Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
Associated PressFebruary 09, 2021
In this image made from BFM TV video, Sister Andre, born Lucile Randon, is interviewed by David Tavella, Communications Manager for the Sainte Catherine Laboure Nursing Home in Toulon, France, Tuesday Feb. 9, 2021. The nun is the second-oldest known living person in the world, according to the Gerontology Research Group, which validates details of people believed to be aged 110 or older. French media report that the nun tested positive for COVID-19 virus in mid-January but just three weeks later she is fit as a fiddle — albeit it in her regular wheelchair. (BFM TV via AP)

PARIS (AP) — Whether it was the power of her prayers or her T-cells that did it, 116-year-old French nun Lucile Randon has survived Covid-19.

The nun, whose religious name is Sister André, is the second-oldest known living person in the world, according to the Gerontology Research Group, which validates details of people believed to be aged 110 or older.

French media report that the nun, whose religious name is Sister André, tested positive for the virus in mid-January in the southern French city of Toulon. But just three weeks later she is considered recovered. She is even healthy enough to look forward to her 117th birthday on Thursday.

“I didn’t even realize I had it,” the nun told French newspaper Var-Matin.

Sister André, who is blind and uses a wheelchair, did not even worry when she heard the news of diagnosis.

“She didn’t ask me about her health, but about her habits,” David Tavella, the communications manager for the care home where she lives, told the paper. “For example, she wanted to know if meal or bedtime schedules would change. She showed no fear of the disease. On the other hand, she was very concerned about the other residents.”

Not all shared Sister André’s luck: In January, 81 of the 88 residents of the facility tested positive and about 10 died, according to the newspaper.

The nun is now reportedly officially cured — she was allowed to attend Mass.

We don’t have comments turned on everywhere anymore. We have recently relaunched the commenting experience at America and are aiming for a more focused commenting experience with better moderation by opening comments on a select number of articles each day.

But we still want your feedback. You can join the conversation about this article with us in social media on Twitter or Facebook, or in one of our Facebook discussion groups for various topics.

Or send us feedback on this article with one of the options below:

The latest from america

In this interview, Cardinal Gracias speaks about the election of Leo XIV, his membership in Pope Francis’ council of cardinal advisors and why he considers Francis a saint.
Gerard O’ConnellMay 28, 2025
A Homily for the Solemnity of the Ascension, by Father Terrance Klein
Terrance KleinMay 28, 2025
Pope Leo XIV's offer to host peace talks between Russia and Ukraine was motivated by a conviction that the two sides must start negotiating and stop the killing, the Vatican secretary of state said.
Rev. Paul Nicholson, S.J., begins his homily for the Ascension with a striking image from Medieval art: Jesus’ feet dangling in the air, his body swallowed by clouds.
PreachMay 27, 2025