Batchy - by Maree Batcheldor (a digital story from the Lake Illawarra MAP Project)

MENTOR FILM MAKER: Sarah Moss
SYNOPSIS: A tribute to Marees husband Bob. A love story that blossomed and matured on the shores of the Lake and in the community at Oak Flats.
SCRIPT: Known as Batchy, I first saw Bob when I was 14 years old. He was 15. I used to come down from Sydney in the 50s and he already lived here. We used to camp at Windang every year. Dad bought Lake frontage land at Oak Flats when there was no actual road down to the town. It was just a dirt track along the Lake. Bob used to sail VJs on the Lake. His handsome form and agility impressed me and I told my friend, Im going to marry that man one day, even though we had not met at the time. I did marry him and we were married for nearly 45 years. In those days the yacht club was no more than a shed. But we liked to socialise there. We used to go dancing at the Progress Hall. Its called the Neighbourhood Centre now. After we married in 1961 we moved into a house in Stoney Range in Oak Flats. It had view of the Lake. Bob helped to build the town and I worked as a senior school assistant at the local primary school. Our youngest son started school a year early to boost the numbers for the school. Our family would play around the Lake building rafts and collecting hermit crabs and paddling our canoe. Our children didnt sail but Bob kept it up for a while. Oak Flats has been my home for many years now and I love it here. I miss Bob but I see how much he contributed and it makes me smile. He wanted to be here because of all the trees. He loved being in the bush.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Lake Illawarra
• Love story
• tribute
• Oak Flats
• digital story
• 1950s