Supercentenarian Profile

Dora Skeen

Born:

1910-12-29

Newport, Manchester Parish

Jamaica

Died:

2022-09-19

Scarborough, Ontario

Canada

Dora Skeen (née Williams) was a Jamaican-born Canadian supercentenarian.

BIOGRAPHY

Dora Skeen was born in Newport, Manchester Parish, Jamaica on 29 December 1910. She spent her early years working on her family’s farm and later married James Skeen in 1948. Together, they raised eight children. On 7 October 1980, she arrived to Canada, where she worked as a nanny until retiring at the age of 80. She continued traveling back and forth to Jamaica until the age of 100.

Even after suffering a stroke in 1992, she remained remarkably independent. Even at the age of 109, she lived on her own, did her own grocery shopping, cooked for herself, and attended exercise classes. At the time, she was still attending the Agincourt Church of God, where she participated in the seniors’ ministry.

In March 2021, she received her first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, becoming one of the oldest people to do so. She remained independent until 2021, when a series of falls led to hospitalization. Following this, she transitioned to an assisted living program run by the Scarborough Centre for Healthy Communities, and eventually moved into a nursing home.

Dora Skeen passed away at the Scarborough General Hospital in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada, on 19 September 2022, at the age of 111 years, 264 days. She was survived by her six surviving children, 20 grandchildren, 21 great-grandchildren, and seven great-great-grandchildren.