Merle Phillips

Merle Phillips (born 2 April 1907) is an American supercentenarian and author. Her age is currently unverified.

Biography
Phillips was born in 1907 on a farm in Kingston, Arkansas. Her father died of typhoid four months after her birth. She studied maths, psychology, and education at Buena Vista College, Iowa, earning a bachelor's degree. She met her husband, Leonard, while she was in graduate school at the University of Iowa. They moved to Illinois where she worked as a chemistry lab worker and he worked as a research biologist. They never had children.

Leonard Phillips died of leukemia in 1968. Merle retired from her job in 1972, although she continued to work in child care and elder care. She also worked as a Christian missionary, travelling to Israel, Puerto Rico and the Philippines.

Around 1970, Phillips nearly died when a truck hit her car, pushing it into oncoming traffic. It caused her engine to be pushed into her front seat. Her heart, liver, spleen, stomach and lungs were all damaged, and she was not expected to survive.

Phillips currently lives in Carol Stream, Illinois. As well as writing, she enjoys Sudoku and playing Scrabble.

Writing
Phillips has written 11 books, and is working on a 12th. She began writing when she was 72, with the intention of selling them to make profit. However, she gave up selling them when she was in her 80s. Her books are non-fiction and mostly autobiographical.