The world’s second oldest person has survived the coronavirus — just in time for her 117th birthday.
The New York Times reports that Sister André, a Catholic nun born Lucille Randon in 1904, was diagnosed with COVID-19 in mid January.
She showed no symptoms other than feeling “off color” and sleeping an unusual amount, a spokesman for her nursing home in Toulon, France, told the Times.
André was isolated for weeks but remained largely asymptomatic, as many COVID patients do. She even elected to forgo her vaccine, according to the newspaper, telling Tavella that “I’m not afraid of COVID, because I’m not afraid of dying, so give my vaccine doses to those who need them.”
“She’s recovered, along with all the residents here,” Tavella told the Times. “She is calm, very radiant and she is quite looking forward to celebrating her 117th birthday.”
To commemorate her birthday and good health, the nursing home threw her a feast fit for royalty — or, at least, supercentenarians who have survived multiple pandemics and world wars.
According to the Times, the menu included port wine paired with foie gras with hot figs, followed by roasted capon and a two-cheese platter with Roquefort and goat cheese. She finished it off with her favorite dessert: Baked Alaska and a glass of champagne.
“All of it washed down with red wine, because she drinks red wine,” Tavella told the Times. “It’s one of her secrets of longevity.”
Maybe we should all take a page out of Sister André’s book and toast to her good health.