In this May 22, 2014 file photo, Jeralean Talley poses for a photo in Inkster, Mich. The 115-year-old Detroit-area woman, born on May 23, 1899, tops a list maintained by the Los Angeles-based Gerontology Research Group which tracks the world’s longest-living people. Gertrude Weaver, a 116-year-old Arkansas woman who was the oldest documented person for a few days, died on Monday, April 6, 2015. (AP Photo/Detroit Free Press, Elisha Anderson)
Jeralean Talley of Inkster, Mich., is currently the oldest person in the world at 115 years old, according to the Los Angeles-based Gerontology Research Group.
“I feel good,” Talley told TIME. “I don’t feel sick. I’m still trying to do the right thing is all.”
Talley became the oldest person after the death of 117-year-old Japanese woman Misao Okawa on April 1. Gertrude Weaver of Camden, Ark., then became the world’s oldest living person at 116 years old, but she too passed away April 6 at the Silver Oaks Health and Rehabilitation Center due to pneumonia.
Talley now has the title of oldest person in the world and turns 116 on May 23. When asked about the secret to her longevity, Talley told the Battle Creek Inquirer, “It’s coming from above. That’s the best advice I can give you. It’s not in my hands or your hands.”
Talley was born May 23, 1899, in Montrose, Ga., and moved to Michigan in 1935.
Michael Kinloch, 56, GM engineer and longtime family friend of Talley, told CBS Detroit, “It’s unfortunate that other people passed away, but this has certainly elevated her. She’s feeling no pain. She just can’t get around like she used to.”
Talley’s husband passed away in 1988 and the centenarian now lives with her daughter Thelma Holloway, 77.