Dot is 88 years old. She has 3 children, 5 grandchildren and 4 great grandchildren.
Recently Dot moved into a “lodge” (low care facility) for the elderly in Ashfield.
Dot grew up in Bankstown at a time when it was still a country town. Her father owned a plaster factory next door to their house. Growing up she used to love going to the factory and to watch the men craft intricate ceiling roses and cornice work.
Dot’s brothers went to work for her father in the factory and her sisters were to stay at home and help their mother. One of the most influential people in Dot’s life was her Aunty, who was also Dot's God Mother. Much to her parent’s disapproval, Dot’s Aunty insisted that Dot be sent to Business College and have a career. After much persuasion of the parents she duly did so at the age of 14. This was unusual for the 1930s. Dot's sisters did not get the same opportunity and stayed at home with their mother until their eventual marriages.
Business College was in the city. One day Dot was instructed to attend a job interview “for practice”, having been told “there was no way she would get the job”. So off she went with four other young ladies. A few days later, to the amazement of her teacher, Dot was offered the office job and started her career at the age of 14! She met her best friend for life on her first day of work.
It was while working for Crown Crystal Glassworks that Dot met her husband, Des. When Des first asked her out on a date she said yes straight away, before she knew his name. She recalls saying to her boss “I've done something terrible and my mother’s going to kill me”. Her boss replied “Don’t you worry about that. Des is the nicest bloke you’ll ever meet”. Fortunately, Dot’s mother agreed.
Dot recalls her wedding day being a day of great happiness. They honeymooned at Katoomba in the Blue Mountains and arrived on a very slow train that got them there at 3:00am.
Des was young and fit but had a heart condition that excluded him from service during World War II. However, the war effort continued on the home front with plenty of fundraising for the troops. Dot would help her Mum to organise “Queen’s Parties” to raise money. Sometimes this involved the Chocolate Wheel being carted around town on the back of their truck.
During the war years Dot and Des moved to a brand new apartment (Art Deco) in Clovelly. The apartment was dirt cheap because everyone was moving out of the beach side suburbs for fear of bombings. Dot recalled many idyllic days on the local beaches, much to her family’s disapproval of the location.
Des died at a young age, leaving Dot with 3 young children to care for. She moved back to Bankstown to be close to her family who could care for the children while Dot went to work. Upon the advice of her doctor Dot took up smoking to “calm her nerves” after her husband’s death. Dot ended up being the Office Manager at a large and very busy dental clinic in Homebush.
When asked what were the most significant events she could recall, Dot replied that there has been nothing that has really stood out because she has never been particularly interested in listening to the wireless or watching television. (In fact when we passed a group of residents in front of the TV in the lodge, some asleep some watching, she did comment that this is all they do all day.) She would rather converse with people or write. This may account for Dot failing to recognise and turning away the Bee Gees (as young teenagers) from a check up at the dental clinic because they didn’t have appointments, much to the horror of the girls in the office!
Dot has a strong streak of independence and loved a long service leave camping trip around Australia, putting up a tent every night and just pulling over wherever her and her friends liked. This time it was her grown children who weren’t so keen on her doing this. They were more worried about her than she about them when they travelled overseas in their younger days. Dot thinks it was easier then not to be worried because there weren’t the same means of and expectation of communication as there is today. You just had to wait for the letter/postcard to arrive to say that everything is alright, rather than rely on instant communication.
Dot believes that the world isn’t any better or any worse than when she was young, except that kids have greater opportunities and she’s really grateful for the opportunities she had when she was young.
One of the things Dot does miss from living independently is the ability to cook, as there isn’t the facility in the lodge, where all meals are provided. We miss that too because she’s a great cook – she does a mean shortbread biscuit shaped by the end of a cotton reel!
(Conversation with Catherine, Dot's friend, February 2011)