parents

I am sad that my children did not have the opportunity to get to know their grandparents better, which in turn means that they cannot tell their children much about them. so I think I will make a few general comments at this stage .
To see them in the context of their times is to know that they were married during The Great Depression.  History is not taught now as it used to be so  I would hope that you will read up on the internet about that as it affected Australia. It is recorded that Australia was one of the worst affected of the countries of the western world. The years from the mid 1920's were economically extremely difficult for all. Alan was born in 1929 and I in 1931. The year 1932 was the worst year of the Depression with unemployment being at 30% .Then things started to pick up to 1938 only to be disrupted again with the outbreak of World War 11 in 1939. Life was very unsettled until 1948-49.
We were one of the luckier families as Dad had full-time and secure employment in the PMG Dept. There was no money to spare but I dont remember ever feeling deprived or hungry which shows that they were good managers. I now wonder how they  found the money to let me have dancing lessons at that time. Mum was always very frugal and we all learnt much from her in that regard. She was a very complex character.  She had to leave school early ( one of 11 children as mentioned earlier) but even in her 80s she was still "learning". I remember her cutting pieces from the paper when a series of "introductions to science" was published. She was highly intelligent , a great reader especially concerning societal matters, Her particular interest was in women's health and wellbeing; also anything involving children and families. She was a member of the Mothercraft Assoc. when we were little . Modern women think they invented the Womens Lib movement but I am sure it started with many of the women of my mother's generation though in a much more  subtle manner.
She had very firm opinions on things and could at times be rather brusque almost to the point of rudeness , but never spoke ill of anyone and was quick to pull us up if we started to criticise anyone ( even our teachers!) When we lived at Amiens( near Stanthorpe ...more about that later) during the war years she helped local Italian women ( many of whose  husbands were interned) prepare Income Tax returns and fill in other official documents.  Alan and I were at times victimised by local children because our mother let us play with the children of those families. I am pleased to say that Alan and I never doubted that Mum was doing the right thing
Mum and Dad were in many ways very different but had a great relationship which endured for  over 60 years. I am eternally grateful for the environment they provided for me.
While Mum was the authority figure, Dad was the softie. He hated having to enforce discipline When Mum decided Alan needed to be punished.by what was known as a 'belting" I would be under the house bawling  and many the time came upstairs to find Mum wiping her eyes; hate to think how Dad was suffering . Perhaps Alan came off the best!
Dad's career in the PMG started as a teletechnician in 1923. In 1938 he was promoted to Telecommunication Engineer( I remember him studying at the dining room table while we were doing our homework. He had dreadful handwriting and used also to practise writing) He came to the attention of the chief engineer in the Head Office and was moved into that area to help supervise communications during the war years. In 1947 he was appointed Superintendent of Buildings for the state of Qld, In 1953 he was Supt Buildings for Victoria and from 1957 to 1964 he was Supervising Engineer , Works Programming & Building,Central Administation, for the whole of Australia. ( no, I dont remember all those details; they are listed in Who's Who in Australia in 1985 if you want to check them)
After retirement he was sought out to be the Liaison Engineer 1966-67  for the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology which was in the process of expanding its buildings.
Not bad for a man who emigrated fom England at age 9 and  teased as the new Pom at school.
He also was highly intelligent  and a great reader,also a keen photographer. In his early years he was working in Nth Qld and used to send photos and reports down to the Brisbane paper.
Summing up I remember him as a quiet, gentle man with a quirky sense of humour.
Because of his eyesight and work in defense communications he was exempt from overseas service during the war. Mum on the whole enjoyed good health...she was a stickler for good nutrition etc...so unlike many of my generation I was fortunate to have had both my parents for such a long time.

Ike (father)

during WW2