Life

Pam Farrar from Bribie Island tells her Moreton Story

This amazing 82-year-old loves fast cars, flying and fast boats, but insists she’s no adrenaline junkie. Meet Pam Farrar as she shares her Moreton Story.

As Bribie's Pam Farrar recounts her 82 years, describes flying in her Tiger Moth and the joy of teaching tai chi by sea, it's impossible not to smile. Pam shares her story here ...

"I like fast cars, I like flying, I like fast boats, but I don't think you'd classify me as an adrenaline junkie because I love tai chi and that's all but ... but when you breathe and relax, it's a similar peace. I works together.

Flying is not an interest but a passion.

I own a Tiger Moth, who is named 'little contessa' she is based in Caboolture. She is a model from 1940 not quite as old as I am.

Frank my husband passed away and about 10 years ago, one of my (tai chi) students, Mary Taylor, treated me to a flight.

It was just such a wonderful feeling when we took off. We cut the runway down, and then went up. It wasn't silence, I know, but it was quieter than thundering down the runway, and then we got off and just drifted.

It was like a bird just flying. We made a few turns and pilot Nick Maylor said to me, “would you like to do a loop?” Yeah, we've gone up and you think you're going to fall out but we've gone up and down. It was just the feeling of absolute freedom, and not constantly having to be in control.

I was talking to the pilot and I said that I just wanted to know how to fly and not just be a passenger.

I had just sold quite a lot of property in the city and I thought well, some people got a new car, I'm going to have a new aircraft.

My flight history goes back to my dad Leo von Meuter. He was Lieutenant at the Luftwaffe, German air force during the Second World War.

Too often, Jews joined in to protect the children, trying to keep Jewish identity in the background.

He had a pretty decent reputation, but Hitler wasn't exhausted enough to say, "You 're Jewish, cut off your hands." He continued to fly and was shot down during the latter days of the war. To be truthful, I don't remember much of him, I was really only a baby in arms when my mummy brought me to England to look after me and change our names. I'm Maria von Meuter and I'm Pam Saxton.

I was a 3 year stewardess for British European Airways as a young woman and married a pilot. In 1967, we came to Australia, and moved to Bribie.

In my 82 years I've seen a lot of improvement, and even on Bribie. There are far more opportunities for women than there were in my day; you were born, you got married, and you had kids — the end of your story.

But now you can do whatever you want, but I would like to see things more evenly for jobs that we can do both ... I just don't see why there is this difference in salary.

I’ve run free tai chi classes on Tuesdays and Saturdays for the last 30 years. It keeps me fit and socialising and that is the main thing.

It’s not just a physical thing, it’s a mental thing, emotional as well, and a little bit spiritual — a bit like flying.”