Dorothy

Today's Golden age portrait is of beautiful Dorothy, who turns 84 this year. Dorothy was born in Crown st Women's hospital, & was one of 8 having 1 sister & 6 brothers. At around age 8, Dorothy was sent to an orphanage by her parents. It is believed this was done to keep her " safe" from other family members. She grew up there until around 16 years old. Dorothy recalls it being a very tough time growing up with the Catholic Nuns,who very overly strict with the girls & didn't allow them any childhood fun times. Dorothy became a Nanny at age 17. One of the children she cared for was named Leugene. & she decided that when she got married, she would like to have three daughters of her own, & give them french names.. Leugene, Michelle, & Charmaine.. (Dorothy, did go on to have a daughter, which she named Leugene.. but followed by that was two sons named Kenneth, & Darrell.. ) Dorothy met her first husband in George street Sydney. Originally Dorothy had been seeing his friend Max, but once Dorothy & Darrell met, they soon fell for each other. Darrell was in the army reserves, & his family lived in Ballina & had a banana farm. They married when Dorothy was 19. Dorothy made her own wedding dress & veil, and wore it white gloves. She also did all the catering for the reception. Dorothy went on to make all the clothing for her children. Especially dresses for Leugene. Leugene remembers her Mum handmade, & smocked a bedspread, pillowcase, & curtains all to match in pink & white gingham. Dorothy was known as an amazing cook.. sadly age limits her time in the kitchen these days. Dorothy recalls the story of her first pregnancy, & how her husband Darrell went through the whole 8 months of morning sickness with her.. She said she was over the toilet, while he was over the sink.. He even collapsed in the cane fields where he was working & said to his buddies.. "My wife is having our baby" it turned out he was right!Throughout her adult years Dorothy worked at Inghams chickens doing night shift. It was tough as she had to miss the kids school events as she needed to sleep in the day to return to work at night. Despite the good years, their relationship became turbulent, & eventually Dorothy & Darrell separated. Dorothy still maintains he was her one true love. Sadly Dorothy lost her middle child Kenneth, at age 54. She said the pain of the loss will never leave her. & says no Mother should ever have to bury her child, no matter what age. The Royal Doulton rose she holds in one of the images, was a gift he bought her when he was a teenager. Dorothy is still sharp as a tack, & can recall all the birth dates of her children, 5 grandchildren, & 7 great grandchildren, (she has an 8th on the way.) Dorothy now lives with her daughter, she still enjoys making things & has claimed Leugene's craft room as her own. Leugene says that her Mum has alaways taken pride in her appearance & looking presentable. Even when money wasn't readily available. Even at this age, she always goes out with everything matching.. Shoes, bag, accessories.

Alan & Jean

Today's Golden Age portraits are of Alan & Jean..

They are both 82 years old & been married for 62 years!

Alan was in the Queen's Guard in England, so he wore his uniform for their wedding day.

They were married in 1961 in Shalford England. Emigrating to Australia in 1978.

They had 4 children, sadly only three remain earthside with them.

They have 6 grandchildren, & 3 great grand children with 4 more due this year.

Their family are in awe of the love they share, & just how in love they remain after so many years.

They said they often tell them to"get a room" because they are still like love sick teens.

They both speak so lovingly of each other.. truly they are soul mates.

These days they reside in Clarence Town, & enjoy gardening, Alan also does some woodworking. Jean loves to hand make cards for special occasions.

Colleen Haggie

A special share for today... this is beautiful Colleen.. she is over from New Zealand visiting her family..

Colleen realises this will most likely be her last trip to visit Australia & see her family... So when her daughter Bronwyn asked me to take some family photos. I sneakily packed a few extra outfits & props.. knowing full well, that I intended to take some portraits of her to pay tribute to the matriarch of the family.

I didn't give Colleen any time to think about it.. knowing she wouldn't want a fuss to be made of her.. but I am so glad she didn't fight me on it. She looks like a queen..

Here is her story as told by the children..

Colleen Haggie

Born in New Zealand 1942. Raised mainly in the Waikato region.

An only child for 10 years.

Her husband was Syd Haggie who was a butcher, married for 60 years Syd sadly passed away in 2020. (I captured a pic of Colleen holding his hat). Mum and dad were great entertainers and we always had lots of family and friends for big Sunday dinners.

Mum knew how to cook for a big crowd. Mum was an exceptional organiser knowing how to delegate jobs so us kids were often the servers and clean up crew for any function/event mum and Dad were hosting.

Mums first job was with a Milner (hat maker)making and designing hats and learnt her dressmaking skills here. She had a real flare for dressmaking and was later able to set up her own dressmaking business from home while holding a job at a jewellers.

