Susannah Mushatt Jones, World’s Oldest Person, Turns 116

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Susannah Mushatt Jones is 116 years old. (Photo: Guinness World Records/AFP)

Happy birthday, Susannah!

Susannah Mushatt Jones of Brooklyn, New York, who is also the world’s oldest person, turns 116 today (July 6). She was named the world’s oldest person by Guinness World Records on July 3, when she was 115 years and 363 days old.

What does she owe her longevity to?

“Sleep!” she told the New York Daily News.

On top of getting proper shut-eye, Jones’ niece Lois Judge says she her long life is also due to not drinking, smoking, or partying, NBC New York reports.

Jones will celebrate with not one, but two parties — one with her family on Monday, and then a larger celebration with her community, friends, and local officials in Brooklyn on Tuesday. The daughter of Alabama sharecroppers, she has outlived all of her 10 siblings, according to NBC New York. She now has over 100 nieces and nephews.

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Susannah Mushatt Jones, right, is embraced by her niece Lois Judge in her room at the Vandalia Avenue Houses, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. (Photo: AP/Richard Drew) )

Although her achievement of longevity is impressive in itself, her niece Lavilla Mushatt Watson published a biography last year, titled Susannah Our Incredible 114-Year-Old Aunt, which outlines her other lifelong accomplishments, including working as an adjunct professor in social work at Adelphi and Columbia universities.

Prior to Susannah Jones, the world’s oldest person was Jeralean Talley, another American woman who passed away at 116 years in Michigan.

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