Ora Holland
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| Ora Holland at her 112th birthday party. |
Ora
celebrated her 100th
birthday by buying a new car which she used to drive herself to the
store and to church each week until age 108.
“A policeman
gave me a speeding ticket last year and I decided it was time for me
to stop driving. Besides, I can't see like I used to.”
At
the time of this interview, Ora was 108 years old. Strong
physically, mentally and fiercely independent, she was still living
by herself in her own home, doing her own cooking, cleaning and even
mowing the lawn! “I
plan on doing for myself as long as the Lord will let me.”
You
were a single mother and business owner with an 8th
grade education. How did you learn to manage your money?
Well,
I just learned, just like you learn. Somebody didn't poke
it down you did they? You learn it by doing it. That's how everybody
learns. When I left my husband, I got out without anything. That was
way back when salaries wasn't much and we didn't have much either. My
parents never helped me with a dime, but I was used to hard work; I
was raised on a farm. So I went and found a job in the shipyards and
finally started making some money. It wasn't much, but it was enough
to get by. Then
once you get it, just don't spend it. You best start saving it. You
know, when salaries were good, people thought their money was going
to last forever. They spent it instead of putting it in the bank and
saving it for a rainy day. That's why so many people today are in
trouble and wondering if they're going to lose their homes, because
they didn't save their money.
I've
got a couple of grandchildren that's doing the same thing and I'm
having to help them. My granddaughter and her husband own three
cars. That's not necessary....not necessary at all. Then my
grandson bought a new car and then bought this great big television.
They need that like I need a hole in the head! They need to learn to
save their money instead of just blowing it on everything that they
see and want. They don't need all of those things.
What
are they going to have in the future? They're going to be in trouble
need help and Grandma's going to be gone. You've got to learn to
save money 'cause you never know what's going to happen or when you
might need it. Trust me, I know!
After 108 years of
living, what advice can you give me about making my life count?
Help
others. That's what our Bible says, help others. Everybody needs a
little help every now and then. It doesn't necessarily have to be
money. During the depression, some folks needed food and clothing and
such. Sometimes people just need someone to talk to.
I've
been helping for a good many years. I guess is what I'm here for. We
should all be willing help each other. That's what God says for us to
do. If you want to live a good life, go find somebody to help.
You
mentioned God. Do you believe in God?
I
sure do. I know
there's a God and Jesus is His son. He means everything to me. He's
taken care of me my whole life. I guess when I was young I didn't
think too much about God, not like I do today. I depend on Him. I'll
tell you something, if you don't believe in God and believe that
Jesus is His son, there's no use you do anything else. That is a
must, to believe in God and Jesus, because if you don't, nothing else
matters.
I
don't think I've made it all these years by myself. I think He's
there taking care of me.
I think that as long as we do what He says for us to do, that He's
going to watch out for us and take care of us until He's ready to
take us home. He says none of us are perfect. I try to be honest
with everybody but I know I haven't been perfect (laughs),
but
He loves me anyway.
God's
been helpful to me my whole life. He's helpful to everybody.... if
they want
help.
If
you believe in God, then do you ever think about heaven?
Sure
I think about it. Heaven's on my mind a lot of times. I'm
not afraid of the hereafter, but just going through that death stage
kind of worries me. I can't say that I'm really afraid of it, I just
kind of dread going through the misery and all that stuff, but God
will take care of me; He always has. One things for certain; we all
die. There's no gettin' around it.
It
might be a long time from now and it might be a short time. We just
don't know....but you'd better be ready.
Recently
(May, 2013), I was able to go visit Ora Holland again at the
retirement center where she now lives. She is now 113 years old and
is currently the 14th
oldest living person in the world, and the 9th
oldest living American. “I can't be that old.....I don't feel that
old.” “How old do you feel”,
I ask. She replied “I only feel about 105!”
Her daughter
Ruth is now gone, along with the rest of her family. Her grandson
looks after her now and visits often, but it is obvious that she
longs for the old days. “I'm the only one left,” she states. It
is sad to see her lonely, living in a place she'd rather not be. At
113, she still gets around be herself, but like her eyesight, her
memory is fading. “I can't remember things like I used to,” she
says, struggling to recall her husband's name.
It
is hard to grasp the concept of living for 113 years. To put it in
perspective, she has been alive for almost 1 million hours. She will
reach that milestone January 21, 2015 which will make
her one of the top 100 verified oldest of the 108 billion people born
over the course of human history.1
She was born before the radio
was invented, before plastic was invented, before Henry Ford produced
the first car, before the Wright brothers flew the first airplane at
Kittyhawk. She was a teenager when World War I broke out. The mode
of transportation in her lifetime has gone from a horse and buggy to
supersonic jets and space shuttles. That's a lot of changes in 113
years. It makes you wonder about the changes we'll see in our
lifetimes.
Ora
Holland passed away February 11, 2015 at the age of 114 years and 49
days. At the time of her death, she was the ninth oldest living
American, and at the 15th
oldest person in the world.2
You can learn more about Ora Holland at the links below. God bless
you Ora, you were truly one of a kind.
Ora Holland and her daughter
2Gerontology
Research Group
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