MARIE Hickman was one week away from turning two when the armistice to end WWI was signed by German officials.
The now 100-year-old resident at Marbello in Victoria Point, who celebrated her 100th birthday on November 18, has lived a life defined by much of the 20th century and the turn of the 21st.
The inventions of antibiotics, talking movies and helicopters are just some of the developments Ms Hickman has witnessed.
Her son, Trevor Hickman, said his mother had received numerous cards for her milestone birthday which were "much appreciated". These included one from the Queen Elizabeth II and the Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.
Born at Benalla Street in Manly, Ms Hickman attended Guardian Angels School at Wynnum before graduating about 14 to serve as Lady Lilian Moore’s helping hand at Ormiston’s “Doobawah” house.
Ms Hickman lived a full life as a home-maker and was an accomplished knitter, sewer, cook, bowler and golfer, Mr Hickman junior said.
At 23, she married Charles Hickman before moving to Sydney for her husband’s Royal Australian Air Force commitments as a mechanic on Spitfires, the dominant fighter plane of WWII.
The pair later returned to Manly to raise their children Trevor and Cherryl Fraser, after Charles was discharged from service.
