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Arlena Labon is celebrating her 108th birthday this week. She’s never had children, but she has been a mom for about 50 foster(收养的) kids over the years, and her unique outlook(见解) on life may have helped her reach the age of 108.

     “She is the most remarkable woman.” LaBon’s sister’s daughter Claudia Martin told the reporter this Wednesday, adding that they had another cousin who lived to 114, so longevity (长寿) runs in their genes.

     Arlena told the newspaper that she doesn’t have any healthy eating secrets, but she does have a caring attitude that has served her well over the years. That may be the reason. As a foster parent, LaBon wanted the kids in her home to have a good life and a strong education. “I gave them what I didn’t get before,” she said.

Arlena Labon grow up in North Carolina, where her family raised cotton and tobacco, and she attended “the little red schoolhouse in Snow Hill”, according to a 2014 interview. She left school at 16 and went to Norfolk, Virginia, where she found cleaning, cooking, and restaurant jobs. “I was tired of farming,” she said.

     When she married, LaBon and her husband settled in Ohio. Over her many years, the value of her life has been one of kindness and generosity (慷慨). “Just love each other; treat each other good,” she often says to her children.

     The newspaper posted lots of comments about LaBon. “What an angel(天使)! I wish

more people would think this way,” wrote one person. Another commented. “What a great difference you’ve made in the lives of those kids! Happy Birthday, sweet lady!”