Some theories about longevity:
Fifteen years later, her room at the Heritage House Convalescent Center in Shelbyville, Ind., about 25 miles southeast of Indianapolis, is adorned with teddy bears and photos of her five grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren and 13 great-great grandchildren. She's outlived her two sons, Clifford and Earl Jr.
During a visit this week, Parker was captivated by a new album of photos and documents from her life that Don's wife, Charlene, had assembled.
"That's the boys," she said hoarsely, tapping a photo of her two late sons in their youth. "Clifford and Junior."
Her two sisters also are deceased. Georgia lived to be 99, while her sister Opal was 88 when she died.
Parker's long-lived sisters are typical of other centenarians, according to Dr. Nir Barzilai, director of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine's Institute for Aging Research in New York. Nearly all of them have a sister, mother or other relative who lived a long life, he said.
"Longevity is in the family history," Barzilai said.
Edna's as ready as she'll ever be.
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