Laurieton local, Maxwell (Max) Ramsey has celebrated 100 years of his happy life with family and friends on Monday, May 6.
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With two birthday celebrations marking the milestone, Max said both were beyond all expectations.
Max was born on May 6, 1924 in the small town of Pambula in the Bega Valley Shire and grew up along the NSW South Coast.
Max currently lives at the Whiddon Laurieton, a residential aged care home which held a morning tea in his honour on his big day.
![Maxwell Ramsey celebrating his 100th Birthday party at Whiddon Laurieton. Picture provided Maxwell Ramsey celebrating his 100th Birthday party at Whiddon Laurieton. Picture provided](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/229591136/daf6056e-3e14-4d2d-ad8d-39eeac73b858.png/r0_0_2001_1307_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Max met his wife Shirley in the 1940s and they spent 71 wonderful years together. They had six children together, with their surviving daughter Brenda Lee coming from Brisbane to celebrate with him.
For around 60 years the family lived in the Wollongong area as Max worked as a master builder supervising apprentices.
Max is a fantastic gift giver, having purchased and built five of his children's homes and their first cars.
He said the best gift he has received is his good health.
"I am lucky to have never been in hospital or had to have any medication in my 100 years."
He credits his long life to being educated on food, sleep and exercise but most importantly, to have a sense of humour even if it is sometimes misplaced.
Living off the land during his childhood, Max developed a passion for gardening and eating fresh food.
"We didn't have running water, or refrigeration of any kind," he said.
"We had to eat fresh, we would get our lunch from the garden and put it under the tap at the tank."
He was fond of fish and vegetables, but as a teenager he was fond of peas as a snack.
"I used to like peas out of the pod and if the pod was young enough I would eat the entire thing."
Max passion for gardening continued in every house he moved to, always making room to grow fruit and vegetables.
"Having a garden is imperative, it is great for eating and the mental understanding of how to grow food."
In his early teens, he also cared for a healthy group of 16 bullocks.
"They were a Jersey breed, so a small breed but because I had them working they grew at least 50 per cent bigger than (standard) Jerseys.
"It taught me to understand animals. They are sensitive to pain and they will respond to a quiet approach."
Max moved to Laurieton a few months ago and is loving his time here, filling his days with activities and exercise.
"Most places are only as good as the people you meet such as your neighbours," he said.