Jennifer Colley

Story

I left the UK with my parents Doreen and Arthur Richard (Dick) Pelling and my brother Steven Richard Pelling in 1960 to start a new life in Australia.

We made the crossing from the UK to Australia on the P & O ship the Fairsky. I do not remember much of the trip as I was only 7 and my brother was about 5 but I remember the child care centre and seeing the camels in Aden.

I believe we first arrived in Fremantle then continued on the ship to Cabramatta in Sydney. I remember living in the hostel and coming to breakfast in the half round tin huts to dirty tables covered with food slops. I remember going to school and having soggy tomato sandwiches wrapped in smelly reused plastic bread wrappers/bags.

From Paramatta my father got a job as a gardener at Portsea on the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria and we went to live where all the rich folk lived but we stayed in a caretakers cottage. My mother later worked at the Officer Cadet School in Portsea. I went to the Portsea primary school with my brother and there were about 10 students altogether (my brother says 6). My paternal grandmother also came out to Australia and lived next door at Portsea with the Brockoff Biscuit people for a while but then returned to the UK.

I grew up on the Mornington Peninsula, went to Rosebud High School, my brother went to a local tech, I left the Peninsula when I turned 17 when I went to Fairfield – Queen Memorial Infectious Diseases Hospital in Melbourne to be a nurse under the guidance of Matron Vivienne Bullwinkle – this was a highlight in my life – what an amazing lady, at that time I did not know how famous she was.

Then in 1973 I married a lovely Australian guy, continued nursing travelled Oz then overseas, eventually had 3 lovely children, the first who died when tiny. I remained married for 30 years until I divorced .

I remarried about 3 years later to a wonderful half Italian half Australian man and now live and travel all over this wonderful country as a house sitter with my husband.

My parents, whom I dont think have ever been really happy here and have returned to the UK on many occasions, now live in Tweed Heads NSW.

My children have grown up and now have children of their own and live in WA.

My brother and his family still live on the Mornington Peninsula.

I have travelled a lot of the world but do not think there is any better place than Australia.

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