The Optimist Club: Tamworth's Russell Godden celebrates his 100th birthday

But the invitation-only social club is not the only exclusive membership Russell Godden holds; he's just joined the list of people to blow out 100 candles on his birthday cake.

It's not lost on the quiet and humble former Royal Australian Air Force pilot how fortunate he is to still be here.

"We're all optimistic that we'll be here next week, the average age of the club is about 91," he said.

"In my case I'm sure my parents gave me a good genetic inheritance and I had a wonderful wife for 68 years who I'm sure made an enormous contribution to my social and physical welfare.

"Through life I have had a number of what could be called near-death experiences on the ground and in the air, I came through those unscratched and I'm sure that's due to divine oversight.

"People would say I'm lucky but I don't think it's luck."

Mr Godden was a bomber in World War II and was awarded the French Legion of Honour medal for his war efforts.

It's a time he believes is better forgotten, except for the one fairytale to come out of it all.

Around 1942, Mr Godden's mother, a member of the Country Women's Association, struck up a friendship with her pen pal Edith across the globe in England.

Naturally when Mr Godden went to England he went to meet his mother's pen friend.

"The girl who became my wife," he said.

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"We were engaged on our third meeting, it just seemed that we knew."

The pair were married after the war ended in 1945 and went on to have three sons and a daughter.

It was a promotion in the Department of Agriculture in 1961 that saw Mr Godden move to Tamworth where he's lived ever since.

Born at Clifton Hill in Melbourne, he grew up on a farm in the Southern Riverina and joined the Department of Agriculture in 1940 initially providing advisory services.

When he returned from war, he became a district agronomist and eventually became the regional director of advisory services for the north and north-west regions.

"I liked meeting with farmers as much as anything, it was always a challenge," Mr Godden said.

There's no real secret to growing old except living a good life, he said.

"You do learn by your experiences, I spend a lot of time reminiscing on the past and think about what a wonderful life I've had," he said.