‘Young at heart’ octogenarian’s skills in demand

Most people don’t expect to celebrate their 80th birthday in a factory canteen surrounded by their workmates.

When Chris Davey took her morning smoko break on Tuesday at Manawatu Knitting Mills , there were speeches and a large 80th birthday cake.

The ‘‘young at heart’’ Davey has exemplary invisible mending and finishing skills that, despite automation, are still in demand. It’s why she was recruited 15 years ago at an age when most of her contemporaries were taking retirement.

Born in 1937, Davey grew up on a farm near Tikokino in Central Hawke’s Bay. She recalls walking to school barefoot in the frost.

‘‘I’ve always enjoyed my sewing. I started doing it right back during the war years.’’

Davey started her working life in Wellington in 1956 as a ‘‘plain sewer’’.

She moved to Christchurch and then to Kaiapoi, where she busted a peeping tom manager who was keeping his eye on the ladies’ loo through a hole in the wall.

Keen on sport, she played rep softball and hockey in Christchurch, where she worked for Lane Walker Rudkin.

A member of Palmerston North’s Takaro Sports Club, Davey played indoor bowls at least twice a week.

After marrying Earl in 1963, she took time out to raise four children. In 1978, Davey started commuting from Waipukurau to Norsewood by bus to work at Norsewear, where she remained for 21 years.

Davey was working at a Palmerston North motel while bringing up two grandchildren, when a colleague from her Norsewear days invited her to Manawatu Knitting Mills.

Davey doesn’t know how long she will continue working.

‘‘I’ve enjoyed every bit of it. The only trouble is, I can’t stop. They don’t want me to leave,’’ she said.