Vice-doyenne of the world passes away at 115
The Gerontology Research Group is saddened to relay the news of the passing of the second oldest living person in the world; Marie-Rose Tessier of France. Marie-Rose Bousseau was born on 21 May 1910 in Beaurepaire, Vendee, Pays de la Loire, France. On November 14 1927 she married Auguste Tessier but was later widowed in 1944. The Gerontology Research Group members, Mon. Sylvain Grosgeorge and Dr. Wacław Jan Kroczek visited Mrs. Tessier before her 115th birthday in March 2025. The visit was very inspirational and enriched the global community in wisdom on how to maintain healthy senility and exceptional longevity. Marie-Rose enjoyed good health, despite living through both World Wars,…
Hikaru Katō of Kumamoto Prefecure, 111, officially became the oldest living man in Japan
The Gerontology Research Group is pleased to announced that Mr. Hikaru Katō (加藤光) of Kumamoto Prefecture, 111, has officially became the oldest living man in Japan following the death of Kiyotaka Mizuno of Shizuoka Prefecture on 8 February 2026. Hikaru Katō was born on 2 May 1914 (Taishō 3), in Yamaga City, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. He joined the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and was drafted at the age of 24. He was initially sent to Taiwan. He then landed in the Philippines, where he encountered American troops and was injured in his right leg. He was stationed on the Indonesian island of Timor, where Japan was defeated. After returning to Japan, he continued…
Kiyotaka Mizuno, the oldest living man in Japan, dies at 111
The Gerontology Research Group (GRG) is sadden to reported that Mr. Kiyotaka Mizuno (水野清隆), the oldest living man in Japan, sadly passed away of natural causes in Iwata, Shizuoka on 8 February 2026 at the final age of 111 years and 331 days. He’s also the oldest living person in Shizuoka Prefecture. Kiyotaka Mizuno was born in Iwata, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan on 14 March 1914 (Taishō 3). In his youth, he served as a guard for the Emperor and served during the February 26th Incident in 1936 (Shōwa 11) and World War II. After the war, he worked as a farmer, producing shrimp potatoes, green onions, and white leeks until…
Kyōsen Kineya, the oldest Nagauta shamisen master ever, dies at 111
The Gerontology Research Group (GRG) is sadden to reported that Mrs. Kyōsen Kineya [杵屋響泉, real nameSachiko Kimura (木村さち子)], the oldest Nagauta shamisen master ever, sadly passed away due to old age in Odawara City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan on 4 January 2026 at the final age of 111 years and 81 days. Kyōsen Kineya was born in Tsukiji, Tokyo Prefecture, Japan, on 15 November 1914 (Taishō 3). Her father passed away in 1917. In 1923, the family moved to Kanagawa Prefecture, where she remained. She married in 1947 and went on to have two daughters [including her second-daughter Rokukyō Kineya (杵屋六響), who was a Nagauta singer]. In 1963, she took the stage name Kyōsen Kineya (杵屋響泉) and continued to…
Louise Jean Signore (1912-2026)
The Gerontology Research Group is saddened to relay news that Louise Jean Signore of New York, USA, passed away yesterday, January 27 2026, at the remarkable age of 113 years, 180 days. Louise was born in Harlem, New York City, on July 31 1912, moving to the Bronx at the age of 12. She later briefly married, but this was short lived and she never married again. Louise spent thirty-nine years working for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, being retired since 1977. She was a resilient individual, surviving a mugging at age 103, a fall at 109 followed by hip surgery and two global pandemics. The GRG extends its condolences to…