Times were a lot harder in those days especially having to raise 7 children so we often had 3 boarders living with us. As kids we had our chores , feeding the chooks, dogs, putting out the massive amounts of milk bottles for the milkman, helping with the ridiculous amount of washing, peeling spuds etc. No dishwashers then so mum had a roster sorted for us. Mum had us running like a well oiled machine.

The cake tins were always full and soup on the stove . Mum could make things go a long way.

Bottling fruit, making pickles was another string to her bow.

Always admired Mum's creativity her sketches and paintings were beautiful. Usually always of horses dogs and flowers.

We had so many animals around us cats, dogs, ducklings, opossums, donkey, chooks, birds anything that the cat dragged in or limped in. Always has a soft spot for a sick or ugly animal that needs loving.

Horses were a big part of mums life, from age 3 as she was surrounded by a family of Jockeys & trainers. Colleen got her own horse at age 8. Her children all learnt to ride and some of them continued to do so once leaving home.

After leaving the Waikato region in 1976 she moved to Auckland& purchased a fish and chip shop. They then moved into the café business… after many long hours, and still a lot of family living at home a career change had to happen.

Colleen was also head orderly at Middlemore hospital for many years, with Husband Syd working beside her as head theatre orderly.Later working as a supervisor for a stationary company. While Syd did real estate.

Colleen was also Swimming coach for the school her children attended.

Colleen was recently was diagnosed with bowel cancer, and it all was successfully removed with an excellent recovery. She also had to battle a very painful back problem due to damage to her spine. She was wheel chair bound for 4 months. These things may have slowed her down for awhile but her determination and love of life has meant she can now enjoy her golden years.

Charles & Malvina Keller

I had the pleasure of capturing the wonderful Charles & Malvina for this Golden age portrait session.

Charles Keller , born in Pécs Hungary in December 1936 (it was his birthday the day we did the photo session) He was the third born of 9 children. His father was an engineer and his mum a housemaid. Charles' childhood was very poor. He started working on farms at the age of 5 and later in a Uranium mine. He loved music but was unable to pursue his love due to the commitment he gave to his family.

At the age of 21 he decided he wanted a better life and emigrated to Australia in 1956. He was all alone leaving his family behind.

Charles met a beautiful young girl in Kandos in 1958 who became his wife and together they have 7 children, 8 grandchildren and soon to be 4 great grandchildren. Charles worked all over Australia installing power lines and finished his working life at Australia Cement.

Their built their home themselves, and it was a home full of love and pride and everyone was welcome.

Their gardens were used for weddings and featured in garden magazines.

65 years of marriage and their love for each other is still as beautiful as the day they first met, ill health and age has seen them both go into care, but they are still together and will remain so forever

Malvina Currie /Keller , born in Charbon in December 1942, she was the ninth born of 12 children. Malvinas father was a miner, and her mother was a very busy housewife and Mum.

Their childhood was very basic , often hunting rabbits for their dinner . There wasn’t much time to enjoy their childhood as there was always work to be done at home but fun was jumping in dams and catching cray dabs . In 1958 Malvina was a young 16 year old working in a cafe in Kandos when a gorgeous young Hungarian came into the cafe and caught her eye, The communication barrier was not going to stop this young love, and they became parents to their first daughter in 1959.

They married in 1960 followed by another 6 children in very close concession.

Sadly, due to the rush to officially marry/ expense they didn't have anyone to take any photos. So have no record of their special day.

Malvina (Mally) worked very hard as her husband Charles worked away bringing up the children. She later worked as a brilliant Chinese cook, cleaner, and was always knitting for her children and cooking meals for family and many friends.

Their home was their castle, with endless hours being put into renovations and spectacular gardens often used for weddings and articles in the local paper. They travelled a lot within Australia and enjoyed family being together. After 60 years of living in the same town Mally and Charles eventually sold their beloved home and moved to the central coast.

Their lives have been full of moments they will cherish forever and even now, their love for each other and their family is something beautiful to witness.

They both reside in a care facility where they spend their days together as they have always done.

Sadly, their son Micheal passed away in 2019. The Teddy bear in the photos was made in his memory.

Celina

Celina went to school in Falenica (which now doesn’t exist as it is now a part of Warsaw now in Poland)

Celina was married as a 16 year old. it was an arranged marriage. Her husband was aged 26, he was destined to marry Celina's older sister, but she ran off with another man, so Celina’s hand was offered instead. Stan (Celina's Husband) was in the jewellery business, he had survived wwii in 1939 with his mother in Auschwitz as he was a younger boy. He was later inducted into the NAVY and trained as a professional boxer.

