Today's Golden Age portrait is of beautiful Cecily, & her guide dog Janey...
Cecily is 83, she was born Newcastle in 1940, one of 6 children 3 girls and 3 boys - only 3 left remaining now. Her sister lives in the Brentwood Village which is where Cecily lives.
At 5 years old when she started school, Cecily got very sick, aching arms and neck and cried for hours, the local doctor gave her a needle for whooping cough, which caused big problems, she got optic neuritis causing vision loss. She has been without vision ever since..
Cecily was sent to St Lucy's school for the blind in Sydney and did not get to go home very much at all from the boarding school.
She attended Mayfield High school as a boarder, and got to go to go home for some weekends and all school holidays to her relief.
Cecily left school at 16 and worked at Allen's Sweets, Chippendale, packing sweets and cake decorations.
She married at 22 and her husband Ron got a block of land in Kogarah and they built a house, where she lived with Ron. He sadly died at 52 of emphysema, Cecily was just 46 . They had no children not by choice.
Cecily remarried at 54 and lived at Coffs Harbour for a few years. When her second Husband also passed away, she moved to Brentwood village.
Cecily has had 3 guide dogs over her lifetime.
She has had Janey for 5 1/2 years she was 17 months old when she got her. As you can see from the images she is a lovely placid dog.
They have such a beautiful bond, & Janey does her absolute best to please Cecily. Janey came from Guide Dogs Centre Glossodia
