Mike Bonde - the last 40 years

Occupation/s? Tell us what you have been doing

My love of horses led my to work in harness racing (trotting) stables when I left school until 1995, when I joined the police force, where I am to this day.

What would you tell your 1977 self if you could send them a message now?

Follow your dreams but have something to fall back on if the shit gets too hard.

What would you like to share about the last 40 years?

Having a deep seated and terminal blood disease called horses as a kid, I had no thought of doing anything after school other than working with them. This passion was fruitful in that I found work in a trotting stable, which led me to move to the mainland, in search of that ever elusive champion racehorse in 1981. I worked on horse studs and trained (and drove) some horses to significant race wins over the next ten years in Vic, NSW and SA, before pulling up stumps and returning to good ole Tassie in 1991, settling in Launceston where I still remain. I continued working with horses, specializing in the breaking in and early education of young horses. 

 In 1991, I met my (now) wife Lisa and we got married in 1992, with our son arriving in 1993 (yep...didn't let the dust settle too much). In 1995, my priorities as to our future changed and I took a huge punt when I applied to join the police force. It was by that stage a bit of a family tradition, with both older brothers Stephen and Robert already in "the job". It was a reluctant move at first, because of the need to effectively turn my back on the daily dose of horses I had grown accustomed to over the years. However, it turned out to be the best decision I had ever made and guaranteed a stable financial future for my family. After spending a cruel seven months at the academy, I graduated to Launceston and began what has now been a long career in policing, working in a number of different areas before finding my niche in Prosecution. I am now one of the "senior" prosecutors in Tassie and absolutely love my work, although it still gives me the shits to pull on a suit every day! Lisa also returned to study and has been nursing now for the last 15 years. 

2010 turned out to be our "annus horribillus" when we lost both our mother Heather (early onset dementia) and only sister Carolyn (undiagnosed heart condition, which I also have) within a 6 mth period. A significant shift in our thoughts as to what was important in our life occurred and we began satisfying some inner travel urges as a matter of priority. We have since then explored a big part of Europe and America, embarked on a couple of big boat cruises and even attended an Italian cooking school for a week in Tuscany. Our travels are not complete and are only determined by the impact on the wallet....alas the impact is too huge!!! 

They say things come in threes and its true for our extended family. We are now dealing with a very difficult period in our family as our younger brother Adrian fights a losing battle against the f****ing beast that is MND. Another reminder that yesterday is gone and tomorrow may never come....live for today.

What are you proudest of about your life? What have been your greatest achievements?

1. Finding someone that would tolerate a 30 yr old confirmed bachelor enough to start a marriage that is still going strong 25 years later. 2. Our now 24 year old son Tyler....proud parents we are.

Any regrets?

Absolutely none!!!

Michelle Porter (Carter) - the last 40 years

Occupation/s? Tell us what you have been doing

Photographer

What would you tell your 1977 self if you could send them a message now?

That it's ok to be a square peg in a round hole.

What would you like to share about the last 40 years?

School and teenage years weren't easy for me but when I married at 20 and moved out of Tasmania I found myself. I have 2 beautiful daughters and have travelled overseas many times meeting wonderful people and having amazing experiences. I've renovated houses...managed an alternate rock band...worked in music retail...been a medical receptionist...studied theology and counselling and am now a full time photographer.

What are you proudest of about your life? What have been your greatest achievements?

I've been with my husband for 40 years this year. It's an amazing thing to be married to your best friend. I have many friends and absolutely love my life. But I'm proudest of my beautiful daughters. It takes a lot to be a good mother and whilst I didn't get it right 100% of the time I obviously didn't fail either because they are beautiful well-adjusted women.

Any regrets?

That i didnt "find myself"earlier. That I could have enjoyed the years at school.

Susannah Field from 1977 to 2013, by her twin brother, Bill.

