks and studies human lifespan.
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“There’s been a lot of interest recently in longevity and aging,” Meyers said.
Ben Meyers, chief executive of LongeviQuest, a global research organization that tracks and studies human lifespan, said many of the people he works with over 100 have a strong sense of faith. (Ben Meyers)
“How to take care of people and live a good, fulfilling life. There really are no better role models than supercentenarians. They’re very interesting – their history, their philosophy,” he added.
“Some people are interested in knowing the secret to longevity…trying to come up with formulas. But we know that the only people who age successfully to the greatest extent are supercentenarians. We call them the aging Olympians. Francis is a good example example of.
Earlier this year, Meyers visited Frances and her family and presented her with an award recognizing her as the oldest living American in the United States
“More than almost anyone I’ve ever met, she was a role model for family and community,” he said.
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“She lives at home, she’s the oldest person in the world who lives at home. It’s really remarkable. And she builds community through the church. So. [are] A truly active family and community. It’s hard for people to reach that age in isolation,” Meyers added.
Francis celebrated his 115th birthday last month and is now officially the oldest living person in the United States. (played by Ethel Harrison)
Born in Louisiana on July 25, 1909, Francis has lived through two world wars and now two global pandemics.
She never drove, but in the 1970s and 1980s she worked outside the home, running a coffee shop at a Houston television station.
Frances has three grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren.
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Harrison said her grandmother’s main focus has always been her family and her faith.
“If we had a party, whether it was a reunion or a graduation, she was always there,” Harrison said.
Last year Frances and her family celebrated her 114th birthday. (played by Ethel Harrison)
Frances attended only one church, Good Hope Missionary Baptist Church, founded in 1872, of which she is still a member.
“Pastor Cofield and members still come to the home,” Harrison said.
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Frances attributes her longevity to her faith and still watches her church on television since she can’t attend in person. (played by Ethel Harrison)
“They come to visit and bring communion,” Harrison said. “Even though she couldn’t go to church, she was still an active member. We watched on TV.”
Meyers said the supercentenarians he interviewed all had a strong sense of faith.
“Ms. Frances attributes her longevity 100 percent to God,” Meyers said.
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Frances has three grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren, all of whom attended her 114th birthday celebrations last year. (played by Ethel Harrison)
Meyer said another characteristic of Francis was “complete perseverance.”
“Don’t allow yourself to be distracted by things you have no control over,” he said.
“She’s really focused on her world. I asked her what she’s been through and her answer was pretty boring. Everything, good or bad, seems to slip off her sleeve because she’s so focused every day to her world.
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Harrison said that while Francis was no longer a talkative person, an old hymn certainly caught her grandmother’s attention and she loved singing along.
According to reports, Francis is just one of 68 115-year-olds and one of the oldest Americans in history at 25 years old. (played by Ethel Harrison)
Frances has always loved gardening and sharing vegetables with others.
“She believed in cooking healthy food and working hard – ‘Just work hard,” she said. This is what we do.
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Francis is one of 68 people known to have lived to be 115, and one of the 25 oldest people in U.S. history, according to LongeviQuest.
Last year, when asked what she attributed her longevity to, Frances told Fox News Digital: “It’s just God working with me to keep me here.”
