Elderly People Who Will Inspire You To Change Your Life

In spite of their age, a person can do anything if they decide. It never matters how old someone is if their body and mind are young and healthy. Just check all those elderly people who were doing miracles despite their age.

The Woman Who Holds 2 World Records In Powerlifting

Winifred Pristell (now 78) was nicknamed ‘Heavy Metal‘  for being a competitive weightlifter with two world records. She started sports seriously in her late 40’s because she was overweight. When she turned 60, she started competing in powerlifting. Eight years later, she set world records in the bench press at 176.2 pounds and 270 pounds in the deadlift. Amazing, right?

Olive Riley, The World’s Oldest Blogger

Olive Riley began her blog The Life of Riley in February 2007 when she was 107 years of age. Sadly the Australian died at the age of 108, just two weeks after publishing her last post in which she complained of a heavy cough. This final post was published on 26 June 2008 from a nursing home in Woy Woy, New South Wales. She made over 70 posts in total, together with several videos on YouTube.

The World’s Oldest Vlogger – Ruth Hamilton

Ruth Hamilton from Orlando, USA was making videos for the site GrowingBolder.com and she was doing it until her death at 109 years of age. Bill Shafer, the site’s executive vice president, was helping and encouraging her. This is what he said about this woman:

It’s not often you can say a 109 year old left this earth too soon, it’s true with Ruth. She was sharp, quick-witted and simply charming. Things changed overnight. She awoke with a bad headache. She hurt to the touch. She didn’t want to get out of bed. This went on for nearly two weeks. It was very different from her usual routine.

Most mornings she was early to rise. She loved to gaze out her bedroom window, watch the sun come up and trace the clouds that would float across the skies of a new day. To Ruth, each day was a wonder to behold. Her curiosity would shine as bright as the morning sky.

The First Woman To Swim The Atlantic

Jennifer Figge is an American athlete from Colorado who, at the age of 56, left the Cape Verde Islands off Africa’s western coast. She battled the waves and strong winds and swam across the Atlantic Ocean. The plan was to swim to the Bahamas, but weather forced her to move 1,000 miles (1,610 km) off course to Trinidad. In an interview with the Associated Press, Figge stated she never actually intended to swim the whole Atlantic.

Brownie Mary Was A Medical Cannabis Activist

Mary Jane Rathbun was an American hospital volunteer internationally known as a medical cannabis activist. Brownie Mary, as her nickname suggests, was famous for baking and distributing brownies. She was volunteering in the AIDS ward of San Francisco General Hospital. Mary was advocating the legalization of cannabis for the use of the people with AIDS, cancer, glaucoma, and other diseases. She died of a heart attack at a Laguna Honda nursing home for the poor people when she was 77. She used to say:

“My kids [people with AIDS and cancer] need this and I’m ready to go to jail for my principles… I’m not going to cut any deals with them. If I go to jail, I go to jail.”

In San Francisco, August 25 was declared “Brownie Mary Day” in her honor.

The Oldest Employee & Marathon Runner From The UK – Buster Martin

Pierre Jean Buster Martin died back in 2011, but he claimed to have been the United Kingdom’s oldest employee at the age of 102. He worked for a well-known plumbing company as a van cleaner and even refused to take a day off for his 100th birthday.

The man also used to be a marathon runner, but the Guinness World Records organization didn’t even consider him for the record because he had never provided proof of his age.

The Oldest Man To Have A Bar Mitzvah – Bernie Marks

A bar mitzvah is a Jewish ceremony that marks the symbolic passage to manhood. Bernie Marks was a Holocaust survivor who had his bar mitzvah when he was 76. As a child, he lived in a Polish ghetto under Nazi rule. His family was sent to Auschwitz where he lost his mother and brother. Together with his father, Marks was sent to a labor camp. Afterward, they were liberated by US forces.

The Man Who Worked At The Same Company For 72 Years & Only Took 1 Day Off

Arthur Winston was a Los Angeles Metro employee for 72 years, but he died at the age of 100 in 2006. This man was never late for work and took only one day off during his entire career. That day was to attend his wife’s funeral. He was honored as the “Employee of the Century“.

The World’s Oldest Escapologist – The Great Omani

Ron Cunningham was the real name of the Great Omani, who died in 2007 at the age of 92. He was an escapologist and a stuntman who was known for eating light bulbs and removing a straitjacket while hanging upside down with his trousers on fire.

He wrote a short poem, which was read at his funeral:

“They lay the Great Omani in his box / They have done it up with nails not locks / But at his funeral do not despair / Chances are he won’t be there.”