Island life beckons
THERE are sea-change retirees who seek a quiet life away from the pressures of their old working lives and then there are Svetlana and Peter Manns, who aren’t ready to kick back just yet.
This month the unretiring couple leave Canberra to move to the little Pacific paradise of Norfolk Island and to new jobs. They are travelling 1898km from a modern apartment and the hustle and bustle of their capital city home of 25 years to an 1840s house nestled in the heritage village of Kingston surrounded by a pristine environment and only about 1750 neighbours.
“Canberra is getting too busy, too big and is losing that bush capital appeal for me,” Svetlana said.
“A sea change is perfect for Peter, who enjoys spearfishing in between work, and I love the island’s nature with the magnificent trees, green rolling hills, friendly people, the cows and the chooks.
“Life is a gift from God — a privilege, not a right — and should be lived to the full, enjoyed. It should be celebrated and fulfilled, and I intend to do just that on this beautiful island.”
The couple’s adventurous spirit has seen them work in different locations before; in western New South Wales and on Thursday and Christmas islands, as well as overseas. When Peter noticed the call for locums for Norfolk Island kept appearing in his news feeds, the couple decided to visit the island in March, just to look around.
“We fell in love with it,” Svetlana said.
The deal was done and the move to the island with their pet dog and cat started. The couple are both in their sixties and plan to keep working while they can.
“There are no plans for retirement due to ageing,” Svetlana said.
Peter will work as a GP at Norfolk Island Hospital. Svetlana hopes to work using her past geriatric nursing skills.
She started her working career as registered nurse, specialising in geriatrics, but then changed direction and became a chartered accountant and auditor before moving into aged care.
“I’d had enough of auditing and because I still want to work I decided to go back into aged care, which I hope to be able to continue on Norfolk,” Svetlana said.
“I feel that in the next few years there will be many changes on the island as it integrates with the mainland and it will be great to be part of it.”
According to the ABS 2016 census, about 32 per cent of the island residents are aged 60 and over.
The not-for-profit group Care Norfolk Inc provides inhome services. Located in the old hospital, built in the 1940s, the Norfolk Island Health and Residential Aged Care Service has 14 residential aged-care beds.
Svetlana has already discovered that everyone on Norfolk Island seems to be working, some having two or three jobs.
“That’s a part that I like; people there don’t talk about retirement as they do in Canberra,” she said.
Getting a job on the island will help her to integrate more smoothly into the community.
“While I have my health and feel I have something to contribute, I will keep working,” Svetlana added.
The couple will have a few lifestyle adjustments to make while they settle into island life.
“I think it will be interesting learning to live seasonally,” she said. “The way I cook will change. I will be doing a lot more dehydrating, preserving and freezing, making my own yoghurt, and getting back to nature, which is what I want to do.”
While on the island the avid learner plans to finish studying her Certificate III in Individual Support.
“I don’t think you should ever lose your curiosity,” she said. “The older I get, the more excited I am about learning.”
THAT’S A PART THAT I LIKE; PEOPLE THERE DON’T TALK ABOUT RETIREMENT AS THEY DO IN CANBERRA.
SVETLANA MANNS