Bergen County Mom Dies At 105; How Many Centenarians Are Left?

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — There are more people living past age 100 than ever before, and the number is expected to quadruple over 30 years, researchers say.

One of Bergen County's centenarians passed away recently, about a month after her 105th birthday.

Hazel Williams, 105, was born in Jamaica but lived for the last 50 year in Englewood, according to her obituary. She died In Tenafly on Oct. 1.

Williams had moved with her young son from Jamaica to Manhattan back in 1948, her obituary says. She rented a room there and took classes at the YMCA for bookkeeping and typing, and got a job as a bookkeeper for Leumi Bank.

Eventually she moved to Englewood to be closer to her mother and brother.

"She was such a classy and stylish woman," her obit reads. "She was loved by so many, and had wonderful neighbors who cared for her dearly."

Read more of her obituary here.

Who Is The Country's Oldest Person?

Currently, the country's oldest person, Elizabeth Francis of Houston, is 115.

Pew Research says there are approximately 101,000 Americans age 100 and over. That number may quadruple in the next 30 years, they say.

See other stories about North Jersey centenarians:

• After 100th Birthday In Bergen County, Rosemarie Reveals 1 Secret To Long Life
• New Jersey's Oldest Woman Dies At 111 After Surviving 2 Pandemics