Myrtle Milledge, a woman from Maine who is known as the world’s oldest New England Patriots fan, died Tuesday at a hospice center, according to the Associated Press. She was 106 years old. Milledge was recognized by the Patriots earlier this month, according to CBS Sports. She received a No. 106 jersey with her name on it to celebrate her birthday.
“Myrtle was recently recognized as being the Oldest Patriots Fan in the world by receiving a New England Patriot Jersey with her name and the number 106 to represent her age,” Milledge’s obituary states. “She also received a signed letter from Robert Kraft, the owner of the Patriots team. She enjoyed watching many sports, particularly the New England Teams.”
Videos by PopCulture.com
The AP says that Milledge became a local celebrity became of her being a Patriots fan. She severed as the grand marshal of a parade for the team in May 2019 which was a few months after they won the Super Bowl. Milledge’s fandom began when the team was known as the Boston Patriots of the American Football League the team made the move to the NFL in 1970 when Milledge was in her 50’s.
Over the last 20 years, Milledge saw a lot of winning from the Patriots thanks to Tom Brady, Bill Belichick and a plethora of talented players. The team won their first Super Bowl during the 2001 season and went on to play in eight more Super Bowls while winning five of them. The Patriots are the last team to win back-to-back Super Bowls (2003-2004) and are tied with the Steelers with the most Super Bowl wins in NFL history. The Patriots have played in 11 Super Bowls, which is an NFL record.
Before Brady and Belichick, the Patriots had some success but it was few and far between. Their first Super Bowl appearance was during the 1985 season and lost to a legendary Chicago Bears team. They returned to the Super Bowl in 1996 and lost to Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers. The team’s first championship game was played in 1964 when they were in the AFL and lost to the San Diego Chargers 51-10. In Milledge’s lifetime, the Patriots have won 22 division titles and have reached the playoffs 28 times.
