Community
5 March, 2025
Age is no barrier for spritely Mount Isa centenarian
Stella Ruff is still a tough opponent in bingo each week.
If you ever find yourself taking a seat at the Irish Club bingo hall, you will likely cross paths with Stella Ruff.
The softly spoken great-great-grandmother, who will turn 102 in April, can probably lay fair claim to being the oldest resident in Mount Isa.
In fact, enquiries by North West Weekly failed to locate anyone born prior to 1923 in our city, which makes her the same age as Mount Isa Mines itself.
Mrs Ruff attends bingo four days a week. Sometimes she wins – last week she walked away with a $1000 prize – and other times she leaves empty-handed, but the bingo hall has become her regular fixture in her long retirement.
“I like the social aspect of being here,” she said.
“Everyone is always very friendly, and it has a nice atmosphere here.”
Mrs Ruff spent the vast majority of her life working alongside her husband, Walter, on a cane farm and raising her three children in Mackay.
She only arrived in Mount Isa about 15 years ago when aged in her mid-80s.
At a time when most elderly people move to the coast for medical reasons, Mrs Ruff was relocating to live with her daughter, Pam.
“I had been to Mount Isa many times on the Greyhound bus to visit because I have never had a driver’s licence,” she explained.
“I was living alone in Mackay after my husband died and Pam thought it would be a good idea for me to come and live with her.”
Mrs Ruff said she was lucky to have had no serious health concerns during her long life.
She moves around with the aid of a walker after surgery following a fall, but otherwise, a life of clean and simple living, and hard work – especially in cane farming – has blessed her with good physical health and spirit.
“I never smoked and I never drank,” she said of the secrets to living past 100.
“I would sometimes just have a sip of my husband’s shandy.
“I just tried to work hard and always look after my family.”