Life Long Learning

March 20, 2023 5:01 am Published by

Most students come to McGill University in their 20s to get an education.

But not Miriam Tees. She was born in the ’20s and just celebrated her 100th birthday.

She was born February 24th, 1923. 

Marking a centennial hasn’t stopped Tees from wearing an Apple Watch, continuing to drive her car—she has her eyes checked regularly—or continuing to further her education.

She got her driver’s licence at 17 but never married or had children. In part, she says, because there weren’t enough men to go around. “You know a lot of men my age died in the war, so we lost a lot of people that might have married me, perhaps,” she says.

Tees made a life for herself as a secretary and librarian. Her love of books gave her not only a career and many friends but also kept her curious. A curiosity she continues to feed at age 100 by attending classes at McGill’s Community for Lifelong Learning.

This term, she’s taking jazz. Tees has even led some classes, such as music courses.

The dean of continuing studies at McGill, Carola Weil, says while Tees is one of about 1000 senior learners who moderate and attend classes at the centre, she is not the oldest.

“Our oldest student is 101,” says Weil. “It is tremendously inspiring. They remind me that at my age of 60-something, I’m still a youngster, and I have so much more to learn.”

Tees says she is living proof that you are never too old to learn.

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This post was written by Dave Palmer