From Ninemsn...

Australia's oldest digger dies at 110
17:45 AEST Wed Jun 3 2009

Jack Ross, Australia's oldest man
and last surviving WWI digger, died peacefully at the age of 110.

Mr Ross died peacefully in his sleep at the Golden Oaks Nursing Home in the central Victorian city of Bendigo about 4am (AEST) on Wednesday.

His death was later confirmed by the nursing home after permission from daughter Peggy Ashburn.

As an 18-year-old, Mr Ross enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force in February 1918 and trained at the Wireless Training School before he was posted to the 1st Battalion at Broadmeadows camp in Victoria.

But the war ended before he could be posted overseas and he was demobilised on Christmas Eve.

He served Australia again in World War II as a member of the volunteer defence corps.

Mr Ross was awarded the 80th Anniversary Armistice Remembrance medal in 1998 to commemorate the end of WWI.

He also received the Centenary Medal for his contribution to Australian society in the 100 years since federation.

Kangaroo Flat RSL sub-branch acting president Ivon Hutcheson said Mr Ross was "a wonderful fellow" and active member of the club for many years.

The RSL will wait on discussions with the Department of Veterans' Affairs before it decides on a fitting tribute, Mr Hutcheson told AAP.

In civilian life Mr Ross worked for the Victorian railways for more than 45 years before retiring in 1964.

Mr Ross, who had a penchant for chocolate but didn't drink or smoke, was known as "Pop" to staff at Golden Oaks.

A life-long member of the Labor Party, he marched in Anzac Day parades until recent years when he preferred to watch the marches from the comfort of his bed.

He is survived by his daughter Peggy, son Robert, four grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd paid tribute to Mr Ross on Wednesday in federal parliament.

"Jack was a life member of the Australian Labor Party," he said.

Mr Rudd said the nation remains grateful to all the men and women who served in World War I.

"Today we mourn the death of Jack Ross, I ask that we also reflect on the service and sacrifice of the 417,000 Australians who served our nation during the First World War and the 61,000 who gave their lives.

"We will continue to remember and to honour their legacy."

Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull said Mr Ross, as a World War I digger, holds an important place in the nation's history.

"They were the generation who built modern Australia ... these men answered the call ... and shipped halfway round the globe saw service in some of the most horrific ... circumstances.

"To Jack Ross and his generation, nation building was something they lived and breathed and all too often paid for with their lives.

"Australia owes so much to this brave war generation."

Following Mr Turnbull's comments, MPs in the lower house rose in a silent tribute to Mr Ross.

The last Australian serviceman who saw action in World War I was seaman William Evan Allan, who died in Melbourne aged 106 in October 2005.

The last veteran of the western front was soldier Peter Casserly, who died in Perth aged 107 in June 2005.

The last Gallipoli veteran was Tasmanian Alec Campbell who died aged 103 in May 2002.

The last survivor of day one of the Gallipoli landings on April 25, 1915, was Sydney man Ted Matthews, aged 101 when he died in 1997.

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Rick Pengilly
WEBMASTER
Ex-CPOMTH3
R42630
13th MOBI Intake
July'62 to July'74
HMAS Nirimba - HMAS Melbourne - HMAS Cerberus - HMAS Tarangau - HMAS Lonsdale - HMAS Tarangau - HMAS Nirimba - HMAS Brisbane