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Senhouse died “peacefully in her sleep” on Saturday, said
Stephanie Hawkinson, public information officer for the town of
Wellesley, Massachusetts, where Senhouse had lived for the last
four decades.
“She never missed an opportunity to learn more, do more,
experience more,” said Hawkinson, who met Senhouse on her 108th
birthday and had celebrated with her every year since.
Born Feb. 28, 1911, in Piedmont, West Virginia, Senhouse was
sent to live with an aunt in Woburn, Massachusetts, at age 16
and graduated from Woburn High School. According to the Boston
Globe, she dreamed of becoming a nurse but was turned away by a
nursing school after it had met its quota of two Black students
in 1931.
She later worked as a housekeeper for several families and
founded the Boston Clique Club, which raised money to improve
educational opportunities for Black students in Boston.
At age 105, she enrolled in the New England Centenarian Study,
which seeks to determine how people like her age so slowly while
delaying or escaping aging-related disease. She also bequeathed
her brain to researchers, Hawkinson said.
According to the Gerontology Research Group, the oldest person
in the United States is Naomi Whitehead, 114, who lives in
Greenville, Pennsylvania.
Hawkinson said Senhouse often said the secret to her longevity
was never having children, though she enjoyed children and
caring for them. She surrounded herself with a community of
relatives, friends and members of her church, and was always up
for an adventure, Hawkinson said.
“She was truly an inspiration to so many in our community,” she
said.
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