Despite her young age. she did her best to become accustomed to him in the following months.

Their first child, Irene was born in Otwosck in 1953, their next child, a son was born 10 years later.

3 years after that they all migrated to Australia in Chippindale, where they squatted in an empty farmhouse. Celina’s mother in-law had a friend in Adelaide who found her a partner to marry, a Polish Jew. After two years she reimbursed him the money he out laid to help her come to the country, and the marriage was annulled. She then helped migrate her son and daughter in law, Celina to Australia and all of them including the children were squatting. They were ratted out as squatters two years later., where they then moved into a semi detached home in Earskinville and then third child Anna was born.

Their children were later enrolled into Earskinville public school their eldest Irene, struggled as she was fluent Polish only. They moved to Petersham 3 years later to the final marital home which was a grand 2 story twin duplex.

Celina started working when her youngest child Anna, was in school, and her first job was in the biscuit factory in Campbeltown where she packaged the biscuits.

Celina’s best friend’s mother worked in Menzies club and got Celina job where she worked around age 35, at Menzies club, George street, which was a third class restaurant, with a bar at Vinyard station near German Keller bar.

She said she made a second wage on tips (10 tables) and she said that when the U.S ships came in, she doubled her tips

Later she worked as a bar maid in Ashfield Polish club and her husband was a goldsmith making his own Jewellery in their back yard shed.

After a 29 year marriage, she divorced Stan, sold her half of the duplex in Petersham and moved to Yagoona. From there she started working at the Bankstown Polish Club (to which she will still tell you she has industrial deafness from, as it was always so loud in there. Post selling her home in Petersham she joined the seniors club and started travelling around Australia with the granny busses

Celina has lived in her Yagoona 4 bedroom home for the last 35 years, to which she manages still on her own and if she ever knows you are coming, will have a hot meal waiting for you with something to drink, and no it’s never water

Celina is the mother of three children, 7 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren.

She enjoys a scotch or a red wine yet will still enjoy Vodka or a beer on a cold day

Celina enjoys going to Cabramatta RSL club for bingo and raffles to the point she got the Nic-name Bingo Betty

She loves dancing and dressing up for club life. This has slowed down a lot but she is a cheeky socialite with her own licence where to travels too and from home enough to keep herself out of trouble.

Cecily

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

Cecil Fish

A pretty special Golden Age session today, for a lovely Gentleman I have been trying to capture for over a year now.

Cecil Robert James Fish celebrated his 103rd birthday yesterday!

Known to his family as Bob, he was born in Temora in a place called Quandary.

He was one of 11 children, and the only still alive today.

He used to walk 3 miles to school, but left at age 14 years to start cutting wood. School wasn't for me, he told me. I wanted to do what I pleased, & not have someone telling me what to do..

He proudly has a picture of his first car framed. He said he was 15 when he bought it, & it was 15 pound. He didn't have a licence so his brother drove it until he did.

Bob received a conscription letter, telling him he needed to go to war at age 19.

Bob married & soon his wife Edna was pregnant. He was in Kingaroy completing his army training when he got a telegram to say his son had arrived. As a soldier, you couldn't just leave to see your family. He had to wait until Robert was almost 12 months old before they first met.

He was in the 1st Australian Field Squadron RAE.

He arrived in Milne bay in August 1943.

We built roads & bridges, my job was that of an engineer.

He recounted a story about a trip where he narrowly escaped being killed. He went on a trip at night, with about 5-6 men to post some letters.

Bob offered to get out & post the letters & as he approached the post box there was a sentry guard.

Bob spoke to him & gestured that he was just posting the letters. Assuring him they were not Japanese.

As he was walking back he got to about 20 feet away from & the sentry opened fire on him.

Th sentry opened fire with an Owen gun thinking he was the enemy. He put the whole 32 rounds at me, I dived behind the truck & hid behind the wheels to protect himself. Unbelievably not one bullet hit him..

Upon returning from the war Bob & Edna lived with his Mother for a time, before she told him it was time to buy his own home.

They bought a home in Fairfield for 3607 pounds. They ended up with 6 children. Their final son was quite an unexpected surprise Bob said.

His wife Edna used to care for younger children as an income. She would have up to 10 children under 3 to look after during the day.

Bob bought a truck & returned to hauling wheat, cement & wood.

Edna passed away at age 88 from Dementia in 2009.

Bob said he after he retired, he was happy to pass away at 85 years old.. but time had other plans it seems.

Other than a bowel operation at age 99 Bob has never had any major health complications. His hearing & sight is now worse for wear, but he still lives independently at his home of 50 years.

