Besse Cooper, World's Oldest Person, Marks 115th Birthday in Georgia

Besse Cooper turned 115 on Aug. 26, 2011. In this photo, she sits at her nursing home in Monroe, Ga., on Feb. 1. — David Goldman/AP

MONROE, Ga. -- About 15 to 20 friends and relatives gathered in Georgia to celebrate the birthday of Besse Cooper, who is listed by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's oldest person.

Cooper turned 115 on Friday, Aug. 26.

Her daughter-in-law Edith Cooper said the group gathered at a Monroe nursing home, where Besse Cooper enjoyed two small slivers of her birthday cake and nodded with approval as musician Mike Cronic sang the "Tennessee Waltz."

Cooper was born in Tennessee in 1896 and moved to Georgia during World War I to find work as a teacher. She has 12 grandchildren and more than a dozen great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren. Her husband, Luther, died in 1963.

Cooper was declared the world's oldest in January. In May, Guinness learned that Maria Gomes Valentim of Brazil was 48 days older. Valentim died June 21.