LongeviQuest is pleased to confirm that Merah Louise Smith celebrated her 113th birthday on 9th November. Mrs. Smith is currently the oldest living Jamaican person and second-oldest living person in the United Kingdom.

Harking back to her roots, Mrs. Smith celebrated her special day with a Jamaican themed birthday party, complete with a Jamaican inspired birthday cake. The party was attended by her family including her five grandchildren, her great-grandchildren and great-great grandchildren. Some of the guests, and Mrs. Smith herself, dressed in Jamaican inspired clothes.

Merah Smith was born in Windsor Castle, Saint Mary, Jamaica on 9 November 1912. In the 1930s, whilst working as a nurse, Mrs. Smith met her husband James and they were soon married. The couple had three children: Irene, Tony (who passed away earlier this year) and Icha. She was widowed in the 1950s when James passed away from stomach cancer. She continued to live in Jamaica until 1963, when she emigrated to the UK, where she continued to work as a nurse for the National Health Service (NHS). Whilst in the UK, Mrs. Smith welcomed five grandchildren and in the following years, many great and great-great grandchildren.

Active throughout her life, Mrs. Smith continued to work-out at the gym even upon turning 100 years old in 2012 and regularly took part in kickboxing classes until she was 105, only stopping on doctor’s orders due to a knee problem. Until March 2020, when Covid-19 lockdowns forced her to stay at home, Mrs. Smith kept active by taking a daily walk into her local town. She has always credited her long life to eating chicken, fruit and practicing her faith.

Mrs. Smith became a supercentenarian in November 2022, and in May 2023 she received the freedom of the Borough Award from Croydon Council for her services to others whilst working in the NHS.

LongeviQuest extends heartfelt congratulations to Mrs. Smith on her 113th birthday. We hope she had a wonderful celebration and wish her good health, happiness and many peaceful days ahead and would like to thank her family for sharing her birthday pictures with us.

Written by our British researcher Ben Hinchliffe