He climbed the Sydney Harbour bridge at age 80 & only handed his licence in at age 95.

He did a lot of travelling around in a caravan over his time, but when his daughter took him to Paris for a trip at age 85, he didn't like it, & asked to return back home after a week.. which he did.. alone..

One of the images I took alongside Bob is that of him & his granddaughter Erica, who is in the Navy. It was taken in 2016 at the Anzac day march.

He has 12 Grandchildren & 12 (plus 1 on the way) Great grandchildren.

Bob is truly amazing, he had so many stories of things that happened during the war, stories about his grandchildren & the time he spent with them, as well as life advice his father gave him.. like marry the worst, meanest, toughest woman you can find..because then if she changes once you get married, it can only be for the better..

Anne Duggan

Cecilia Anne Duggan (nee Holdom) who goes by Anne..

Born 10th January 1938 in Wallsend Hospital.

She was one of 11 children! 7 girls & 4 boys

Anne told me her mother was involved in a motorbike accident where she was in the sidecar. She was pregnant at the time & lost the baby. (it was her 3rd baby) The Doctors told her she would have no more children after that. So she had 9 more, just to prove him wrong.

Her father had a bad heart & did quite young at 56.

She recalls her mother telling them to get outside & play from early on in the morning. They would return for mealtimes, but then were quickly ushered back outside no matter the weather.

They had double beds throughout the house which they shared for sleep. She said they were so happy & didn't even realise how poor they were.

Anne attended Cardiff high school, then Merewether. She finished up at 14 years 10 months to work in a milk bar.

Then she worked in a gift shop near the hospital at Wallsend.

At 19 she became engaged to William, she was married at 20 & had her first baby at 21.

She had 2 children, a son & daughter.

Anne worked from home making baby clothes, then she would walk the streets door knocking & selling her clothing.

In the end she took orders as her designs were quite popular. I asked where she learnt to sew. She said her mother had given her the old machine she used, but she had no idea how to use it.

When her eldest baby as 11 months she had no clothing as times were tough. So her mother came around, threw a pattern & some fabric at her, & said cut this out & I will be back in an hour to show you how to make it.. she showed her once, & the rest is history.

Anne opened a fashion shop in Charlestown which she ran for 15 years.

She sold the business but soon got bored at home & started applying for jobs. She refused to fill in Rockmans paperwork, insisting they either hire her off her word or she would walk away.. they were set on the form being filled out, so she left..

She then went to Cue fashion, & offered to do a days work free to show what she could do.

As she approached the store she saw a lady leaving with other shops bags but not Cue. She approached her & said, excuse me madam, but you just left this store without a Cue purchase.. please come in & let me show you around.. She waltzed in & told the sales assistant to get her everything in a size 12. She proudly told me she sold that customer $800 worth of clothing.. an amount she said was huge for that day & age.

She stayed on for a time at Cue before working in another shop called Petronella, where she managed the stores, she was 60 when she left.

Anne & William bought an old church in Hinton & renovated it into a house. When they sold that they moved into a retirement home at Bonnells bay.

Sadly William was diagnosed with dementia in 2014 & he had to be moved into a care facility across the road. He has been there just under 3 years.

Anne sees him either daily or every second day. She said he still remembers her, & is obsessed with her, but doesn't socialise with others much. She misses being able to be with him all the time, but she said she knows it's the safest place for him to be.

Anne has 6 Grandchildren, & 12 Great Grandchildren. She loves going out on day trips. Catching the train, & still she still drives.

Bev

Bev is 82.

Bev is the eldest of 3, with two younger brothers. Born in Beaudesert Qld.

As a 15 year old Bev said she caught a train to Kurri Kurri walked into the hospital, & asked for a job..

As a training nurse she was expected to live at the nurse quarters. They were all locked in at 10pm each night, & the rules were quite strict.

It so happened that Bev met her future husband Jim while working there, which meant she had to leave once they married. When they chose to marry, nurses were no longer allowed to live at the nurse quarters or continue training, as they were required to be single women.

Bev & Jim moved to Lake Macquarie & started their family. Together they trained & registered as Psychiatric nurses at Morisset Hospital.

Bev worked in the female wards, which later became mixed wards. Jim spent quite a lot of his time on rotating shifts, including time spent in the infamous Ward 21. Which had some of the most violent criminals in our state. The nursing staff carried no weapons or had any way of protecting themselves against an attack.

The work was hard & demanding, but they both made the most of their time whilst working there.

Unfortunately, Jim has since passed. Bev still wears his wedding ring on a chain around her neck.

Bev now spends her days socializing with her former work colleagues, talking about days gone by. She also loves to garden, & do knitting for charity.

