BIOGRAPHY

Joaquima Arús Bonet was born in the Sant Andreu neighborhood of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, on 9 July 1905. Her grandparents and parents had already settled in the then-town of Sant Andreu de Palomar before it was incorporated into Barcelona.

In 1918, at the age of 13, she lost both her parents just a month apart, victims of a plague that swept through Sant Andreu. An older brother turned his back on the orphaned children, and it was Joaquima who took on the responsibility of raising her younger siblings. She taught herself to use an embroidery machine and became so skilled that some of the most prestigious companies in Barcelona purchased her work—many mistaking it for hand embroidery due to its quality.

Later, after marrying, she once again became the primary support for her family, raising four children. Despite having limited formal education, she had a sharp mind and an intuitive grasp of complex issues. Her children recalled how she could solve their algebra problems using only logic and common sense, without ever having studied the subject. She was also a master of household management and finances—so much so that, although her husband was a businessman, she played a central role in managing and sustaining his affairs.

Born into a family with a strong Christian heritage, she remained deeply devoted to her faith throughout her life. In her later years, even as she became physically disabled, she would pray the rosary continuously. As her eyesight deteriorated, she asked her children and grandchildren to make progressively larger photocopies of the litanies so she could continue reading them. Shortly before her death, she remarked that she had never missed a Sunday Mass in her entire life. During her final decade, she was confined to a wheelchair, and in her last years, unable to attend church, she asked to follow the Mass on television.

At the age of 110, she had 17 grandchildren.

Joaquima Arús Bonet passed away in Barcelona, on 11 September 2015, at the age of 110 years, 64 days.

RECOGNITION

Her age has not been validated.

ATTRIBUTION

* “JOAQUIMA ARÚS BONET (1905-2015), 110 años” – La Vanguardia, 15 September 2015

GALLERY