Obituary of Heather
As an unofficial historian I would like to try and give an essence of Heather. Heather was always optimistic. Tolerant of human beings, she didn’t judge people harshly. Well not openly, out loud. She was friendly to a large proportion of the population. In turn, Heather was liked by most people who met her. She had a fairly full social life, belonged to many groups and fitted well into the wider community. She would have had a mitigating effect if any of her groups showed signs of extreme behaviour. Always quick to laugh, she could always easily defuse a tricky situation. Heather started life living in a house the King Valley side of the cutting. This was quite a crude house. It did not enjoy many amenities. The inside was not fully lined. It had a limited supply of cold water. Heather enjoyed living here. This house is nestled in between the River and the Hill. It is close to both. She claimed she could go into the bush whenever she wanted. She might have done this in secret. But most likely she would have done it with her siblings and relatives of which she had lots. In time her family moved about two miles down the road to the house that is still in the family. This house was on 30 acres and close to the river. You could always hear the river at night. A clearing sale was held on the day they moved in. They had already purchased the property. The clearing sale was in the afternoon. They slept in the house that night. They had to move quickly because there were 20 cows to be milked twice every day. The cows came with the property. In time they also kept pigs. The pigs were the responsibility of Heather’s mother. Both her mother and father milked the cows, but her father worked off the farm as much as possible as an agricultural labourer or casual worker in industry. Heather’s Father was Scottish. His name was Tom. He came from Paisley. Tom wasn’t hollywood Scottish. He never wore a kilt. He admitted however to having a connection with Robbie Burns and his family had kept intact a pair of Burn’s breeks. Tom had had a privileged upbringing until the time his mother broke with his father. The father was a serious drinker and was inclined to go on benders which lasted sometimes for weeks. Tom’s sympathies were with his mother. The family breakup however meant Tom’s life changed forever. The business which gave them a comfortable living came to an abrupt end. Tom had to leave school before school leaving age and get a job. In later life he would recall in detail how much he had loved school and how much he missed school. How he sometimes would stand outside the school and watch the pupils going in. Tom could quote Shakespeare. He could quote Wordsworth. Tom’s family did not get back together and in time it was decided that he would come to Australia and join his relatives in the King Valley. He came to Melbourne by boat and then train to King Valley. He claimed the train journey from Wangaratta to King Valley lasted approximately the same time as the journey from Melbourne to Wangaratta. The train stopped at all 12 stations. Sometimes for an hour. Heather’s mother belonged to a musical family. Her name was Edith, but she was called Edie. There was a Laffy family band composed of Edie’s father, two brothers, and sister, but Edie never sang with the band. She sang solo songs which highlighted her voice. Her singing career went on long after the Laffy family band split up. She would often be asked to sing at public occasions. She would sometimes take part in talent quests run by the local radio station. All her relatives and friends would listen with interest when this happened. A vinyl record was made of one of her appearances. Heather did not always get on with her mother. She once ran away from home, or more correctly rode away on her bike. She took refuge with her Aunt and came extolling a list of complaints. The middle verandah had to be swept. The kitchen floor needed to be washed. The beds had to be made and she was expected to do it all. Quickly, however, Edie was notified, and the conversation turned to how fast Heather had ridden. She had travelled 8 miles in an hour. How fast was she going? Heather had a full working life until she got married and she then became a full-time housewife. She was good at this occupation. Excelled at it even. She got on well with her husband David and in time they raised two well-adjusted children. David and Heather had many adventures. David had several careers in various industries. Heather always supported him. It can be stated that Heather and David were soul mates. They appreciated each other in the deepest sense. If any marriage can be described as successful, then theirs can. This wasn’t all David’s fault. Heather had a hand in it as well. In late middle age during a bout of illness Heather gave up smoking cold turkey. She had been a reasonably heavy smoker quite attached to the joys of smoking. She was never tempted to revert. Heather was always generous to her relatives and friends. She always welcomed people to visit, was always accommodating if people wanted a meal or to stay the night. This was her strength. It was not always openly appreciated but it was always understood. It’s a cliché, but if anyone was generous to a fault, then Heather would qualify… Neville Gibb October 2022
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Bernie Laffy Obituary
Bernie was born in Wangaratta Hospital and lived in King Valley as a child. He died after a short illness. This was hard to bear because no one expected it. It was during the time of Covid 19 and only limited people could visit him in hospital. He was diagnosed with leukaemia shortly before going into hospital for treatment of this condition. He did not appear to be ill. The day after he was diagnosed he digressed from his daily walk of 6 kilometres a day to see us when we visited our son and his family in Middle Park. It was no big deal him coming to see us. Of course we did not know he was going to die. I did not even take a photograph. He contracted golden staph in hospital. He could not talk on his mobile phone. I did not expect him to die. I miss him terribly. He was one of these people who only had good in them. He was an extremely moral person. For most of his life he was a devout Catholic and he never deviated from the responsibilities this entailed. I would mercilessly tease him about it. He never wavered until later in life and then he wavered considerably. We went to school together but were never in the same form. We were friends although he had his close friends and I was never a member of this set. In his teenage years he was a keen bike rider. He rode with his friends all over the north east. The bike riding club he belonged to was popular and he had some success in competition. We left school at the same time and wondered what we would do with our lives. We didnt know if we could be good at anything. For one wonderful summer he had a pet yearling calf which he trained into thinking it was a horse. He allowed us to ride it with him. We would ride it to the river. And sometimes into the river. Whatever happened to this wonderful animal. We applied for various jobs. We both applied to the Commonwealth Bank. I thought that Bernie was accepted but maybe he wasnt. I was not accepted. I did the test in green ink and I think this was held against me. In time he became a Police Cadet. I also applied to be a Police Cadet. We applied together on the same day. I said I wanted to be a detective. Again I was not accepted. Bernie was accepted. He was Police Cadet for some years and he was based at the Police Barracks in St Kilda Road no longer there. Bernie stayed in the Police Force when his Cadetship came to an end. He more or less enjoyed his time in the Police Cadets and made several long term friendships. He then had a career of several years in the Police Force. Our paths in life sometime crossed and for a short time we both lived in the same boarding house. This was enjoyable. From time to time he would live in the Russel Street Police barracks. I only once visited him there. He had just finished eating with his friend Neil Sherritt from Beechworth who also was a Police Officer. I wonder what happened to him. Bernie should have had a dream run in the Police Force and ended up close to the top echelons but he didnt. He did not tick the right boxes. He had integrity. He was of good character. He was honest. Incorruptible. He had moral standards. He was tolerant of human flaws. He was always fair. He considered both sides. He never took advantage. He was never a bully. He never used his authority improperly. He was never aggressive with the public. We know that none of these things are ever taken into consideration when considering Police for promotion. Unfortunately. So he missed out on promotion and went on to other things. He married Anne and in time they raised two well adjusted children. These children have gone on to have successful lives. He took great delight in his family and loved them all to distraction. He took great delight in his grandchildren. And he enjoyed looking after his children dogs. He and Anne had a shop in Waverly Gardens for some time. He enjoyed it. I know he worked hard. I called on him unexpectedly one day and he invited me in. I noted he had a good system for keeping his lay-by’s until they were fully paid. Although I lived in Ferntree Gully and could have called on him frequently I only once visited him at the shop. But I stayed the whole day and enjoyed myself. I liked being in his company. In later life when he was living in Port Melbourne I guess I saw more of him. He was an expert at picking a good pub to have a meal in. He always had an easy familiarity with the landlord or staff. We had some good meals but in hindsight not enough. We had more planned but unfortunately they never came to fruition. He will be missed by those who knew him. |
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