Bev is blessed with 4 Children, 8 Grandchildren, & 1 great grandchild.

Bev said that the last 10 born were all boys.. & then 55 years from her last daughter, came her one & only great granddaughter.

Jim had always said he wanted his own soccer team, & they almost got it!

Betty Secomb

Betty is 100 years old!!

She was born 23rd May 1923 at Arnliffe Rochedale

Betty was registered as Jessie Elizabeth. Named after her grandmother who died a month prior to her birth.

Her family called her Betty, because that is what her Mother had wanted to call her originally.

Betty grew up around Gladesville, her Father was a returned soldier from world war 1. He became a labourer during the depression.

It was hard times for the family raising 6 children. Betty suffered a lot with her skin when she was a child, & had severe dermatitis. She missed a lot of school due to this condition, although she still always got good grades at school.

Betty loved animals & used to bring home all the strays. She loved caring for them, & shared her food with them.

As betty grew up, her Uncle would pick up some of the older siblings & take them to Sunday school.

This was the highlight of her week as she loved singing the hymns.

Later she attended Presbyterian church & longed for her own bible for her 16th birthday. Her Uncle bought her one as a gift.

Betty worked in a wool mill in Sydney, she would catch the train early each day. She was a small skinny girl, & had to shake the big heavy wool out onto the old wooden benches.. it was hard, physical work.

Betty had some friends that arranged a night out when she was 18, & it ended in a blind date with Gordon Secomb. They got along well & had a great night at the movies. Gordon was a soldier in ww11.

Betty & Gordon were married 11th August 1940. Betty was 20 years old.

It wasn't until after the war, that they had two of their children Max & Robyn. They lived in Kempsey on a dairy farm at Willawarren They loved living there, with Gordon's family close by.

The family loved to put on spreads of sponge cakes, slices & other homemade delights.

The boys would come back from milking at around 6am & have a big, cooked breakfast & cakes afterwards. betty was at her happiest living here.

Unfortunately Gordon had to find work elsewhere as the farm started to struggle.

Gordon, Betty & baby Max moved to the Central Coast where Gordon worked for Seargent Buses.

Betty then had daughter Robyn & they were living in a old cabin., but Betty was not coping & she had bad nerves. The doctor said for the sake of her health they needed to move.

They bought a house in Long Jetty where they stayed on for another 40 years. During that time they had another daughter, Joy.

When Gordon became unwell, Betty had to get her drivers licence. She was 75! She drove until she was 85 but then got macular degeneration. At that point she moved to Gorokan to be closer to her daughter.

Betty lived a life devoted to Jesus. Before she did anything she would get on her knees & pray, believing everything would be fine.

Betty attributes getting through the hardest times of her life to her faith.

Betty has one sibling remaining from her family. She turns 92 next week! Betty the eldest, & Valery the youngest child.

Betty has 12 Grandchildren, & 15 Great grandchildren.

Beryl Lott

I have two stories to share today.. the first Golden age portrait is of beautiful Beryl. She was kindly transported & assisted by the lovely carers (special thanks to Cassandra) from Fronditha Care.

She was a little hesitant to participate in my project, but I am so glad she ended up trusting me to tell her story & capture her. Beryl told us during the shoot that most of her photos & memories were destroyed many years ago during the floods in Maitland, which is just so sad.

Beryl was born on the 8th December 1926 in Casino N.S.W to Edward and Martha Ann Tapper. Beryl was the youngest of six children and had a wonderful childhood growing up in Wallangarra. Her fondest memory of this time was a personal wave from the Duke and Duchess of York in 1934 (Queen Elizabeth’s Grand Mother). Beryl was sitting on a post in the paddock with her father wearing her grubbiest overalls when a train went past with the Duke and Duchess standing on the platform at the back of the train, when the duchess spotted Beryl she gave her a wave.

Beryl moved to Maitland when she was 13 and attended High School at Maitland Girls High School.

At age 21 Beryl moved to Sydney to live with her brother and move away from Maitland to experience something different. She worked at Sterling Henrys in Flemington which was a manufacture business for materials.

Beryl met Allan Lott in 1950. At first Beryl thought was that he was the stupidest person she had ever met, as he would always wear an army overcoat and have chocolates in his pockets. They shared the same friend group and always got around as a group going to the beaches and hanging out.

Beryl was going to go on a holiday one day when Allan decided to ask her out to dinner, they went out to dinner and decided to become a couple and love bloomed from there.

Beryl and Allan married on the 2nd September 1952 at a registry office in Alburn. Beryl’s fondest memories of the day was her best friend, also named Beryl) Beryl's husband, and baby riding around in the front of the wedding car. When they would stop they would both pop out of the front seat and get funny looks.

