BIOGRAPHY

Dolores Vélez Bravo was born in Llacao, Cuenca, Azuay, Ecuador on 21 November 1907. Her parents were Daniel Vélez and Mercedes Bravo. In 1931, she married Alipio Siavichay. The couple had at least three children in the 1930s, one of whom died as an infant.

In 1942, she remarried Jose Benedicto Culcay, and the couple had at least three children. She had a passion for creole eggs with malt and honey and sold fritada (a traditional Ecuadorian dish) in a town known for its pork merchants. Her diet mainly consisted of products from her own land, but she had a particular fondness for rompope, eggs, and malt. Her life was difficult because her father rejected her. He disapproved of her choices, especially her decision to marry a Native American man, which went against her parents’ wishes.

Around 1990, when she burned the idols and religious images in the village after converting to Evangelical Christianity, the townspeople reportedly nearly burned her alive. They gathered with sticks and stones, ready to set her on fire. However, as the religious images were being destroyed, a priest spoke with authority, invoking God’s name, which caused the crowd to retreat. She became the first Evangelical Christian in Llacao, Cuenca.

Dolores Vélez Bravo died in Ecuador, on 12 October 2021, at the age of 113 years, 325 days.

RECOGNITION

Her age was verified by Esteban González, Stefan Maglov, and Fabrizio Villatoro, and validated by the LAS in January 2020.

She is the second-oldest validated person ever from Ecuador, behind Maria Capovilla.

ATTRIBUTION

GALLERY