Unusual 60th wedding anniversary celebrations

Graeme and Jean Thorpe celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary last month – a marriage forged on family and volunteering.

They celebrated in isolation at their Drouin home, the highlight being food briefly delivered legally in lockdown by other family members, reflecting on their long relationship and receiving cards from the Queen, Governor General David Hurley, Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Governor Linda Dessau, Opposition Leader Michael O’Brien, Member for Monash Russell Broadbent and Member for Narracan Gary Blackwood.

Graeme and Jean Huntingford met in 1956 when Jean began teaching at Maffra. Graeme was working as a welder in Sale. They met through the Presbyterian Fellowship – Australia.

They were married in Scots Presbyterian Church, Dandenong, in 1960 the same church where Jean’s parents, Fred and Claire Huntingford were married in 1935,

Their son Stuart was born in 1964. They both enjoyed sport and Graeme was a scout leader, while Jean was a cub leader They also were involved in leading the youth in the church.

In 1965, they left their Sale home to join Australian Volunteers Abroad and went to volunteer at the London Missionary Society station at Veiru, in the Gulf of Papua.

Their experiences over the next two years were far removed from anything they had experienced before but they both recall the time as memorable and positive,.

“Despite some illnesses ( malaria, ulcers, teeth extracted just sitting on a chair and holding my own jaws and hepatitis) )and the separation from our families, we never regretted any of it,” Jean said.

While there Graeme was the chief mechanic/builder/ electrician while Jean assisted in the T Primary School at the college, teaching English to the standard six theological students and their wives who were illiterate in their own languages.

While there a daughter Allison was born.

They returned to Australia at the end of 1967. They moved back to Sale. Jean recalls suffering a bout of malaria in the few weeks before their third child, Barbara, was born as scary as no-one at the Sale Hospital was familiar with what could be complications for either myself or for Barbara.

The family was educated in Sale and Graeme and Jean became involved in church groups, as scout and cub leaders, and as most parents do, supported their children in their sporting and other activities-always on the move. way.

After retiring Graeme and Jean continued a love of caravan holidays and volunteered with Outback Links in 2008. They travelled to various outback stations lending a hand where needed.

Jean said it was a most memorable and fulfilling time as they made new friends and had new experiences of living in remote stations mainly in outback southern Queensland

The most recent volunteering was a group visit to Cobar in 2015, when three groups of volunteers were allocated three different stations at which to work before going into the town, where as a whole group, we painted the exterior of the huge youth hall –“to lift the spirits of the community” which was in severe drought and had been for some years.

About 10 years ago they moved to Drouin. Jean became president of the Probus Club of Drouin Hills where she was trip organiser for more than six years.

They chose Drouin because if was closer to family. They now have seven grandchildren.

Jean said the celebrations of their diamond wedding anniversary were unusual because of COVID-19 restrictions but they still ensured to was memorable.

They dressed up for their takeaway dinner and Jean ensured their was table linen and candles to commemorate the occasion.