Memories from Fran

Jude is great at organising parties and getting the extended family together. A couple of memorable occasions for us have been Jenny's 60th birthday party and Lee's (third) wedding celebrations.

Another beauty at Illabo was Lee's 21st birthday where heaps of people, including Jude, ended up in the pool fully clothed, compliments of Scott and Joe Oehm. Mum (Betty) drove us back to Wagga that night lecturing us all the way on how we'd embarrassed her in front of her family and how undignified all our behaviours had been. I imagine that Jenny would have given you the same lecture. It took the wind out of her sails a bit when we pointed out that her own sister, the hostess, had no more control over the situation than we had.

Jude's great at adapting to anything at a drop of a hat. Speaking of hats, after the Illabo bushfires raced through destroying most of their property a couple of years ago, Jude and Barney were interviewed on the farm for local television. I happened to be in Wagga looking after whichever aged parent needed help at the time. Jude was wearing the most un-farmlike, orange (I think), piece of millinery perched on top of her head that I ever saw. It looked as if she'd just come back from a Buckingham Palace garden party.

Another time at Batemans Bay when my four kids were little, my Dad ran into the side of the Clyde mountain with Viv's Jarrod in the car. Both the car and caravan were a write-off and Dad was hurt, although luckily Jarrod escaped with just a few bruises. Viv came from from Canberra and I had to come from the Bay to meet at Braidwood to salvage what we could, just as they were transferring Maurie into an ambulance to go back to Woden Valley Hospital. Luckily Jude was at Batehaven so with only five minutes notice, we dropped my kids off with her for the day and went up the mountain. When we finally returned, we discovered my kids had a hitherto unknown "great aunt" in both senses of the word. She'd taken them to Macca's, the playground, the beach, the ice-cream shop, back to Macca's and they'd had a ball. Whatever Russell and I did for them after that was never quite as good as what dear old Auntie Jude had done.

Best wishes to you and yours, and a very Happy 60th Birthday to a terrific lady. I'm sneaking up on you Jude, only another three years to go and I'll be there too.

Memories from Russell

As someone who is an only child , born of parents who were only children, I have to confess that coming to grips with a family as big as this one has been an eye-opener over the years.

Nowadays Jude is the one who is the central point for keeping the various elements linked and informed about what is going on, which is no mean feat as she has a busy life with her own family and grandkids.

In a way she took over that role when Betty died, and I see a lot of characteristics of the oldest sister in the youngest sister. She loves having a big mob around and enjoys the buzz of it all.

I've always found her easy to talk to, and right from the start has made me feel part of the family. As far as 25 years ago we would stay at Jude and Barney's holiday house at Bateman's Bay, and it has been a place where some of our best family memories have been created over the years. Even during the most recent Christmas, we had an overflow of kids which stayed at Jude's place and having a beer on the balcony brought a lot of memories back. One of Jude's Bateman's Bay neighbours came in for a while and was singing her praises. It's a common thread, and even though we live a long way away from them in Melbourne, over the years I have come across people through my job who have known Jude and Barney and their eyes always light up when you mention Jude. If you know anything of Illabo and its surrounds, then you know Jude and Barney.

Family means everything to Jude and I can assure her that she means everything to the rest of the family.

Brooke's memories of Jude - part 1

This is Brooke here, I'm the one who started this Blog. Jo Kouw and I discussed it as being an excellent and unusual 60th present. There is no reason it can't be her 61st, 62nd ... present either! Very cost effective.

I spent almost every opportunity possible to stay at Loyola. Every school holiday or any other reason to go across there. I lived in Canberra - only a 2 and a half hour drive away. Not that I could drive (legally).

What a segueway. I learnt to drive at Loyola. Jude taught me. It was in the Daihatsu (which is now parked down in the scrap heap near the shearing and machinery sheds - you can see the green canopy in this photo)


I was driving assisted by the age of 7. I thought I was really excellent driver and did it for years with little thought. Then my confidence got battered when I drove between properties too tired. This combined with my raw experience had me fish-tailing. I lost control and did some pretty significant damage to the car (a '80-something Ford Falcon Ute - yeah mate!). Noone was hurt - Cousin Scott was in the car with me. But by golly I had a real shock. Life flashing before my eyes and all that. Well the dust as we travelled sideways and possibly backwards was all I could see!


I was really pissed when my sister got her license 2 years before I could! And she couldn't even drive (I thought - she's a good driver now - though the Audi does all the thinking for her :).

When I was 9 they got a min-bike. A Kawasaki 50cc with an automatic clutch. We had a race-track of sorts down the side of the house in what used to be the horse paddock (where Jo tried to bloat the poor beasts!). We basically drove in an oval up an down the hill. We loved it and between all of us we rode all day (Jo, Lee, Scott - actually he may have been too young, Justy - too young or not as interested possibly, Mardi - mmm I think she did this a bit. So it was Lee, Jo and I!).

I continued riding the motor bike, graduating up to the 4-stroke farm bike, for years and years. Scott, who by this stage was riding something (the Kawasaki?), and I had a track down the paddock to the North (left of the berthungra Hills when looking from the house). About 3km away from the house. There was a damm and that provided plenty of racing conditions with jumps and embankments and the like. Fantastic - we loved it!

Again we'd ride every moment we were awake and not eating (or swimming in the pool - another great distraction). Scarey moments. I only remember one. There was this lip, like a gutter in urban Australia but a bit rounder and steeper. For whatever reason, after the front wheel went over it, i leaned forward and the back wheel went up in the air. I was riding on the front wheel! I don't know how long or how far I went like this but it felt like ages. Now all you out there with your heart in your mouth, I quickly recovered (quickly - hey, it felt like ages!) and got the rear wheel back down.

I continued to ride motorbikes and did so at every opportunity. My parents were super-anti motor bikes (my dad calls them "Temporary Australians") so I never got one myself. My uncle and Aunt Peter and Noelene, along with their daughter Narelle, son-n-law Jamie and kids lived in St George - Outback QLD. Lots of stories here which I'll save for another time ("Blog to Peter" maybe! Peter is Jude's brother). Jamie had done a lot of competition motor bike riding and I learnt much from him. He told me that you'll never be a good bike rider until you've stacked 100 times. I was 16. I took it literally and proceeded over the following weeks to ride as rough (but controlled) as possible through the sandy areas and stack it. Broke nothing - didnt' even lose blood! I was too good!

Anyway, this is not about me, its about Jude. Though this is for her entertainment and I hope she found this to be.

See more photos in my collection at (oh, I'll include some samples):

Christmas 2005

Christmas 2006