A pioneer of Mannering Park, Marjorie Whitbourne, has been very busy over the past week surrounded by family and friends who came from near and far to celebrate her 100th birthday.
“It was lovely to have the whole lot together again and see everyone catching up and telling tales,” she said.
The “whole lot” is her seven children – Roslyn, Bill, Robert, Greg, Catherine, Andrew and Keith – and then 22 grandchildren, 40 great grandchildren and three great great grandchildren.
Celebrations started at Mannering Park Sailing Club on Marj’s birthday, February 15, then another at Soldiers Beach Surf Club and on Tuesday there was a party with the Morisset Spinners and Weavers.
Marj Allen was born in Cabramatta in 1923 and grew up in the Canley Vale area of Sydney, before moving to Lithgow in 1938 where her parents opened a mixed business store.
She married Ken Whitbourne in 1940 and after their first child was born in 1941 they moved from Lithgow to Orange and then to Wellington as Ken worked in the Small Arms Factories that were built during the war.
At the end of the war Marj’s parents bought a farm at Holgate, where Marj and Ken and their four children lived until the Whitbournes bought a property on The Ridgeway, where another three children came along.
In 1959, Marj and Ken came across a waterfront property in Mannering Park which they fell in love with but Marj’s beloved piano had to be sold so they could afford the deposit on the house.
“I just loved it at Mannering Park straight away,” Marj said.
“It was all bush … before the powerhouse and mines … but it was hard because we had no (town) water, no electricity, no phones – we had a kerosene fridge and kerosene lights.”
“The people in those days, we were all pioneers and we all worked together to raise money and get things happening in the town.
”The town grew quite quickly – oh gosh, yes, I’ve seen a lot of changes over the years – it makes me humble to be part of that community that started the town but I’m really the only one left of that pioneer lot.”
Marj was involved in the Country Women’s Association, helped establish the Methodist Church in Mannering Park, belonged to the tennis and social clubs, helped start the Mannering Park Amateur Sailing Club, made school lunches at home in the early years of Mannering Park Primary School, was part of the school P&C and housed the first school teacher until he found somewhere permanent to live.
Marj joined the Morisset Spinners and Weavers in the 1980s, knitting lots of items for Ronald McDonald House over the years, and went on to compete in the World Spinning Championships held at Merriwa.
When Ken had a stroke in 2005 and moved into care at Cooranbong, Marj moved into a unit in the nearby retirement village and eventually in 2021 she sold the house in Mannering Park.
Sue Murray
thank you for this amazing insight into my very dear mother in laws ❤️ life who I have been a part of for over 61 years. She was and still is an amazing gorgeous woman.