 After leaving Ulverstone High, Susannah attended Don College for two years and was successful with her application for nursing training at the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne. The training was to start at the end of 1980 which left her with what we now call a gap year. By then the quiet little schoolgirl had matured into quite a party girl. In fact she won an award at the end of her second year at Don. No, nothing academic, it was Flirt of the Year. Her plan was to spend the year hanging out at the Surf Club beach in summer, Ben Lomond in winter and continue the part time jobs at the Red Grasshopper pizza shop and the Black Angus steak house. Our parents had different ideas. They insisted she use her time wisely and keep her education going. So went to at Devonport TAFE for  the one year secretarial course to learning typing and office skills. At the time she could see no value at all in this and basically bludged through the course much to the annoyance of Mum who was one of her teachers there. More on this later.

The move to busy Melbourne as an 18 year old from Ulverstone was difficult at first, she left a sweetheart behind but soon settled into the nurse training, study and more importantly the social life of the big city. The River Arms and the Elimatta were a world away from Inflations, the Tok H and the other bright lights of Melbourne’s nightclubs. She met a really nice bunch of trainee nurses that year, many of whom became her lifelong friends.

After graduating in 1984 she bought a one way Aeroflot ticket to Zurich via Russia, which in those days was a cheap but the long way to get to Europe. There were several stops en route including a supervised overnight stopover in communist Moscow. The supervision turned out to be that everyone was escorted at all times by armed soldiers. After some months of backpacking through Switzerland, France, UK and Italy she settled in for a summer of casual work on the Greek island of Corfu. She looked around for work and found that the ‘stupid’ typing that her parents had insisted she learn actually came in very handy when she landed a job in a travel agency.  Not surprisingly, the local young Greek men payed much attention to this fun loving bronzed Aussie chick and she soon found herself in what was to be a five year relationship with one of the young charmers, Sotiris Lefkaditis. (what a great name) Susannah added another one of her passions to her resume, cooking. Sotiris mother taught her Greek cuisine and before long S & S took over a traditional tavern catering mainly for the locals. With a charcoal grill, cocktail bar and outdoor dining, this little enterprise kept them busy for more than four years.

She returned to Melbourne (without Sotiris) in 1990 and went back to her nursing career. 1994 saw her married and soon after, they made a sea change move from busy St Kilda to 10 acres at Red Hill on the Mornington Peninsula, an area well known for its beaches, boutique farms and wineries. They lived there for 15 years with their girls Bonnie and Micah and step daughter Hannah. Susannah was a fantastic mother and was also the main breadwinner for the family. She always put herself last and worked tirelessly on the nursing shift roster while holding the family together through a difficult marriage which ended in 2011.

She bought a nice renovated beach cottage for herself and the girls at nearby Balnarrring. She settled in there and just loved her cooking and vegetable garden. Her generosity helping others was another dominant characteristic of her personality. She completed the 100km Oxfam walk several times to raise money for charity. Ever walked 100 km non-stop? It is a huge feat for anyone but is a major fundraiser. She was always more concerned about the wellbeing of others than her own comfort. Even with a heavy domestic workload she still found time to cook huge pots of soup for the underprivileged children who were sent to school without lunch. Through the lean years of the marriage she somehow managed to save a few pennies for family holidays to destinations including Thailand, Papua New Guinea, Wilsons Promontory and to Mt Buller for ski weekends. But her favourite escape was to return to was the family home in Ulverstone. She recharged herself with big long sleeps in her old bedroom, walks along the beach, home cooked dinners with Mum and Dad and catching up with old friends.

In late 2012 Susannah was diagnosed with advanced pancreatic cancer. She passed away in February 2013. A funeral was held near her home which was attended by more than 60 of her nurse friends along with several hundred family and friends. A few days later, we had a memorial service in Ulverstone. Strange things happen in this world but during this time we were packing up the last of our parent’s estate but thankfully we were able to have her memorial service in a place she loved, in the garden of our family home of 44 years. The next day we handed the keys over to the new owners of the property.   

Later we had a small ceremony to farewell her and our parents on a small beach at Dove Lake. Their ashes were scattered at that special place where our family visited every year since 1964.

So sadly missed. 

Bill Field

John Latimore - the last 40 years

What would you tell your 1977 self if you could send them a message now?

Don't fight or play football

What would you like to share about the last 40 years?

Life's had it's ups and downs. But you've just got to pick yourself up on the bad days and keep on going the good day's do come along.

