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Pauline Cook

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Pauline Cook
Pauline Cook
Cook on her 110th birthday in 2023
Birth: 30 March 1913
Illinois, USA
Death: 31 March 2025
Roanoke, Virginia, USA
Age: 112 years, 1 day
Country: United StatesUSA
Validated

Pauline Clarice Cook (née Bolt; 30 March 1913 – 31 March 2025) was an American supercentenarian whose age is validated by the Gerontology Research Group (GRG).

Biography[]

Early Life[]

Cook was born as Pauline Clarice Bolt in Illinois on 30 March 1913. She was the younger of two daughters born to Virgil Allnutt Bolt and Edna Lenore Hunter, who lived to be 85 and 91 respectively. Her elder sister, Lucille, died in 1955 at the age of 52.

The family moved to Lewiston, Idaho by 1920, and by 1930, Cook was living with her parents in Whittier, California, graduating from college there in 1934. One of her high school and college classmates was future American president Richard Nixon. On 15 February 1946, at the age of 32, she married Colorado native Dr. Wells Clifford Cook, who was ten years her senior. The couple had no children of their own, but Cook had three stepchildren – Beverly, Dennis, and John, from her husband's previous marriage.

Cook was employed as a social worker for the Los Angeles Board of Education. She also worked as a clerical assistant for Richard Nixon. She was widowed in 1979.

Later Life[]

After her husband's death, Cook moved to Henderson, Nevada, eventually moving into a nursing home there. On her 109th birthday in 2022, she reported that her favorite food was meat. She also stated that the secret to her longevity was, "…try and live it up, and don't get too serious about stuff. Just enjoy your life, you only get one, so eat your cake!"

At the age of 109, Cook relocated from Henderson, Nevada to an assisted living facility in Roanoke, Virginia, where she still resides as of 2023.

Pauline Cook died in Roanoke, Virginia, USA on 31 March 2025 at the age of 112 years, 1 day.

Recognition[]

Cook was first noted for her longevity on her 109th birthday in 2022, when 8 News Now ran a story on the occasion. She was also congratulated by the Whittier College Alumni Association. For her 110th birthday in 2023, her nursing home praised her longevity on their Facebook page.

Gallery[]

References[]

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