An American-born woman who became not only the oldest living person in the world but also the oldest person to survive contracting COVID-19 passed away at the staggering age of 117 on Tuesday. Maria Branyas had assumed the Guinness World Record title following the death of French nun Lucile Randon in January. Born 1907 in San Francisco to Catalan parents, Branyas lived in Texas and Louisiana with her family before returning to Barcelona and later Banyoles. She worked as a nurse during the Spanish Civil War after marrying her husband Joan Moret, a traumatologist who died in 1976. Branyas’ family announced her passing on X, quoting a poetic farewell message she wrote: “Death will find me worn out from having lived so long,” the post read, “but I want it to find me smiling, free and satisfied.”