Bek Hyland interviewed her grandmother Merle Moore, who passed away at 106, as part of the 100 Project, an online directory of centenarians' life stories. Since its launch, the project has collected and preserved the memories of many Australian centenarians. Ros Walker and John Winter are the creators of the project, which encourages people to document elders' stories for posterity by interviewing them on camera or through written submissions. The 100 Project has stored over a certain number (no specific number is mentioned) of video interviews with centenarians from around Australia, aiming to preserve their experiences and opinions for future generations.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-06,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event.
When Bek Hyland sat down to interview her grandmother, Merle Moore, she found herself taken back to a time when the horse and cart were the main form of transport.
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horse → sit → transport
The late centenarian remembered the grief of losing a sister, and the simple joy of turning on a light switch.
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centenarian → remember → switch
"I've had a sad life, but I've got to overcome a lot of that and think of the good things, not the bad things," she said.
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she → have → things
"Nobody had power, electricity, just kerosene lights on the centre of the table; white candles in a candlestick to get to bed with, until electricity came and then everyone was laughing."
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everyone → have → bed
"Unless you've been through it, you just don't know the value of lights."
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you → know → lights
One of the "good things" Ms Moore got to savour before her death at the age of 106 was watching herself tell her life's story on the 100 Project, an online directory of centenarians' tales.
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herself → get → tales
"We watched it a few times together over the years because she'd forgotten she'd done it," Ms Hyland said.
"
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Hyland → watch → it
"It always brought a smile to her face to know she was captured and will be remembered this way."
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she → bring → face
When Ms Hyland was planning her grandma's 100th birthday party at Depot Beach on the south coast of NSW, the 100 Project caught her eye, and a couple of years later she reached out.
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she → plan → years
"Having the opportunity to simply sit with her and ask her the questions and capture her memories, it's been one of the most meaningful experiences of my life," she said.
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she → have → life
"We did it four years ago now, and there are many more centenarians who have added their stories to it since.
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who → do → it
I can only imagine it's going to keep growing now that people are living longer."
The 100 Project
Filmmakers Ros Walker and John Winter are the creators of The 100 Project, which encourages people to document elders' stories for posterity.
"Often with the very old, they tend to get little grabs on Anzac Day or on special occasions when you see them blowing out candles and things like that," Mr Winter said.
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Winter → imagine → that
"But I've discovered centenarians have great stories to tell and they're very keen on telling them."
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they → discover → them
Potential participants are asked to fill in an online form.
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participants → ask → form
If the nomination is accepted, they can upload their own videos, which are edited for free, or the project team may choose to do the interview themselves.
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team → accept → interview
"We probably interviewed half of the centenarians we've got, but families can use the online tutorials, their smartphones and our questions to interview the centenarian," Mr Winter said.
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Winter → interview → centenarian
"We're interested in talking to people that have lived for 100 years and asking their opinion on how things are going in the world, and in the future as well.
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things → talk → future
With no plans other than sharing online through social media, The 100 Project stores the content for posterity, for current and future Australians.
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Project → share → Australians
Video versus audio
The 100 Project is not the only digital collection of Australia's spoken history.
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Project → speak → history
The Memory Tapes podcast by the National Library of Australia presents a collection of audio interviews with Australians that dates to 1957.
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that → present → 1957
Curator Shirleene Robinson said the stories contained in the 58,000 hours of recorded history included famous people and ordinary Australians as well.
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stories → say → people
"There are people in that collection who can take us back to stories of seeing the convicts with lashes on their backs and so on, so it really is an extraordinary resource for all Australians," Dr Robinson said.
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Robinson → be → Australians
Dr Robinson said there was a growing interest in genealogy, ancestry and living history.
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Robinson → say → genealogy
It's important we understand the history of our own country, and it's also important we understand the histories of our family, of who we are as well," she said.
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she → understand → family
The aural historian said it could be easier to capture people's stories without filming them.
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it → say → them
"I think it's a lot easier to have somebody relax and share their story if it's only audio than if they're also being filmed at the same time," she said.
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she → think → time
"People really are searching for something that is real, that is genuine and authentic where you know you're listening to something that was recorded face-to-face, perhaps in 1987 or just this year, that's really powerful.
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that → search → 1987
For anyone looking to record the story of an elderly or medically unwell loved one, Mr Winter had some simple advice.
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Winter → look → advice
He said the key was finding a quiet location and not interrupting the subject.
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key → say → subject
"Allow them space after they've answered a question because often, after the silence, comes the best answer."
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answer → allow → silence