Antonio's 90th birthday bash celebrates Australia

A 21-year-old Antonio in uniform: the young sailor was part of a 125-strong crew that patrolled the waters off North Africa.

Antonio with wife Maria in 2001.

As Antonio Spurio Saturno completed his compulsory Italian military service during World War II, it wasn't a faceless enemy he was fighting – it was his own family.

‘I was in the Italian Navy patrolling the Mediterranean Sea and my two brothers, Nino and Pietro, were serving with the Australian military in Palestine,’ Antonio said.

‘It was devastating knowing my brothers were "enemies".’

‘They had migrated to Australia with my father when I was still a baby, and from a young age I thought I would never see them again.’

While it might seem like a lot for any 24-year-old to face, Antonio said he had already dealt with hardship in his life.

‘I was forced to become an adult at a very young age,’ Antonio said.

‘When my father and brothers left Italy for Australia, I had to learn to look after my mother and myself.’

The war ended in 1945 and, by 1949, Antonio was married and had one child, a girl named Rita. It was then that a letter arrived from Antonio's brother, Pietro, asking him to immigrate to Australia.

‘Two months after I received his letter I was in possession of documents to expatriate to this glorious nation, Australia,’ Antonio said.

‘I remember arriving in Port Phillip Bay on the 15th of February 1949 and sending a telegram telling Pietro of our arrival in Australia.

‘I also told him my wife and I had one extra passenger – our second child named Gilda.

‘Finally, my brothers and I were face-to-face, smiling and talking a lot. Now, we are more than friends. We're amalgamated in every way.’

But Antonio admits he was most nervous to finally meet his father.

‘It was the first time I came face-to-face with the man who created me,’ he said.

‘But from the moment I arrived here I saved every penny, working at random labouring jobs, and six years later my family was able to build and move into a new home.’

After literally building his new life here in Australia with his own hands, Antonio has achieved many great things in his 90 years and is looking forward to recognising them all at a huge birthday bash he is organising.

The celebration will also mark his 56th year as an Australian and, as with all significant birthdays, Antonio is nostalgic as he looks back warmly on his migration to Australia.

‘My whole life has been highly amalgamated with this glorious nation for almost 100 years,’ he said.

‘I was born with a vision for a brand new continent, desperate for honest and legal migrants and, in particular, Italian migrants.

‘My family has given this country the best it could offer.’

Antonio turned 90 on 26 June 2010. He has written two books in Italian, called ‘My Life Between Two Nations’ and ‘A History of a Father and Son’.

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