Stanley Frederick Chambers was born on the 7th April 1922 to Joseph and Florence Chambers.  Originally hailing from Bristol in Gloucestershire, England, where their first four children were born, in 1922 Joe and Florence decided to join his brother and his family in Australia. 

In February 1922, they set sail for their new home aboard the maiden voyage of the Moreton Bay.  Florence was heavily pregnant with Stan at the time and found the voyage hardgoing, giving birth to Stan not long after their arrival in Australia.

After living with Joe's brother in Broadmeadows for a while, the family eventually settled in Pascoe Vale, where Stan attended school.

Upon the outbreak of WW2, Stan enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force and while posted away from home, he selected a pen pal to write to from a magazine provided to servicemen at the time.  He chose a young lady by the name of Lorna Barclay as she hailed from the same area as he did. 

After some months of corresponding, Stanley Frederick Chambers arranged to meet his pen pal on the Flinders Street Bridge while on leave in Melbourne.  The meeting did not eventuate as neither were sure who the other was and they ended up walking past each other.  The next day, June's mother answered a knock on the door, looked at the young man nervously standing there in his RAAF uniform and said "you must be Stan!"  That was the beginning of a classic war-time romance, the kind they make movies about.  Not long after, Stan and June were married in the Chaplain's office on the RAAF base in Hamilton on the 15th October 1943 and began a lifetime together which spanned over 63 years.  A true-life wartime romance!

Stan continued to serve his country and had many postings, including Mt Gambier, Hamilton, Kingaroy, Townsville and Darwin.  He was stationed in Darwin at the time it was bombed and lived through the horror of seeing his best friend killed beside him in the bunker they were sheltering in.  While Stan spoke freely of most other parts of his RAAF times, he rarely spoke of his time in Darwin.  He received his discharge from service at the end of the war, in 1945. 

For most of his working life, Stan was a pantograph operator/engineer and a master craftsman of engraving.  He spent over 25 years of this time with Arrow Engraving and was responsible for the making and installing of the bronze Rolls of Honour which are situated in the Australian War Memorial in Canberra.  His grand-daughter, Danni, was thrilled when on a Grade 6 excursion to Canberra, to be able to exclaim proudly, "my Pa made those!!"

Stan and June lived almost half their married life in Pascoe Vale, raising their two children, Robyn and Russell, in the house they bought in Bendigo Street.  Their children grew up, married and  began lives of their own and at this time, June and Stan embarked upon new beginnings of their own.

In 1977 Stan and June moved to a unit in Parkville and during their time there, they joined the Salvation Army.  They were assigned to what was then the Mount Royal Home for the Aged as Chaplains and brought much joy and compassion to those they visited. 

In 1984, Stan and June made the move to Bethany Retirement Village in Camberwell, where they spent many happy years together.  They became somewhat of an institution there, known initially as the "youngies" and putting their efforts into running the kiosk, the OP shop, devotions and many other activities. Proceeds from these activities were used to purchase many items for the benefit of Bethany, such as a ride-on mower and large screen TV for the hostel area.

Stan also became the "live-in-maintenance man", being called at any time of the day to change light globes, re-start the boiler system for the complex, etc.  He was affectionately known by some staff members as "Mr. Bethany".

The final years of Stan's life saw a number of illnesses which took their toll.  He was sadly taken from us in February 2007, his kidneys finally failing him.  The devotion and love with which June nursed him through those final years was truly inspirational.

Stan Chambers was a "man amongst men" - a devoted husband, loving father, and adoring Pa and great grandfather.  I am very fortunate to have had two men who I have been proud to call my father.