General News
18 November, 2024
The Jones' family reunion: five generations and a thousand memories shared
Family reunion brings together five generations, 100 descendants.
Five descendants of the late Perc and Ada Jones gathered at the Victoria Hotel in Horsham on Saturday, October 19, for a family reunion and to share a thousand memories.
Among those memories, the fondest shared were of family, their mother making and icing wedding cakes and Dad stirring the mixture, family events and the inherited work ethic passed down to them all.
Family members travelled from Mildura, Melbourne, Ballarat, Stawell, Bendigo, Adelaide, Underbool, Ouyen, Dimboola, Mt Gambier, and Ouyen.
Some of the newest members, the fifth generation, were too young to travel to the reunion, but organisers hope they'll attend next time if the tradition continues.
Perc Jones was one of 12 children.
He met and married Ada Smith, one of seven, on January 29, 1929, in the Karnak Methodist Church. Photos of this special day were on display at the reunion.
The young couple had six daughters: Dawn, Marjory, Millie, and Lois, all deceased.
Daughters Joy and Merelyn attended the reunion organised by Merelyn and her daughter Michelle.
The family of eight lived in Natimuk while Perc worked as a labourer when the road to the top of Mt Arapiles was being built.
"Dad worked hard and was never without work," Merelyn said.
"But that meant he was away a lot.
"During the Depression, he worked as a shearers' cook in Northern Australia. Mum, like many women in that era, kept the home fires burning."
During the Second World War, Perc joined the Army as a cook at Wagga Training Camp and served as a Sergeant from June 14 1942 to October 30 1945.
After the war, the family moved to Church Street in Goroke, where they ran several businesses but still had time to be involved in the community, serving on several committees, including the Goroke Hall and School committees.
"Dad suffered at school because he was left-handed, something that wasn't tolerated then, but when I was rapped on the knuckles for the same thing, he quickly had a 'talk' with the teacher and sorted that out."
"The shop, I remember, was called PG and AEM Jones and stocked haberdashery, hardware and groceries and trees decorated the verandah posts each Christmas.
"I can remember the biscuits were kept in a tin and sold individually based on how many the customer wanted.
"We sold the broken ones separately and they were cheaper."
The house was joined to the shop, as it often was in those days, and there was a storeroom on the side of it where the supplies, including the potatoes, were kept.
"Joy often says she can remember bagging and weighing the potatoes."
"The family name remained in the shop long after we left, but on a recent trip to Goroke, Joy and I were happy to see it still standing. Even though the name no longer appeared in the shop, we could see the words drapery, boots, millinery, and groceries on the front of the building."
Ada was renowned for her many skills in cake decorating and dressmaking, and she made many wedding cakes for brides in the district.
She could also be relied upon to make numerous wreaths for Anzac Day each year.
Toward the end of 1956, the family moved to Horsham, where Perc gained employment at Langlands and Weights Hardware Store.
Ada worked at Burgess Amcal Chemist and part-time at the Century Theatre.
She also reported on the local Agricultural Shows for the Wimmera Mail-Times for several years. Mum loved writing the show reports and having them published.
"Because Mum worked at the theatre on the lollies and drinks counter, we kids often got in for family rates.
"However, one of the movies I saw was The Blob. I was terrified, but I stayed right to the end and still have nightmares about it."
The girls inherited their parents' work ethic and held various jobs, including nursing. After marrying, they quickly adopted the farm life.
"The reunion brought back a thousand memories," Merelyn said.
"We remembered the gypsies coming to the shop for free food in a big black car.
"Because we didn't have a car, we were impressed with their car. Dad was always a soft touch and helped them out."
The family has few opportunities to get together in such large numbers, but a recent family loss sparked the idea of a reunion with another planned for two years.
"We talked about our nursing days, walking to school, riding horses to school and events, milking the cows, the bike that hung from the ceiling in the shop that I wanted so much and eventually got, Dad borrowing a car to bring my sisters to the hospital when I was born and the closeness we enjoyed as a family.
"It was a wonderful day. We were blessed to grow up in such a loving family; we could not have asked for better parents," she said.
The numbers have grown as have the generations, with great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren making five generations and around 150 descendants.