Rochella (Rachel) Kafri, a resident of the northern moshav Nahalal, has accomplished a lot in her 102 years of life. Her most recent milestone was undergoing a complex surgery to implant an artificial cardiac pacemaker.
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On Monday, Kafri came for her first inspection, and left with a smile - "They are very happy with me, they did a good job," she said.
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Rochella Kafri undergoes pacemaker implantation
(Photo: Galilee Medical Center spokesperson)
Kafri is one of the oldest people in Israel and in the world to successfully undergo the implantation of a pacemaker, a medical device that sends electrical pulses to help the heart beat at a normal rate and rhythm.
The 102-year-old was born in Tel Aviv and belongs to the second generation of the founders of Nahalal. In the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, Kafri lost her husband after only four years of marriage in which they had brought two children into the world. She then remarried and had another three children with her second husband. Today, she has 14 grandchildren and 30 great-grandchildren.
"I don't feel so old," she shrugged, and said she still reads lots of books, reads the news, and stays on her feet. "I have no complaints, I have reached a fair old age and am in relatively good shape."
Kafri said she wishes for quality of life rather than longevity, and hopes to be in good mental condition until her last day.
First published: 09:15, 04.05.23