A woman who served in the Royal Air Force and Army is celebrating her 100th birthday today.

Cicely Ball, who lives in Rustington, was born in India on October 6, 1924, to father Arthur Andrew Masters, a civil servant for the British Army, and mother Winifred D’Rozario.

Cicely is the youngest of seven siblings.

At the age of 17, despite her ambition to become a journalist, she joined the Royal Air Force medical service to help with the war effort, following in her father’s and four of her siblings' footsteps, to train as a radiographer.

After her time in the RAF, Cicely transferred to the ATS, the women’s branch of the Army, at a time when British forces suffered a series of defeats by the Japanese army in Burma and hospitals were overwhelmed.

During this time, Cicely worked in military hospitals to help the sick and wounded, until the Second World War ended in 1945.

Cicely in Darjeeling Cicely in Darjeeling (Image: Chris Austen) At the age of 21, Cicely had achieved the rank of Warrant Officer. After the war ended, she took up administrative work.

In 1953, Cicely had her only son, Chris, with husband James Ball.

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Chris recalled: “She was a talented writer and she had an intelligent, analytical mind.

“She was a great lover of classical music and had an encyclopaedic knowledge of opera. She was a perfectionist who put great energy into everything that she did.

“During my school days it was usual for her to work 12-hour days. Unfortunately, these days she has advanced Alzheimer's and has no recollection of her past."

Chris and Cicely in Athens Chris and Cicely in Athens (Image: Chris Austen) Chris recalls his mother being friends with influential figures, such as neighbour Tenzing Norgay, who was one of the first to reach the summit of Mount Everest, when the family lived in Darjeeling in the foothills of the Himalayas.

Cicely and Chris moved to Rustington after James died in 1995.

She became very involved with their local church, St Joseph’s, in Station Road, where Chris says she “worked on all sorts of different projects”.

Chris also told The Argus that his mother champions the empowerment of women.

He said: “She was born in a time when women had much less power or influence and I think that was always a frustration for her”.

Cicely is celebrating her birthday today.