05.07 am, Monday March 22 2010

Last surviving WWI veteran turns 110

11:34 AEST Wed Mar 11 2009
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Jack Ross
Jack Ross, Australia's last surviving World War I veteran, has celebrated his 110th birthday.

A cake with just one candle and plenty of chocolates have been organised for the birthday of Australia's oldest man, who has turned 110.

Jack Ross, who lives at the Golden Oaks nursing home in Bendigo in central Victoria, turned 110 on Wednesday.

Mr Ross joins a select group of the world's super centenarians as Australia's oldest man and the nation's sole surviving World War I veteran.

He enlisted to help the war effort in February 1918 but the war ended nine months later, before he saw active service.

Mr Ross' daughter Peggy Ashburn said her father was frail but otherwise in good health, eating well and not taking any medication.

She told AAP a birthday party to celebrate the milestone was organised for Wednesday afternoon.

"We are just having a family afternoon tea at the nursing home where he is," Mrs Ashburn said.

Mr Ross has four children, nine great grandchildren, as well as numerous nieces and nephews.

About 30 people are expected to be at the celebration.

"He has outlived all his friends," Mrs Ashburn said.

Mrs Ashburn said her father, a non-smoker and non-drinker, was well looked after and had everything he required in the home.

"Chocolates are the only gift he wants. What do you give a man of 110?" she said.

She said having a father so old could be strange.

"I told someone I was going to visit my father and they said, 'but you are as old as I am, you are 80', and I said, that's right," she said.

Mrs Ashburn said her father's recollections of life in the early part of last century had been recorded.

"He has written a lot of memoirs... he has done a family tree, and a family history. We have heard a lot about it, but not lately," she said.

"He actually did the family tree before computers were there. He did it the hard way, visiting cemeteries and typing everything out," she said.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has written to Mr Ross, while the federal Veterans' Affairs Minister Alan Griffin and Minister for Ageing Justine Elliot, wished him a happy day.

Mr Ross has been a lifelong member of the Labor party and a strong supporter of Mr Rudd.

"I congratulate Mr Ross on reaching such a milestone. He volunteered to serve his country in two world wars and has seen Australia change a great deal over the last 110 years," Mr Griffin said in a statement.

Ms Elliot said much could be learned from elderly Australians.

"In his lifetime, Mr Ross has not only lived through two world wars, but also witnessed the rise of the automobile and air travel, two Halley's comets and the Federation of Australia," she said.

Mr Ross worked for the Victorian Railways for more than 45 years and retired in 1964.

 
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