Jan Goossenaerts

Joannes Aloisius "Jan" Goossenaerts (October 30, 1900 - March 21, 2012) was at the time of death, the oldest documented man ever from Belgium and the oldest living man in Europe and also the third-oldest living person in Belgium and also the third-oldest living man behind Jiroemon Kimura and James Sisnett.He was the last surviving white man born in the 19th century.

Life
He was born in the village of  Horendonk, the 3rd child born to Josephus Goossenaerts and Joanna van Ginneken.He fled to Netherlands at the time of the first World War.He worked as a farmhand and a mason until his retirement in 1965.He married Catharina Van Meel (August 18 1909 - July 2, 1997) c.1937 and they remained married for 60 years until her death.He had 5 children, three of whom were alive at the time of his death and he outlived the other two which died few months before his 110th birthday.In 2007, age 107, he moved to a nursing home St. Michael and also the same year became the oldest living man in Belgium.A day before his 110th birthday, the Minister-President of Flanders Kris Peeters visited him and they planted a sapling called the "Super-centenarian tree".In September 2011, a month before his 111th birthday, his mental health deteriorated but he his physical condition was still good.However in the last few days of his lives, his health deteriorated very badly and he died on March 21, 2002 at the age of 111 years.