104-year-old woman dies days after breaking record for oldest paratrooper
The 104-year-old woman died days after breaking the record for the oldest paratrooper. This story is certainly interesting, especially since the woman is a grandmother who also broke the record as the oldest person to ever jump out of a plane.
 |
| Dorothy Hoffner, 104, falling through the air with tandem jumper Derek Baxter as she becomes the oldest person in the world to skydive, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2023, at Skydive Chicago in Ottawa, Ill. (Photo: Daniel Wilsey via Associated Press) |
Dorothy Hoffner said "Let's go, let's go, Geronimo" as she plunged from the plane from 4,114m north of Illinois on October 1.
Hoffner was found dead in his sleep one week after skydiving
Hoffner wanted to jump off a plane last week to relive the fun he experienced from his first jump — when he was 100 years old — but this time he wanted to lead the jump, instead of being pushed out.
The crowd cheered as he landed in Ottawa, 140 kilometers southwest of Chicago, and he told them age was just a number.
As she reunited with her gait, she said it was great to be back on the ground.
He said it was amazing up there, adding: "Everything was fun, wonderful, so good."
The lifelong Chicago resident, who will turn 105 in December, said he's considering taking his next hot-air balloon ride.
"I've never experienced either of those," he said.
Also, read: Jon Fosse, a Writer from Norway won the 2023 Nobel Prize in Literature.
But on Tuesday, his close friend Joe Conant revealed that Hoffner was found dead in his nursing home on Monday morning. He died in his sleep one week after skydiving.
"He is tireless. She kept going," said Conant, a nurse who met Hoffner several years ago while working as another resident nurse at the nursing home.
"He's not someone who naps or doesn't show up at any shows, dinners, or anything. He is always there, fully present. He keeps going, always," he added as quoted from Sky News, Wednesday (11/10/2023).
Conant said he was working on paperwork to ensure Guinness World Records certified his friend posthumously as the world's oldest skydiver, but he predicted it would take time.
Conant said Hoffner just wanted to jump in and didn't want to break any records — even though he was filing paperwork for Guinness World Records, with the current record holder being 103 years old.
The current world paratrooper record was set in May 2022 by 103-year-old Linnea Ingegard Larsson of Sweden.
"He had no intention of breaking records, and he wasn't interested in publicity or anything," Conant said of Hoffner.
"He didn't do it for any other reason than he wanted to skydive."
"It's never too late to feel the sensation of a lifetime."
Conant said Hoffner worked as a telephone operator at the Illinois Bell, which later became AT&T, for more than 40 years and retired 43 years ago.
He never married and Conant said he had no immediate family members.
A memorial service for Hoffner will be held in early November.
"He was a great friend who was an inspiration," Conant said.
Skydive Chicago and the American Parachute Association paid tribute to Hoffner in a joint statement on Tuesday.
"We are deeply saddened by Dorothy's passing and honored to have been part of making her skydiving world record a reality," they said.
"Dorothy reminds us that it's never too late to experience the thrill of a lifetime. We are forever grateful that skydiving was part of his exciting and well-lived life."