Bates Vidal was born in Valladolid, Yucatán, Mexico, on 16 June 1910. Her parents were Donato Bates Herrera (1871–1967) and Mercedes Magdalena Vidal Mena. She had nine siblings. Her father had a store called “Aurorita”. He joined the Mexican Revolution in 1910 and met her a year later when he was finally able to return home after the affront and persecution. Her father was also the Mayor of Valladolid from 1923 to 1924.

In 1931, she married Víctor Mendoza Gomez. Their first child, Tete Mendoza Bates (born 16 June 1932), became a poet. They had three more children: Victor Manuel (aged 85 in 2020), Jose Isidro (aged 75 in 2020) and Luis Felipe (aged 72 in 2020).

For some time she lived in Calle 42 in Valladolid, before she moved to the house of one of her granddaughters where, around 2016, she fell and fractured her femur. After that she was taken to Merida. All of her four children were alive at this time of her 110th birthday. At that that, she had three living siblings, her 3rd brother who was living in Merida, and two more siblings who were living in Valladolid.

Bates Vidal died in Merida, Yucatán, Mexico on 10 February 2022 at the age 111 years, 239 days.