Kempsey legend Jack Chapman celebrates his 100th birthday

The Lower Macleay farmer, who was born on October 16, 1919, has seen a lot in his lifetime, from floods to famous horse trainers.

The birthday boy was one of six boys (Bertie, Leith Jack, Alan, Albert, James and Rex) born to John and Olive Chapman at Euroka.

Jack left school at the age of 14 after gaining the Qualifying Certificate and then went to work on a farm at Aldavilla.

Jack first met his wife Jean (dec) at his parents' home when he was 19 and she was 16. They married on January 31, 1942 and shared more than 57 years of a loving life together before Jean's passing in 1999. They had three sons - Tom, Rex (dec) and Phillip.

Except for a 12-month stint working in Taree, Jack has lived his entire life in the Macleay Valley.

"After I was married I went to Taree for nearly 12 months and drove a truck for my brother who carried milk for Peters, then I moved back to the Macleay Valley to a farm up the river in Mooneba," Jack remembers.

"That was during the War.... there was rationing but we seemed to manage all right... on the farm we had plenty of poultry, pigs and grew vegies so we were more or less self-reliant."

"Mrs Delaforce down the road used to give us some tea coupons and Dad used to give me some petrol coupons. Apart from that everything was alright," he says.

During World War II, Jack was deemed unfit for military service due to the effects of a broken ankle but that didn't stop him trying doing his bit at home, where he joined the Volunteer Defence Corps.

Later, Jack spent nearly 30 years working on Harold Kissane's (dec) farm near Smithtown. His family lived in a cottage on the farm.

As a farmer, he was dependent on how and when the rain came so floods on the Macleay had a big impact on Jack's life. The now 100-year-old can vividly remember specific details more than half his lifetime ago.

"In 1946 I was at Mooneba when it flooded in March and then we had no more rain until November... the flood killed everything and nothing grew so we had no feed for our cattle," he said.

"In '49 I was lucky and saved everything... never lost any cattle or anything... and in the year between the '49 and '50 flood it was one my best years down the river."

"My worst year in farming was after the '50 flood because it never stopped raining... it was too wet... we had 92 inches of rain that year."

Jack's pastimes include playing cards and watching the footy, tennis, racing or any sport on TV.

"I like playing euchre when I can find someone to have a game with," he said.

Jack's interest in horse racing comes from his father and his father's father, who both trained horses at one time or another.

"I used to have a racehorse once - he was good at track work but in a race he couldn't get a sweat up - turned out to be a good polo horse in the end," Jack joked.

"I remember having I have a great day at Rosehill with Bart Cummings in 2012. He was a nice man and a man of few words... but he knew horses."

The advice Jack offers when asked the key to a long life was: "Work hard, eat plenty of meat, potato and dry pumpkin and add lots of butter".

When asked what he enjoyed most about life as a farmer, Jack had a definite answer.

"I don't know why but I loved to grow a good crop of potatoes and I liked milking to see the production you got from your cows," he said.

Jack, who lived in Cameron St West Kempsey for more than 30 years after leaving his farm in Smithtown in 1983, moved into Vincent Court about two years ago and has never regretted the decision.

"They look after me well here - the staff here are exceptional - it's a home away from home,"Jack said.

A devout Catholic, the people of the Macleay Valley Parish held a special morning tea for Jack, Sister Cabrini and John Henry (who are also celebrating big birthdays) after Sunday Mass at All Saints Church in Kempsey on Sunday October 13.

Jack still volunteers at the Parish Office on a Monday morning and has been doing so since Fr Peter Perry asked him in 1985.

As is fitting such a huge milestone, Jack's celebration have been going all week and despite reaching the century mark, Jack is more than up for a good party.

"I might be 100 but I am still young at heart."

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