Jean Bailey, 102, works as a physical education teacher at the nursing home where she lives in the US state of Nebraska. Classes are held four times a week for three years, accompanied by dedicated students.

Jean Bailey turned 102 on February 22 this year – Photo: REPRODUCTION FACEBOOK/ELK RIDGE VILLAGE SENIOR LIVING

A hundred-year-old woman does not believe in standing still. In an interview with The Washington Post, she said that there is no point in continuing to live if you do not exercise your mind and body. “I don’t believe in just sitting and watching TV.”

Classes began during the pandemic when the instructor was 99, and it was all just an innocent idea to ease the tensions of social isolation. Jin wanted to stay active and encouraged his colleagues to do exercises that respected isolation and didn’t require as much effort.

The nursing home is once again offering regular physical activity, but Jean and her group love the way they’re used to exercise.

In the corridor on the third floor, elderly people began to gather, each with a chair, to do exercises that move the arms, legs, torso and neck.

There are currently six women in the group who meet for 30 minutes on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

Jean says that her students consider her to be a great coach because she always encourages everyone to push the boundaries.

“They tease me and say I’m mean because when we train, I want them to do it right and use their muscles,” she says, “but I think it’s not that bad. People wouldn’t come back if they didn’t like it.”

The encounters also brought older women closer, who now claim to be best friends. They all try to stay active and alert, and Jin says he will stop when he “gets old”.

Born during the Great Depression, Jean had a hard time in her life. At the age of 3, her mother, who at that time had 5 children, transferred her to another family, and the girl grew up as the only child of her father, who worked on the railway.

Despite adversity, she never stopped reinventing herself. She was a wife and mother, but had already lost one of her daughters and her husband, worked for many years as a florist and then as a volunteer in a hospital. Jin inspires his colleagues every day.