Queensland’s newest centenarian believes the secret to a long and happy life is a loving wife and family and a healthy lifestyle.
Stan Fryer celebrates his 100th birthday at the in Brisbane on June 1 – and he will mark the milestone with his wife by his side.
Stanley Thomas Fryer was born in Brisbane in 1923 and grew up at Kelvin Grove with his parents, a brother and two sisters. He attended Kelvin Grove School.
During his school years Stan enjoyed playing tennis. A highlight of was serving as ball boy for Australian tennis legends Adrian Quist and John Bromwich, who between them won 36 grand slam titles.
In 1942, Stan joined the Australian Army as a medical orderly on an ambulance train. Two years later he transferred to the Royal Australian Air Force, where he qualified as a bomb aimer. He was awaiting deployment when World War II ended.
Stan gained employment as an administration superintendent in a Brisbane office, where he later met his future wife, Grace.
Stan and Grace, who also now lives at , were married in 1959 and had three children: and daughters Kristine and Victoria and a son named Glenn.
The couple lived at Yeronga, in Brisbane, and on Karragarra Island, in Moreton Bay. For many years, they were active in local churches, including Fairfield Baptist Church and Church at the Gabba.
After volunteering from work, Stan did volunteer work teaching English to newly arrived immigrants at TAFE colleges. After this he and Grace went to Hong Kong to do missionary work from 1991 to 1997.
Over the years Stan’s interests have included golf, tennis, indoor bowls and fishing, which he pursued on weekends down the Gold Coast at the family holiday house.
Stan now enjoys watching golf and tennis on television and has a keen interest in history, including learning about wartime aircraft and military battles.
He loves talking to people and hearing about their lives and travels. Stan also loves his pet dog, a toy cavoodle called Scruffy who lives with his daughter.
