World War II veteran Stanley Jury celebrates this Anzac Day as a centenarian

When World War II veteran Stanley Jury ponders the freedoms he and so many others fought for, his own special birthdays paint a fairly clear picture.

Mr Jury, who turned 100 earlier this month at the Mandurah aged care centre he calls home, was a corporal in the 42nd Infantry Battalion that served in Papua New Guinea and Bougainville between 1943 and 1945.

“I spent my 21st birthday over there, very different to where I’ve spent my 100th,” Mr Jury recalled this month. “It wasn’t easy.”

When the war ended, Mr Jury travelled to Morotai Island in Indonesia to prepare for possible service in Japan alongside the British Commonwealth Occupation Force.

But instead, the Katanning-born soldier discharged from the army in 1946.

He’s lived a better life once back in his home country, first returning to the farm life he had left behind as an 18-year-old in 1943 and then over the past three decades in his adopted home town of Mandurah.

He got to spend his more recent birthday on April 1 surrounded by friends at Coolibah Aged Care Centre, although he said to him the remarkable achievement was “just another day”.

Mr Jury dedicated many years to farming, taking great pride in his work, and finding both purpose and fulfilment in the daily rhythm of farm activities.

He later married his wife Evelyn, and the two moved to Mandurah 30 years ago where they remained together until she died in 2012.

Mr Jury was also dedicated to his love for sports and socialising; he played cricket for his local team and became a proud life member of the Mandurah Bowling Club.

He credits his own long life to staying active and healthy and said the key to his 100 years was quitting smoking.

“I gave up cold turkey after the war and never looked back,” he said.

His great love for adventure and travel continued until he was well into his 90s.

But Australia is by far his favourite place in the world, he insists.

Mr Jury’s carers at Coolibah say he is still quick-witted and warm, with favourite pastimes nowadays of listening to 1930s music, vegetable gardening and enjoying comforting foods like a warm cup of coffee.

Though he does not have siblings or children, he has cultivated meaningful connections throughout his life and treasures his friendships.