Sunny side up... and sometimes serious! | Taranaki News | Local News in Taranaki

Thirty years ago......

? Mrs J Zinsli, Hawera, oldest surviving member of the Eltham Volunteer Fire Brigade, was one of the attenders of the 75th Jubilee celebration held in Eltham. Thirty-six ex-members were present including four Life members: former Chief Fire Officer, L S Murray, S Wolfe, G Coxon and C McGlone. More than 500 witnessed Third Officer L McGonagle receive his Gold Star.

? Stratford and Eltham shop assistants rejected a call to stop work in protest at the new Trading Hours Bill. They did, however, approve a motion opposing any extension to trading hours as a result of the Bill. The Bill would allow shops to open virtually any hours they liked. They were convinced that the public didn't want any change to the Monday to Friday trading hours.

? Stratford Dart Club's Ray Adams was again in great form, winning four singles out of six in the Rovers game against RSA Black. Charlie Marriner and Pip Bacon shared runners-up spot.

? Stratford Chemist Marcus Good swapped his chemist's coat for long white trousers, shirt and hat, the uniform of the bowling greens. Mr Good retired after 49 years dispensing pills and potions to the sick - and beauty toiletries and beauty aids to all - to do all the things he never had time to do before. Mr Good qualified as a chemist in 1928, serving his time with a Hawera pharmacist before taking over his own pharmacy in Broadway, Stratford on March 1, 1947. In between, he gave five years to the Army during World War II - two of those in New Zealand and two on the hospital ship, Oranje.

He took up pharmacy because he was 'keen on chemistry' and acquired his skills by correspondence - no pharmacy school in those days - travelling to Wellington for examinations. The business was purchased by Warren McCarthy of Wairoa, Auckland.

? The Jones family of Toko gathered at the Toko Hall for a family reunion. The family had spread its wings since Evan Jones first settled in Midhirst in the 1890s. He married Lucy Groshinski and moved to Toko in 1909. There, the Jones family of Molly, Lucy, Francie, Kate, Bess, Dot, Jack, Peter and Evan settled into farming life. They scored some notable firsts winning cups for their carrots, swedes and mangolds. For the latter crop they set a world record in 1933 with 7 cwt to the acre.

? Forty-seven years in the world of books ended for the Gardners of Stratford. They sold their business to Jim and Margaret Taylor of Cardiff. The Gardners came to Stratford from Hastings and set up business dealing in general fancy goods in the MacAlister building in 1930. A year later they moved into the shop on Broadway specialising in toys. These were lean years as New Zealand was in the grip of the Depression. Import restrictions put an end to their specialist toy business so they moved into children's books, eventually providing primary schools throughout the country with text and general books.

In 1975 fire destroyed their Broadway shop. Undaunted, they moved around the corner to Regan Street, opening for business four days later using packing cases as counters. Mr Jack Gardner said that when he and his wife decided to specialise in educational books, most people thought they were mad.

Over the years, the Gardners noted a change in the reading patterns of people, with fewer novels and more non-fiction work being sold to adults. Children enjoyed 'meatier' reads.

? A former Mayor of Eltham, Ira James Bridger, died at the age of 92 in Glen Eden, Auckland. Mr Bridger was born at Kaituna, near Takaka and came to Eltham with his parents in 1894 at the age of nine. He was the Mayor of Eltham from 1925 to 1938 and was previously a Borough Councillor for six years. One of his first duties was to organise a fundraising campaign for the erection of Memorial Gates at the Eltham School which were completed in 1926.

Mr Bridger was especially remembered for the help he gave families during the Depression. On one occasion he organised a gala day at Taumata Park to raise money for the relief of the unemployed.

The formation of Bridger Park, opposite the Town Hall in Stanners Street was one of the projects undertaken to provide work for the unemployed. Originally a wasteland of blackberry, 8-10 ft high, and tangled willows, it was transformed into an attractive park with flowering kowhai, cherry trees and rhododendrons.

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A woman walks into a veterinarian's waiting room dragging a wet rabbit on a leash. The rabbit obviously does not want to be there."Sit, Fluffy!" she says. Fluffy glares at her, and sopping wet, jumps up on another customer's lap, getting water all over him.

"I said sit, now there's a good Fluffy," says the woman, slightly embarrassed.

Fluffy, wet already, squats in the middle of the room and urinates. The woman, mortally embarrassed, shouts, - "Darn it, Fluffy, will you be good?!"

Fluffy then starts a fight with a Doberman and pursues it out of the office.

As the woman leaves to go after it, she turns to the rest of the waiting room and says:"Please pardon me... I just washed my hare, and can't do a damn thing with it."

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It is with our passions, as it is with fire and water. They are good servants but bad masters. - Aesop

Have a great week!