WA boxing legend and PCYC hero turns 100

Bunbury PCYC’s volunteer legend, Bill Ivory, blew his 100th candle on April 6th 2022, and celebrating his birthday at PCYC after 60 years of volunteering at the centre, just felt like the right thing to do!

The party was held outside at Bunbury PCYC, with the entrance area appropriately decorated with boxing gloves by PCYC Institute of Training students. A big crowd came to celebrate and wish Bill many happy returns, including family and friends and many of his students from the numerous generations of his 60 year-long boxing coaching career.

A couple of Bill’s long-term friends and fellow boxers explained that learning to box under Bill’s wing taught them good values and kept them out of trouble. Over the years they grew to become good friends and would visit each other regularly to watch footy together.

A mother of two children who were in the latest generation coached by Bill laughed explaining that one could not be late for his classes – one of her sons made the mistake once, “never again!”

Other students agreed: “If you were late, you were done!” “You’d get a stern talking-to; you better not be wasting his time”. Bill wouldn’t tolerate tardiness, and his recruits quickly learned to show respect by being disciplined and punctual.

Bill junior further explained that for his father, it was about taking that confidence gained with boxing and use that to go on with other things in life and be successful.

MC, Tom Dillon, shared many fun memories and everyone could feel how the tight-knit community revolved around boxing at Bunbury PCYC.

Bill was chuffed by the event, "Believe me, no way in the world can I say enough thanks for the effort you people have made to come and say hello – no way in the world do I deserve the importance that I’ve had, I’m thinking half the time they must be talking about someone else!”

Happy Birthday Bill!