Hisako Shiroishi (Japanese: 白石久子), the oldest living person in Japan’s Saitama Prefecture and the third-oldest in the country, passed away on August 26th at the age of 114 years, 99 days. According to her nursing home, which informed us of her passing, she passed away peacefully of natural causes.
Mrs. Shiroishi was born in the village of Takezawa (now part of Ogawa Town), Saitama Prefecture, Japan, on 19 May 1910, as the second of seven siblings. She lived through the Great Kantō Earthquake on September 1, 1923, when she was 13 years old. After completing compulsory education, she helped with housework and worked on the family farm. In her late 20s, she married a slightly younger farmer from a neighboring town. They were blessed with four children.
After losing her husband to illness, she continued farming while raising her four children on her own. In her 40s, she had a successful surgery to remove the cancer. Until her 80s, she participated in local gateball, and until her mid-90s, she enjoyed farm work and gardening. She lived with her family at home without nursing care services until she was 105. Until she was about 108 years old, she made it a point to walk 100 meters every day and worked diligently to maintain her mobility.
On 10 June 2023, at the age of 113 years, 22 days, she surpassed the final age of Tane Shimada (1903–2016), becoming the oldest person to ever live in Saitama Prefecture.
At the time of her passing, she was the seventh-oldest living person, and the third-oldest in Japan (after Tomiko Itooka and Okagi Hayashi).
Earlier this month, our team visited Mrs. Shiroishi. We are grateful to her nursing home and family for the opportunity and honor to meet her and learn about her life story.
We at LongeviQuest would like to extend our heartfelt condolences to her family and friends.
