Ruth Hofto’s 109th birthday was on May 12. And, in what’s become a custom in recent years, it was celebrated with a small party at Community Connection Place, the local senior and community center in University Place, where she lives.

Hofto is believed to be the oldest person in Washington and one of the oldest in the U.S. A 114-year-old Ohio woman was the oldest American until her death in January. That distinction now belongs to 113-year-old Alelia Murphy, a native of North Carolina.