The wonderful life of Ben Bangerter

In 1969, as the free love music of Woodstock filled the air and the most impressive journey ever undertaken by mankind was completed when Neil Armstrong stepped on to the moon, Ben Bangerter decided to take a giant leap of his own, not so much for mankind but for his family. Ben and Sheila Bangerter were both born in England and emigrated to New Zealand in the early 1970’s. Their journey is quite extraordinary, due to the fact that they travelled overland to get here accompanied by a group of family and friends. This incredible undertaking, this remarkable adventure, sadly came to our attention while Helen, (Ben and Sheilas youngest daughter), read Sheila’s eulogy in December. Ben sat quietly in the corner, the fog of age disguising the man who once embodied all that an adventurer could be, and it goes to show that you should never judge a book by its cover. With the help of a diary kept by Ben’s sister-in-law, Janet Field, and the memories of family, we managed to piece together their adventure.. In 1969 there were no mobile phones, internet, GPS, or other technology, there was simply a map and a compass, that’s it! At 29, Ben Bangerter, along with his wife Sheila, and two young daughters, (aged 4 and 5) and extended family, decide to immigrate from England to New Zealand. Nothing unusual about that you may think, except they don’t hop on a plane or a boat, they got into a Landover and drove. The man at the helm of this expedition was Ben Bangerter, an ex-policeman from the London Metropolitan Police Force and with him a group made up of family and friends, taking the total crew to 17. This was a big undertaking and without the resources we have at our disposal now, the logistics must have been daunting. To put the period into perspective, it was a time of conflict and a time of change. British troops had been sent into Northern Ireland in an attempt to restore law and order, the Vietnam War was in full swing, the Soviet Union had just invaded Czechoslovakia and there were serious border clashes between the Soviet and the Republic of China. Tensions between Iraq and Israel were high after the Iraqi authorities killed 14 suspected spies in a public hanging, inviting citizens to “come and enjoy the feast”. 500,000 people attended the hangings and danced and celebrated around the dead. This was the climate and the region that Ben and his family were venturing into.

"In 1969 there was no internet, GPS, mobile phones or other technology, there were maps and a compass, that’s it!"