101-year-old Virginia Oliver is a workaholic who has not taken a day off from work in a very long time. For a large majority of her life—since the age of seven, to be precise—she has been on a boat fishing for lobster.
Discover our latest podcast
A passion for lobster fishing
Three times a week from May to November, Virginia Oliver goes lobster fishing. Together with her 78-year-old son, the duo spend countless hours a day looking for Maine's finest lobsters.
While her son takes the traps out of the water, Virginia routinely measures the lobster claws at lightning speed, filtering through which lobsters are big enough to keep and which to discard back into the wild.
Dangerous and hard work
Hunting lobsters is a difficult and also dangerous job for any person who decides to embark on this professional journey. She once was attacked by the very creature she has dedicated her entire life to and required seven stitches to treat the wound made by the crustacean's killer claws. During an interview with CBS News, Oliver said:
I like doing it, I like being along the water. I’ve done it all my life, so I might as well keep doing it, and so I’m going to keep on doing it just as long as I can.
When asked by her doctor why she hasn't retired yet, the witty lady simply answered: 'That is out of the question.'
Talk about dedication!
