Pauline Lambert

Story

I was five when I left Nottingham, England to sail on the ship Maloja with my parents Mabel and James and older brother (Barry) and younger sister (Yvonne). We arrived in Melbourne on the 18th July 1948 after being at sea for 6 weeks. Dad already had two sisters living in Melbourne and one of them sponsored us out. We left England for a better life for us children. Dad had left brothers and sisters in Nottingham and his two brothers were very annoyed at him for leaving them for an unknown land.

Dad was the type of person who made friends easily and I can remember our cabin steward would often bring us kids extra cakes and snacks to our cabin.

We were met at Station Pier by our aunt and cousin who took us to live with them in Prahran for the next twelve months. Dad soon found a job working at Healings for 12 months polishing the bikes they made before working for a house re-blocker who worked mainly around the Prahran/Windsor area. By this time we had rented a house in Windsor and us children used to attend school in Hornby St, Windsor. We then rented a house in Fitzgerald St South Yarra which was opposite the Jam factory as was then but still attended Hornby St S.S. I can remember my brother used to sell newspapers outside the local pub and sometimes I would help. I can also remember the Prahran market burning down. It was a stinking hot day and being kids, we ran around to watch the “big fire”. Only trouble was, I had no shoes on and burnt my feet. A kind lady took me inside her house and gave me a drink of lemonade.

Mum and dad put their names down for a Commission House and in 1953 we moved to a new estate called Holmesglen which to me was out in the bush. It is now named Chadstone and the shopping capital of Melbourne where the houses today are worth a pretty penny. I attended the Jordanville South State School for two years before going on to High school in East Malven and Tooronga. Dad worked at the Housing Commission in Holmesglen making the concrete walls for the housing commission houses.

I left school at fifteen and got a job with the Temperance and General Life Assurance as a clerk. At nineteen I married my husband Bruce (Stegelman) in 1962 and returned to my job for a further 12 months or so. It was unusual in those days for girls to be allowed to return to work at the T&G after they got married. In 1967 we started our family of 2 girls (Wendy & Jenny) and 2 boys (Colin & Peter) and lived in the same house for 42 years in Clayton. In 2004 we moved to a unit in Clayton just three streets from our old house. My brother Barry is now living in Gisborne and my sister Yvonne (Jeffs) lives in Springvale. We have had a fortunate life living in Australia although I still like returning to England to catch up with cousins but appreciate Melbourne for its weather and abundance and variety of fresh food when I get back. You realize just how lucky you are living in Australia when you hear and see what is happening around the world.

My maiden name was Pauline Lambert – now Pauline Stegelman.

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