'matcha tea and a peaceful acceptance': 113-year-old mount pleasant woman dies at home
shige mineshiba joined the rare group of supercentenarians, those who lived past 110, thanks to her daily practice of drinking matcha tea, according to her daughter, 82.
jan 14 2023
3 minute read
kyoko mineshiba with the photo of her mother, shige.
francis georgian
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shige mineshiba, a canadian supercentenarian who lived to 113 years and 233 days and was unofficially the oldest living canadian, has died in her mount pleasant home.
and the secret to her long life was a daily organic matcha tea “with not hot water,” said her only child, kyoko mineshiba, 82, with whom she shared a condo and a daily routine that involved kyoko driving to chinatown to buy them fish congee and an egg mcmuffin with hash browns they would split.
“i made sure we ate well,” she said. “all you have to do is drink matcha tea. if you drink tea, you won’t die.”
good genes may also help, shige had seven siblings and two sisters live past 100, one to 109, the other 104.
she never drank alcohol, never smoked, but always lived around a smoker, her husband ichiro, who died in 1985 or 1986 at age 85, and then kyoko, a smoker, although kyoko is forced to puff outside because of the condo’s no-smoking rule.
and although in the past six months to a year shige’s dementia was noticeable, she was otherwise healthy, even during covid-19.
“nope,” said kyoko when asked if she got covid. “we don’t get anything.”
shige was born on may 18, 1909, in toda near nagoya, aichi prefecture, japan, into a family of rice farmers, said kyoko.
her birthdate and date of her death is listed on the gerontology wiki website along with other supercentenarians, those who live past 110. the website also said her age is “ currently unvalidated by the gerontology group,” which maintains a list of the rare group of humans.
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“at the time of her death, she was the oldest known living person in canada,” says geronotology wiki.
shige graduated from the sakuraka high school in nagoya, which was rare for girls at that time, said kyoko, and wanted to be a kindergarten teacher “but then got married” in 1931.
shige and ichiro adopted kyoko, ichiro’s brother’s daughter, after kyoko’s mother died when she was six months old.
“i wouldn’t find any other mother like my mother,” said kyoko.
“at the time of the great kanto earthquake in 1923, mineshiba went to nagoya station to cook for the victims who fled from tokyo,” according to gerontology wiki. “before the second world war, her husband ran a senbei shop in kyoto, but after the war he worked at welfare facilities, insurance companies, banks and flower shops.”
in the late 1960s, the couple immigrated to canada and joined kyoko in toronto, where she had been living and working.
“(shige) got a job right away, she was babysitting” for the busy wife of an executive for a trading company, said kyoko.
they moved to vancouver in 1979 and, since 2013, shige has lived with kyoko.
she lived quietly in the condo, with kyoko bringing in sushi, ramen, noodles and other chinatown offerings. shige wasn’t physically active and declined the offer of a wheelchair but enjoyed regular drives with kyoko down to english bay.
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she was visited three times a day by homecare workers, who helped with her bathing and other daily requirements.
her lifetime hobbies were embroidery, knitting and an art that sounds similar to tie-dye.
she was schooled in a buddhist-run school, as was kyoko, and shige practised a peaceful acceptance of whatever she came up against during life, said kyoko.
“even if you get something you’re not supposed to get, to get upset, that’s silly,” said kyoko. “that’s the buddhist teaching. her belief was that what i have is plenty. if you have that philosophy, when anything comes your way, you’ll appreciate it. peace will come to you.”
following the death of cecile klein on jan 13, 2022, shige became the oldest known living person in canada, according to gerontology wiki. and “she became the last known person living in canada born in the 1900s decade, following the death of yvonne delorme-martel on april 7, 2022.
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