What are you proudest of about your life? What have been your greatest achievements?

My kids

Any regrets?

No regrets..... life's to short to worry about what might have been. Now and the future is what I look forward to.

Donna Clayton-Smith

Occupation/s? Tell us what you have been doing

I left UHS and attended Don College then 6 months of teacher training in Hobart before I returned home to Ulverstone. I started work at the Ulverstone Library at the end of 1980.

After moving to Hobart when I met Stephen in 1982 I continued to work at various libraries until 1984 when I started at the Department of Social Security which evolved into Centrelink and then Department of Human Services

I have worked on the front counter, in processing teams and in IT and technical support areas but in 2011 I found my dream job when I moved to project management. I transferred from Centrelink to Medicare at the end of 2016 and am continuing to work on programme and project management

What would you tell your 1977 self if you could send them a message now?

You only regret the things you don’t do

Be direct, be straightforward, don’t fall for nonsense, but be kind

Love at first sight is a thing. Yes, really

Boys are wonderful, mysterious creatures – especially when you made them

What would you like to share about the last 40 years?

I met Stephen in January 1982 and we married in May of that year. We have lived in Hobart, Adelaide and Hobart again before settling in Townsville in North Queensland – a little piece of paradise that the tourists have not found.

We have four sons aged 28, 26, 22 and 16. I am nearly at the end of over 20 years of school book shopping and parent teacher meetings – it’s been a long haul. I have been the parent of a teenager without a break since 2002.

Since 1993 I have been a volunteer breastfeeding counsellor with the Australian Breastfeeding Association and I also put some years in as a director on the ABA board as well as a stint as national vice president

In my spare time I cook, read, crochet, walk my dog, write short plays and see as much in theatre and movies as I can afford to (trips south can be expensive) I have also done some directing.

What are you proudest of about your life? What have been your greatest achievements?

My four sons are my greatest achievement – all so wonderful and strong in their own ways

Lobbying for over a decade for paid parental leave and then being part of the team that saw it come to fruition was amazing

My biggest buzz has been directing Stephen in plays and seeing the characters we created together take hold of people’s hearts and minds. One huge night we won 5 awards – Best Director, Actor, Actress, Sound Design and runner up best play in festival. That night was a total buzz.

Mind you seeing our 16 year old totally nail a performance to an audience of 1000 last week was a massive thrill too. 

Any regrets?

Just one that I can clearly acknowledge was an error of judgement.

Around 1986 Stephen and I were offered the opportunity to buy lifetime memberships to the Qantas Club and Ansett Golden Wings for $75 each.

We had a conversation that went something like “It will never take off” “How would we know which one to choose?” “That would be $300 then” “Let’s go out for dinner”

Big mistake. Even allowing for Ansett going bust the Qantas lifetime memberships were last sold in 2009 for $4200. Oh well!

Carolyn Coote (Russell) - the last 40 years

Occupation/s? Tell us what you have been doing

Teaching. Studied in Germany and Italy and taught there for some time. Also spent quite a lot of time in South America in Argentina, Bolivia and Chile.

What would you tell your 1977 self if you could send them a message now?

Don't let stuff worry you ahead of time. You'll cope with it. Most people in this world are good. Value your friendships. Experiences are more important than material possessions.

What would you like to share about the last 40 years?

Travel is the best thing for broadening the mind. Spending time with my family and friends makes life enjoyable. Staying out of a rut has always been my main aim in life and appreciating the great lifestyle it is possible to achieve in Australia.

What are you proudest of about your life? What have been your greatest achievements?

My two children. One now in Melbourne and one in Holland. Winning a national teaching award. I was stoked to receive the recognition but most teachers work their butts off until the late hours of the evening.

Any regrets?

No, not really. Just choose wisely.

Janet Downs (Whatley) - the last 40 years

Occupation/s? Tell us what you have been doing

Right now. Highway halt

What would you tell your 1977 self if you could send them a message now?

Make each day count

What are you proudest of about your life? What have been your greatest achievements?

My three boys of course. Going back to school and traveling.

Any regrets?

A few