According to Fox 8 News Cleveland, Arlena Labon recently celebrated her 108th birthday and shared the mantra she’s lived by her whole life.
Arlena said she hasn’t really done anything special. She usually eats whatever she wants. That being said though, there is one thing she’s always mindful of, her attitude.
“Just love one another, baby. Treat one another good. I love everybody and will help everybody that I can. So that’s what we have to do,” she said.
Labon knows all about love. Not just because of her age, she has spread her love over the years by fostering nearly 50 children. She never had biological children, but dedicated her time to offering the foster kids happy lives. She also made sure they received an education.
LaBon had left home at the age of 16 after attending “the little red schoolhouse in Snow Hill,” she said. One of 11 children, she went to Norfolk, Va., where she took on cleaning, cooking and restaurant jobs.
“I was one of those dropouts,” she said. “I was tired of farming.” The family raised cotton and tobacco.
Eventually, she married and moved up to East Cleveland.
Labon was diagnosed with stomach cancer in 2010 and doesn’t know if the cancer is still there, but continues to live her life.
“I have faith in God,” she said, “And I don’t let (the cancer) bother me.”
“I gave them what I didn’t get,” she said. “I was a dropout, but I thank the Lord I’m doing all right.”
“She is the most remarkable woman. She’s healthy and has an insatiable appetite. She’s doing well,” said her Great Niece Claudia Martin.
There are nine verified living supercentenarians, the oldest of whom is American woman Susannah Mushatt Jones, aged 116 years, 214 days.
Keep Loving Arlena, we’ll love you back.
108-Year-Old Who Fostered 50 Children Gives Secret To Long Life was originally published on blackdoctor.org
