Happy 105th Birthday Cecilia

MARYBOROUGH local Cecilia Hynes believes it’s important to live every day well, and after almost 105 years she continues to live by that advice.

The Boulton Clarke Baycrest resident was born in Howard on 10th October 1917 and travelled around north Queensland for most of her early life.

“We went all over the place when I was younger because my dad was in the railway from Babinda to Mount Isa and Ayr,” Cecilia said.

“After we moved back to Maryborough, I got into hockey and did that for 50 years, I was 83 when I trained the last team and 100 when I won the Australia Day Award.

Cecilia’s love for the sport started when she picked up the hockey stick at 16 years of age in Mount Isa and would later result in her being named Fraser Coast’s Sportsperson of the Year in 2018 for her contribution to the sporting community after starting the Tinana Hockey Club.

She was later awarded a life membership.

“I started our local hockey club, I put one team in and by the time I had finished, I had a team in every grade,” she said.

In 1968, a neighbour wanted his daughter to play hockey.

He knew about the Haynes family of players, so he encouraged them to get together and form a team.

“Tinana’s first team started that year and included my daughters Kathy and Terry and was coached by another of my daughters Mary.”

“It was easier to have the whole family play the same sport.” she said.

“We lived in the same house in Tinana for 60 years and the kids used to go past my house and say, ‘That’s where the hockey lady lives!’.”

Cecilia was Registrar and Treasurer of the Tinana Hockey Club for over forty years and was the Maryborough & District Hockey Association delegate from 1968 through to 2008, winning a MDHA Service Award for her service in 2011.

She has also been a representative selector and coach of various girls rep teams over the years.

It’s fair to say that Cecilia has lived a life full of hockey!

She will be celebrating her 105th birthday with family and says she is so happy to still be healthy.

“I have 29 grandchildren, 40 great grandchildren and a great, great grandchild on the way so I’m glad they don’t all come home at once!”

As for living such a long and healthy life, Cecilia’s advice?

“I would say just keep on living and live every day, a day at a time and don’t dwell in what’s gone past, just look to the future.”

Congratulations Cecilia, and happy birthday!