March 10, 2020, marks a special day for Phyllis Ridgway as she turns 113-years old. It’s a birthday that makes her the oldest recorded person in Canada.
Ridgway was born in 1907 in Lincolnshire, England. She later met her husband, Ernie. They were married for 54 years.
When asked for words of wisdom for the younger generation, Ridgway reflected on her life.
“We were happy with the smaller things. We didn’t expect too much that they do today,” she said.
“We were happy with what we had. You know, we never worried about things we couldn’t have and if we wanted something, we used to save.”
After the death of her husband, Phyllis found a great abundance being around her four grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren and a great, great-grandson.
Three of her granddaughters shared never-ending delight for their grandmother.
“The thing I’ve learned most about her is her resilience and her strength. She’s a role model for us,” said Barbara Ridgway.
“Her feistiness,” Diane Strauss continued.
“That’s a good way of putting it. She definitely has her own opinions and views and she sticks to them,” Strauss’s sister, Debbie Grinyer, agreed.
While Phyllis doesn’t remember her late husband’s proposal, she does remember a few things.
“A loaf of bread cost a nickel and a dozen eggs cost about 30 cents. I remember all that,” she said.
Though Phyllis has her own opinion, she also has a small secret that she says helps with her longevity.
“Apple cider vinegar and honey … That’s why I’ve lived so long,” she said.