Beryl and Allan went on to have four children Mark, Jennifer, Dianne and Grahame. (Dianne passed away at Three weeks old during the Golden Staph epidemic).

Allan passed away in 1962 after Beryl and Allan had been married for 10 years. Allan had had a car accident and had gone to gate keepers at the train station to report it. On this day the sun was hitting the rails blinding vision and they had turned the engines of on the train and it coasted in. Allan did not hear or see the train and got hit by it.

Beryl never remarried and went on to raise the children alone. She said she was very lucky to have friends to help her.

When Beryl retired from work she continued to work hard volunteering her time with the Arthritis association for Twenty years right up until six years ago . Beryl started volunteering at branch level, and worked her way up to become chairperson of the board. After stepping down as chairperson Beryl continued to volunteer once a week with sending out letters and cards. Beryl earned a “Golden Hip Award” and was the first person ever to receive this.

Beryl’s worst memory was being accused by her boss of being a part of the communist party. She had dinner at a Greek Restaurant the night previous and still remembers the Lamb and Risoni. The Greek restaurant was on the bottom floor of a building and the Communist party headquarters was on the top floor. The next day Beryl went in to work and her boss said to her “You were seen going to the communist party building yesterday” Beryl tried to explain that she had only been near the building as she was going to the restaurant, but her boss would not listen. Beryl had had had enough of this so told her boss to “Stick his job” but not quite those words!

Beryl is a grandmother to nine and a great grandmother to eight. She now resides in an aged care facility where is well loved by staff and other residents alike and spends her days reading books attending Trivia and running the residents shop.

Betty & Max

Betty & Max..

They have been married for 66 years.

Betty married Max when she was 17 & he was 20.. Her parents wouldn't give them permission to marry due to her age.. so they lied & told them she was pregnant so they would have to let them marry.. haha

They had to come clean when Betty didn't have a baby months later.. but they went on to have their first child 2 years later..

They raised 5 children together, & Betty proudly told me, that she has 22 grand children & 23 great grand children.

They originally got married in a registry office, so I went & picked Betty some flowers from my garden, & created some new portraits for them in the Fable Creative Studio & around the farm.

The love they have for each other is quite remarkable, especially after 66 years. They are soul mates.. & possess the kind of love that withstands time.

Andrew Murray

Andrew Murray was born in 1941 in Edinburgh Scotland.

He was one of 6 siblings, he was the youngest.

As a child he could walk to Edinburgh castle, & remembered that one day he & a friend climbed the fence & managed to make their way into the castle.

They were caught & had a stern talking to. They were also made to sign a document to say they would never break in again.

Drew was 5 when they first came over to Australia, he lived in Campsie in Sydney. The family travelled back & forth three times between Australia & Scotland, before settling here permanently.

Drew had a great love for Soccer & played for 40 years. He played a few games professionally. He recalled a memorable game at Henson Park, which was actually a football ground, but they were permitted to have their game of soccer there.

Drew finished school at 14 & at 16 joined the Merchant Navy. They travelled around Australia, & also to South America. But it was too dangerous for them to depart the boat there.

He had met a wonderful lady named Joy at a dance at Marrickville town hall. He married her at age 20.

After leaving the Navy he drove trucks, & buses. He also worked for the railway in Darling Harbour.

Drew took Joy on a voyage to Scotland as she had never seen snow. They were staying with his brother when in the morning he told Drew to wake Joy & tell her to come outside. Joy got to see the snow falling & landing on them. It was at a location called Arthurs Seat. Drew looked so happy while retelling this story to me, & remembering Joy's amazement & excitement.

Joy & Drew had two sons. They lived in Mt Pritchard when the kids were young.

They moved to Stroud after some years, & Joy was a seamstress & made curtains for local businesses & households.

Joy also worked as an organizer for Stroud show, & Drew helped her with those duties. Joy sadly passed away in 2012.

Drew developed lung cancer, & had to spend 3 months in the mater hospital. He has radiation scarring on the top half of his lung, which makes it now fairly ineffective.

In 2020 Drew had some health issues, & upon investigation they found that his appendix had burst.

Drew was diagnosed with dementia in recent years & the decision was made for him to sell up at Stroud & move to his son & daughter in laws farm in the Hunter Valley.

He did so well to recall all of his past memories. it's just his day to day that he has trouble with.

I made comment to Drew that I was surprised he didn't have an accent. He recalled getting teased for it at school by a boy who was in a higher grade & much bigger than him. He said they got into a fist fight, & after scrapping with each other for some time the fight ended, & they became great mates.. Drew did however work very hard to disguise / lose his accent to avoid any more issues.

