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NC Woman Turning 105 Says Faith and Laughter are Secrets to a Long Life

Chloa may tell you her vision, hearing, and her ability to smell "are gone," but her humor is still as sharp as ever.

IREDELL COUNTY, N.C. -- The balloons are still flying high after Chloa Willis' 105th birthday party.

Her favorite part?

"Being by myself," replied the lifelong Statesville resident with a chuckle. "I guess, that's all I remember."

While independence doesn't always come with age, autonomy does and Chloa is perfectly capable of speaking her mind.

"I can't see and I can't hear and I can't smell so my senses are gone," she said.

While they might not be as sharp as they were a few decades ago, Mrs. Willis' sense of humor has taken no hits. She is still good for plenty of laughs.

"Well I guess so," she said. "Things are still funny for me!"

Laughter is one of her secrets to survival. Chloa is willing to share more but to really understand what it's like to be 105-years-old, we have to turn back the clock to August the 6, 1913, the day she was born.

That was 56 days before Ford introduced the Model T, the first affordable vehicle.

"When we got our first car, we didn't know how to act," she said.

She has a great memory but living without air conditioning isn't one of her fondest.

"It was awful," Chloa said.

Through the hot summers and cold winters, Chloa has always kept up. Competition is another one of her secrets to survival.

"I was on the baseball team at Scotts High school where I graduated," she said.

Chloa was a trendsetter being one of two girls on the team. She said shorts weren't around so they played America's Pastime in skirts.

"Man when I hit that ball, it would go but I didn't hit it very often," she said with a smile.

Chloa also loves the Atlanta Braves.

"John Smoltz is my favorite," she added.

More than a shortstop and baseball lover, Chloa was also a wife and a mother. She's outlived her husband and two children.

"Nancy was my right hand and Carol was so good to me," she said of her late son and daughter.

She is far from being alone, even after outliving so many of her friends, she has grandchildren and a spiritual community to rely on.

"My church has been awful good to me," she said.

Her faith has kept her going for 105 years, which leads us to two of her biggest keys to living a long, happy life.

"Loving God and hard work," she said.

The game-show loving grandma affectionately known as 'Nanny' isn't able to make it to church often but she still prays at night and tops it off with more than an amen.

"Three big swallows of wine and then I go to bed," she said.

She's lived through everything the last century has brought and after sharing her secrets, she hopes more will be like her and live a healthy life past triple digits.


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