WEDDING ANNIVERSARY A LIFE RICH IN FAMILY AND TOGETHERNESS

PAT AND LAURIE WHITELEY 60 YEARS

WHEN dapper young national serviceman Laurie Whiteley marched into the Deloraine butcher shop he never dreamt he’d snag a wife.

Mr Whiteley’s brother worked in the store but as soon as he walked in the front door it was the cashier Pat who caught his eye.

They were married two years later on July 6, 1957 and spent their early married life living in various Tasmanian cities, including Devonport, before moving to Hobart in 1961.

Mr Whiteley, now 82, spent 41 and a half years working his way up in the Tasmanian government, starting out as a junior clerk.

Meanwhile, Mrs Whiteley, now 77, was busy raising their four children.

“We had nothing in those days,” Mrs Whiteley said.

“No vacuum cleaner, no fridge. But we had each other and we had our children.”

During their marriage Mrs Whiteley worked odd jobs while the children were at school and even ran a second hand bookstore for a while.

Upon their retirement in 1997 the pair moved to the Gold Coast and now reside in Coombabah. The kids missed them so much that three of the four relocated their families from the apple isle and all live on the same street in nearby Labrador.

All up the brood includes five grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

Mrs Whiteley believes they have such a happy family life due to their traditional upbringing and by all learning to do their part in managing the finances.

“Kids these days don’t learn how to manage money – it’s just gone out the window,” Mrs Whiteley said.

“We had a lot of round table conferences when the kids were growing up where we decided what we were going to get done.

“We always ate dinner at the table no matter what and on Sunday nights the television went off and the family played cards and board games.”

Mr Whiteley said while it wasn’t all smooth sailing he’s very proud of the life he and Mrs Whiteley created together.

“We had plenty of ups and downs. It was hard in the early days,” Mr Whiteley said.

“But we always got through together.”

WE HAD NOTHING IN THOSE DAYS. NO VACUUM CLEANER, NO FRIDGE. BUT WE HAD EACH OTHER AND WE HAD OUR CHILDREN. PAT WHITELEY