Barbara Robinson

Barbara Robinson born 26th April 1934 in Gateshead near Newcastle in England to parents John Alexander Robinson and Sylvia Hannah Armstrong who married in 1924. Barbara the youngest of three daughters, eldest Sylvia born 1925 and Jean in 1927. Barbara recalled walking miles to school in the snow. She said it was so deep her Mum had to sew sheepskin onto the top of her boots to stop them filling up.

She attended Rockingham Road school for girls before relocating to Australia in 1948. She and her family sailed out on SS Asturias settling into their family home at Lakemba NSW.

Barbara enrolled at Bankstown Girls school to complete her leaving certificate before embarking on her working career starting out as children’s dressmaker. Deciding she did not like making handmade buttonholes she decided to try out hairdressing. After 2 years of hairdressing she took on work along Castlereagh St and Elizabeth St in the city of Sydney.

Whilst working in the drycleaning business she met Joseph John Humphreys whom she married at Saint Andrews Church in Lakemba NSW in 1954. Barbara recalled that she has no pictures from her wedding as the photographer didn't show up as arranged!

In 1960 she welcomed their first child together a daughter named Donna, soon followed a son named John Alexander in 1961 as he was the spitting image of his grandfather who sadly passed that same year. A few years passed before welcoming their second daughter and final family member Tina in 1967. She continued to work fulltime leaving the drycleaning business after sixteen years.

Barbara started her own house cleaning business often taking Tina with her on jobs whilst Donna and John attended school. During this time her marriage broke down and with her two daughters in tote moving for a short time to Panania before then moving to the Central Coast NSW.

In 1980 Barbara married Ronald Lloyd Howes where they opened a fish and chip shop at Toukley called “Howes your Fish and Chips”. Wanting to live the simple life she moved to the rural town of Glenreagh in 1992.

Barbara has always been a whizz with a needle and thread where till this day she continues to make clothing and alterations including wedding and christening dresses, her creative soul has created many beautiful artworks using several different mediums including pottery and porcelain, pencils and pastels and fabrics. With a lot of hard work and determination she recreated Donna, Tina and daughter in law Gennine’s wedding dresses into porcelain figurines.

Whilst travelling on a train to Sydney she was seated next a man named Bob Franks, spending hours of talking the always romantic Barbara married her third husband Bob. They moved to her current home in South Grafton NSW.

Barbara has three grandchildren Larissa, Kelly and Lee all who have blessed her with great grandchildren, Ruby, Aurora, Lacey, Thea, Evie and Noah. She spends many hours sitting and watching, conversing, and laughing and being loved by her whole family.

Beryl Connell

Beryl was my very first Golden Age session! I asked her family to bring along any special items of Beryl's, which were some of the tapestries she had made, a statue she had in her garden, one of her plants & her Wedding photo.

Her face lit up when they wheeled her in, & she saw her Wedding photo on the table.. Dementia may make some of her memories fade, but I could see in her eyes how much that image meant to her.

These were some of the words her family documented about her life.

Beryl Joan Connell born 6/2/1927 née Vesperman

One of 8 children, the eldest girl, grew up in Cootamundra where her father was a baker, and mother a housewife. Beryl raised the younger twin Girls, leaving school at 13 years old, to help her busy mother.

During the years of the depression neighbours helped one another out. This is when Beryl first met Les Connell. ( he would later become her husband) His mum was a good sewer and use to make clothes for her mum. They grew up in a small country town having fun with neighbours and family.

Beryl's first job was at Coles , in the Lolly department . (apparently at the care facility, she won't always eat her dinner, but will still polish off a packet of lollies)

Eventually became a receptionist for local doctor and also nanny for their children.

Les returned from WWII after being held as a prisoner of war, and romanced Beryl into marriage.

They started their married life In Paddington Sydney then returned to Cootamundra to rear their 4 children . David, Cherylene, Wendy, and Paul.

Beryl remained a housewife throughout and volunteered at various school canteens. Moving to Newcastle in 1965, where Les managed the rail transport of coal into the harbour.

Her main goal in life was to see her children well educated and to run her home lovingly.

She excelled at embroidery, knitting crocheting and tapestry. Always demonstrating a flair for decorating, colour coordinating .. especially in her home .

Joined the Probus club and remained an active member until moving to Rutherford.

Beryl is known for her love of her family and celebrating every milestone- always a party !

She now has 9 Grandchildren, & 18 Great Grandchildren.

Barbara Solman

Barbara Clare Solman Nee Bell Born on the 9th May 1934 in A Private Nurses Home by Nurse Whiteman Mayfield.

