Don't let age stop you. One lobster trapper is still working every day with no plans to call it quits in the foreseeable future. She works capturing lobsters at the ripe age of 104. Meet Maine's oldest lobster lady who is still showing people what a hard work ethic looks like well into her 100s.
Virginia "Ginny" Oliver just turned 104 last Thursday. She celebrated the big milestone with her family and plenty of chocolate cake and ice cream. But it's the region's signature crustacean, lobster, that makes Oliver famous. Oliver has been working the waters off the coast of Maine for close to 100 years.
She even became the subject of the 2022 children's book The Lobster Lady. She sat down with author Barbara Walsh to talk about her long life and general attitude. According to the lobster lady, she doesn't feel her age. However, she admits that she started to get more aches and pains in recent years. However, she doesn't like to talk about those.
The Lobster Lady
"Nobody wants to listen to you complain," Ginny said. As for the lobster trapper, she's planning to hit the water again this summer to catch more of the crustaceans. She doesn't plan to let her age stop her. "Oh, I'm going to go," she said.
Oliver has been fishing in the Rockland water since she was 8 years old. She started fishing with her father and brother when she was only a child. Fast forward 96 years later, and she is still at it. Likewise, she said that she spent her entire life on the same street where she was born in 1920, according to News Center Maine. The lobster lady married and raised four children. Her son Max, who is 80, still goes out lobster trapping with his mom all these years later.
"I'm still the boss," she said. Yes indeed. Fans loved her story. Several commented on social media about how inspiring she is. One wrote, "I love your story Virginia! You are the personification of what we Maine Woman can do and be! Keep on Fishin' off the Coast of Maine, Lobster Lady." Another wrote, "What a peach of a lady a true hard worker for sure." Yet another wrote, "Awesome! I truly admire this lobster lady of Rockland, Maine."
