The first 100 years
Irene Shivas, a treasured resident of Symes Grove Residential Aged Home, Brisbane, celebrated her 100th birthday last week. Her son Roger shared this moving tribute to his beloved mother.
My mum, Irene, came into this world 100 years in Birmingham, England. She was raised as the working-class daughter of Walter Willimans, a local foundry manager and May (nee Wetten). Irene excelled at school obtaining her School Certificate at 16 from Yardley Secondary School in Birmingham. Irene’s final school report described her as “an energetic girl who has taken a leading part in the girls’ athletics; a conscientious Prefect; neat and methodical in her work; trustworthy; likely to give loyal service.”
Irene lived through one of the bleakest periods of history during the Great Depression and WWII. After the war, Irene worked for the British Post Office Telephone and Telegraph Service in Birmingham, until accepting a position running a telephone exchange in Lagos, Nigeria in 1955. On arrival in Lagos by ship from England, fate intervened more kindly when Irene was met dockside by Donald Shivas, a Postal Service technician. A year later, Irene and Don were married. They went on to have two sons, Roger and Martin. In 1963 the family returned to England for three years, living in Dorset, where Irene and Don started a chicken farm. Cold winters did not agree well after Africa and the family migrated as 10-pound poms to Brisbane in 1966.
Irene and Don lived in Bald Hills until Don passed away in 2007. In Australia, Irene devoted her time entirely to her small family and a menagerie of pets, including Siamese cats and tropical fish, which she and Don bred as a hobby. Irene and Don were keen gardeners, with a large collection of tropical orchids. Bushwalking together in the ranges around Brisbane filled their weeks in retirement. Irene was skilled at crochet, making trauma teddies for the local hospitals. Irene will tell you that her proudest achievement in life was raising her two sons, Roger and Martin. Irene has a daughter-in-law, Marjan, and two grandchildren Anthea and Gillian.
Irene moved to Symes Grove in 2016. She retains her sharp wit and droll sense of humour, not yet wearied by 100 years.
Roger Shivas
