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Tilly Oslender

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Tilly Oslender
Tilly Oslender
Oslender on the day before her 111th birthday in 2018.
Birth: 24 March 1907
Kiev, Ukraine
Death: 1 June 2019
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Age: 112 years, 69 days
Country: UkraineUKRCanadaCAN
Unvalidated

Tilly Oslender (24 March 1907 – 1 June 2019) was a Ukrainian-Canadian supercentenarian whose age is currently unvalidated by the Gerontology Research Group (GRG). At the time of her death, she was the third-oldest known living person in Canada, behind Ellen Gibb, and Sarah Patenaude-Bruyere.

Biography

Tilly Oslender was born in Kiev, Russian Empire (now Ukraine) on 24 March 1907 as one of five children born to her parents. She was brought to Canada with her older sister in 1929, when she was 22, by relatives in Toronto who wanted them to have a better life away from the hardships of the Russian Revolution.

She married Jack Oslender in around 1935 and had a daughter, Roslyn, with him. In the years that followed, she worked in a garment factory, earning $3 a week to try and save enough money for the rest of her family to move to Canada. Unfortunately, after she paid an immigration agency, they closed the immigration and Tilly’s relatives couldn't come.

Jack Oslender died in 1990 following a long battle with emphysema. The couple had been married for over 55 years. Around 2000, she went back to Ukraine to visit her relatives for the first time since she'd moved to Canada. She hasn't been since.

In 2004, Tilly and her daughter joined Beth Tzedec Congregation, where she attends weekly bridge games, various programs and High Holiday services. On her 107th birthday in 2014, Tilly’s daughter Roslyn threw her a big party. Tilly’s 108th birthday party in 2015 was a calmer occasion. In August 2016, when she was 109, Tilly attended B'nai Brith Seniors' Program in Toronto. She was the oldest attendee by several years.

Oslender died at the Mt. Sinai Hospital in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, at the age of 112 years, 69 days. She was one of the oldest known living Jews in the world.

References

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