Oldest Houston County resident passes away at 103

HOUSTON COUNTY— The oldest living resident of Houston County, Mildred Roberts Mace, passed away on March 13, 2025, at the age of 103. She was born on May 22, 1921, and lived all of her long life in Perry. 

Mace is survived by her brother Floyd Roberts, her children Dorothy, Sylvia, Elaine, and Gregory, 24 grandchildren and a plethora of great grandchildren, nieces, nephews and other relatives and friends who will miss her. 

Sylvia Mace said her mother was a wonderful Christian woman. 

“She was very wise. In my younger days, she would tell us something and at the present time it wouldn’t happen, but later on in my life it happened exactly like she said,” Mace said. “I used to think she was psychic because whatever she said to me and my brothers and sisters, it came to pass.” 

According to Mace, her mother was one of the hardest-working women around. She said 16 people were living in their household including 10 children, four of which are still living. 

“We were raised on a farm going toward Fort Valley and we stayed out there until we moved out of the country. We then moved into a big white house on Smith Drive,” she said. “When I grew up, I still went back to Perry to visit with my mother.” 

One of Mace’s favorite qualities of her mother was that she was a fantastic singer. 

“She always would lead the choir at Oak Level Baptist Church,” she said. “We loved her and now she’s gone.” 

Mace said her mother was very well-known around the community. 

“A lot of people loved her. The younger generation would come to her and talk about different things, she would talk to them and she influenced a lot of people,” she said. “She was very open and would talk to you about anything from the past as well as the future.” 

In the wake of Mildred Roberts Mace’s passing, Sylvia Mace said they are currently trying to keep the family together through these trying times. 

“We will always remember what we were taught and live by what we learned from her,” she said. 

According to Mace, her mother knew she was the oldest living person in Houston County. 

“She loved it. She was thankful and thanking God that she reached her age and was always saying a lot of people would not reach the age where she was because of their lifestyle,” she said. “She was thanking God each and every day that she was alive.” 

For those who didn’t have the chance to meet her mother, Mace wanted them to know that she was a very loving and kind person. 

“She would help anybody she could, even strangers. She was a giving, loving person, and she just loved people in general,” she said.