A North York resident who just turned 112 years old today has a neat secret to how she's been able to stay alive this long.
"Just keep on breathing," Helen McKinnon Doan told CP24 who visited her on her birthday.
The Toronto news outlet reports that Doan was born on Sept. 18, 1911, in Temiskaming Mine before moving to Toronto with her family 12 years later.
In her time in Toronto, she married her late husband in 1935 and had to children. Today, Doan has five grandchildren, six great-grandchildren, and two great-great-grandchildren.
“(Mum) is known, loved and respected for her keen intelligence, sharp wit, contagious laughter, knowledge, genuine kindness, words of wisdom, magical stories and her delightful storytelling,” her daughter explained to CP24 in an email. “As she approaches 112, anyone who knows or meets Helen Doan is struck by her beauty, her gentleness of character, her interest in life, her loving heart, her concern and caring of others, sense of humour, humility, and her dignity and charm.”
Doan's daughter, Helen Doan, said her mother had emphasized the importance of education and encouraged the family to continue their studies.
“Mom and dad both always promoted education,” the younger Helen Doan said.
Doan also received birthday wishes from King Charles and Queen Camilla, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow, among others, according to Doan's family.
Last year, another centenarian from Brazil had set the Guinness World Record for the longest tenure at the same company, for which he had been working for 84 years.
