Irene Easton

Irene Florence Easton (née Wood; born 15 October 1908) is a Canadian supercentenarian whose age is currently unvalidated by the Gerontology Research Group (GRG).

Biography
Irene Easton was born Irene Florence Wood on 15 October 1908 in Plaistow, England, just outside of London. Her parents were John Alexander MacDonald Wood (1888–1964) and Florence Chiswick (1890–1980). She was an only child and the family came to Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada prior to the First World War when she was just three years old to be with family who already settled in the area. Her father worked in the courthouse as a clerk for a time, but when the job moved to Calgary, the family remained in Lethbridge, and he began developing and printing the pictures for the drug stores in town. As she got older, Irene used to collect the film from the stores twice a day and bring them to her father for developing and printing.

In 1932, she moved to Calgary with her fiancé and future husband, John Easton Jr. (1909–1998). Her daughter, Lynne Davis, said: ''Both sets of parents really didn’t want them to marry, because things were very uncertain in those days. There was no healthcare, nothing to back you financially if anything happened to your husband''. The couple moved to Cranbrook for a few years, after Irene’s husband got a job there just before they got married. They had only one child, Lynne, who was born nearly 12 years after the couple married. After a few years in Cranbrook, the couple moved back to Lethbridge where John took a job as a mechanic, and Irene raised their only child. She also volunteered to play piano for many of the local nursing homes.

At the age of 87, Irene had a hip replacement and decided to move into Heritage Lodge and remained there for the next nine years. Her husband was taken to the Edith Cavell Centre, but she continued visiting him and play piano for him. Her husband passed away on 27 July 1998 at the age of 89. According to Irene's daughter, there’s no secret to her long life, other than being active, enjoying her life and good genetics. Her mother died when she was 90 and her maternal grandmother died when she was 93.

Easton celebrated her 110th birthday at the Edith Cavell Center surrounded by family, friends, and care workers. She can’t play the piano anymore, although it was a huge part of her life.