13 friends celebrate being 80

WITH a combined 1000 years of wisdom, there was no shortage of conversation when 13 old friends got together at the Omakau pub recently to celebrate their 80th birthdays.

The group, Lionel Sinnamon, John Flannery, Barry Jackson, Allan McDonnell, Mike O’Malley, Don Mclean, Verna McIntosh, Len Anderson, Noel Anderson, Leona Prendergast, Joy Dundass, Paul Gallagher, and Stuart Sinclair, were all born between March and November 1937, and were either born in the Omakau area or moved there while growing up.

Through the years they all knew each other as they lived and worked in or near the small Central Otago town, but last week’s gettogether was the group’s first birthday gathering in 20 years, with members coming from as far away as Ashburton.

Organiser Omakau woman Penny Sinnamon’s husband, Lionel, was one of the members who was born in Omakau that year.

The group had celebrated their 60th birthdays together at the Poolburn Hotel, but plans to meet again a decade later fell through.

‘‘We sort of said we must do it again at 70 but didn’t.’’

She was determined to organise an 80th gathering, and began tracking the group down by contacting their family members.

Only one of the usual group, Jack McIntosh, was unable to make the trip, she said.

The party offered a chance to reminisce and discuss how times had changed, and the group was asked to share memories of growing up in the area.

Everyone could name a teacher from their childhood, although not always for positive reasons, and the group noted how different school was when they attended.

Mrs Sinnamon said schooling had included a cane and being rapped across the knuckles, while a lot of the content on the curriculum was now irrelevant, such as learning 12 times tables off by heart.

‘‘We learnt pounds, shillings, pence . . . feet, inches, yards.

‘‘We were very much part of the Commonwealth.’’

The group looked forward to catching up in another decade, she said.

‘‘It’s good to get together for fun.

‘‘We’ll look forward to 90.’’ rebecca.nadge@allied

press.co.nz

PHOTO: REBECCA NADGE Millennium mates . . . Celebrating their 80th birthdays in Omakau are old friends (back, from left) John Flannery, Allan McDonnell, Don Mclean, Joy Dundass, Mike O’Malley, Stuart Sinclair, Leona Prendergast, Verna McIntosh and Lionel Sinnamon; and...