Barbara is the 4th of 6 Children (her mother had been one of 10) and the one who was to help hold the Family together. Sadly, her father passed away at the young age of 36 From Silicosis Disease. He fired the bulbs at New Bulb Brick, this fatal illness was an occupational lung disease caused by inhalation of crystalline silica dust. Her mother worked hard to provide for the family in his absence.

Home life was always full of fun, laughs, lots of noise and cheekiness. Barbara said they were always surrounded by family once her Dad passed away as the Aunties regularly dropped in to check in on us all and there was always something to be done around the house.

Her mum would always be in the middle of the noise and laughter, if there was a bit of banter between us kids.. Mum would be in there Dishing out as good as she got. If there was a Classic water fight in the yard.. yep Mum would be in there to making as much mess as all of us kids. We never had a Lot BUT we made the most of what we had.

Growing up in Mayfield everyone knew each other, family all around and the Neighbours always looked out for each other and all the Children in the area. Barb was always a chatty child and if her Mother wasn’t able to find her at the end of the day. All she had to do was go check with the Neighbours as Barb would surely be chatting to one of them

Barb got an exemption from School to leave early so she could gain employment to help the family with money to get by. Her first Job was at the Dry Cleaners in Mayfield. She loved it very much and her first Pay check she bought herself a pair of shorts much to her Mothers disapproval . We always wore dresses or slacks. Never Shorts.. I remember getting ready to go out with my new outfit. I walked out to say Goodbye to Mum and she threw a bucket of water over me and said… Oh Dear, You will have to get changed now!

She then gained employment at a nice boutique at the top of town. where she loved the fashion and as always having hand me down clothes or clothes sewed by her Mum. It was a lovely and exciting Job.. The skills she had learnt from family had also helped her fall in love with making her own accessories and hats and clothing as well.

When Barb was 15 She Met A Bloke Called Allan through a mutual friend who Fancied her, but the feelings weren’t mutual. Window shopping through the streets of Mayfield one day Allan asked to take her to the movies.. and the rest is history. They dated for 4 years with picnics with the local Motorcycle club with games of Egg and Spoon on the Bikes. Local Dances where the question was regularly asked… So who has caught your heart. To finally getting married on the 5th December in1953. The same year the Queen was coronated

They together had 3 children Allan Jnr, Phillip and Jane who are still the apples of her eye. Her Job as a Stay-at-Home Mother is all she could have wished for and has loved watching their own lives grow and families become bigger and stronger.. and they were cheeky kids so that was a full time job in itself.

Barbara told me that she had quite a traumatic birth delivering her first son Alan, due to the birthing Doctor not listening to Barbara & her explaining she had been told the baby needed to be turned, she ended up having a c-section completely unconscious. She said the midwife had to ring & beg the Doctor to attend, he was known to have an alcohol problem... so he was really not fit to be working.

Alan ended up needing an operation on his head to remove a blood clot due to the trauma as well.

It took her another 8 years to fall pregnant with son Phillip, due to the issues from her first birth. He was 10lb & she ended up having a prolapse, cervical repair, & a hysterectomy.

Their third child Jane was adopted, due to Barbara no longer being able to have children. She was adopted at 23 days old from Crown Street Women's Hospital in Sydney.

Her daughter Jane did try to find her birth mother when laws changed, & contact could be made, but sadly she was in hospital, quite unwell by the time the letter reached her, & passed away just a day after receiving it. Thankfully a friend, could fill in some of the details & let Jane feel she knew a little about her birth mother.

When her Mum became unwell, Barb and Al lived in Belmont and her Mother was Still in Mayfield. She tells stories of when she would ride over on Allans Triumph Bike, Barbara in the Side Car along with Newborn Baby Allan Jnr. They would pack all the fresh vegetables from her Mums vege patch into the Side Car. Then the sleeping Allan Jnr then Barb into the Side car.. Then they would ride back to Belmont home.. Also Barb and Allan Snr were the first in their street to get a phone put into the house, as her Mums health was not the best and they needed that extra bit of communication as Belmont was a fair drive from Mayfield back then..

She still has trouble with her Mobile Phone and oh the funny stories the Grandkids can tell of Allan Snr with his Mobile phone

Barb now has 6 Grandchildren and 3 Great Grandchildren who drop in from time to time. Check in on her, keep her busy and always love her snacks and having a cuppa with her, life is less busy these days and the visits she has definitely make her day.

Her family is her life and since the passing of her beloved Husband June 2020 it has left a large hole in it. She keeps busy with her love of books, Her knitting of her famous coat hangers and loves meeting up with her new coffee ladies. She says she is grateful for all that we have and that time is a gift.