Don 1 – My fathers name was Don and my aunty called me Donald Duck. When I was little and went to school the teacher asked me what my second name was and I said Duck. I thought it was.
Don 2 – My grandfathers name was Don but Don Bradman was the hero of the day and we’re that age where we were named when Don Bradman was at his peak.
Don 1 – Well I have a signed photo of Don Bradman but I never actually got it. I tried to get it off my sister but it seemed to disappear.
Don 2 – “I’ve got his bat and he signed the bat. It’s not mine though, it’s Jim’s. Don 2 and I are both 80 and we’ve been friends for a long time. I had a clothing label and Don sold our clothes.”
Don 1 – “I grew up out at Whian Whian and moved to Byron till I was 14. I came to Lismore to get a job. I started at Bert Mullins and then went around to Mewings where I stayed for 9 years. I ended up being a Traveller (travelling salesman) when I left Mewings for a big Brisbane company called Thomas Brown and Co, which was based in Lismore. After a while I moved over to another firm called Robert Reids. Long story short it closed down so I was out of a job but had lots of contacts. I had already bought a shop downtown which my wife Margaret was running at the time and I decided to put my own warehouse over the shop.
We had our 3 daughters through this time and when the square opened up it did kill us a little bit. Our shop was called Hajjars which sold lingerie, Manchester, school wear, haberdashery, wool and clothing. Eventually we decided to trade at home so my wife worked from home and I did the travelling. We did that for 20 years. Don 2 had a label so I helped him by selling his merchandise as well. I also sold a lot of jewellery. I ended up closing down. I had a lot of stock left and we got mucked around trying to sell it so I packed it all up and I gave it away. Don 2 was on my back about joining the Cancer Council and I decided that was one job I would like to do. I still run a trash and treasure at the Presbyterian church downtown which keeps me busy. I started working for Relay for Life in 2002. My wife had cancer so that’s why we gave the business away. It was a lot of work as she did a lot of heavy work lifting big fabric roles.
Margaret works at the Cancer Council Information Centre. She had cancer so she like to give some time there. I think it would be great to have that service at the Base Hospital as well as St Vincent’s.
I also ran a Boys Brigade for nearly 32 years and we built a camp out at Rock Valley.”
Don 2 – “I’m a native of Taree. My mother and I lived with her parents while my father was in the war and we moved to town when I started school. I went right through school at Taree. As a 16 year old I went off to train as a teacher. Those days we only had to do 5 years in high school and 2 years teacher training. I was an 18 year old teacher in charge in 1957. My first appointment was Stienbrook just out of Tenterfield where I had 14 students. Only last weekend I went to a reunion in Tenterfield for the 100th anniversary of Tenterfield Tigers Rugby league team and some of my ex students were there.
The education department shifted me to Sandy Flat due to the school closing for not having enough students. I did 3 years there as teacher in charge. I got married at the end of that. I found Betty! We married in 1960 and transferred to Port Macquarie for the next 10 years. Our 3 children were all born in Port Macquarie. My first Principals job was in 1970 and we moved 800kms west of Port to Quambone where we stayed for 5 years before transferring to Lismore. That was 42 years ago.
I came to Lismore as Deputy Principal at the demonstration school which is now Lismore Public school. I did 10 years there and during that time I had other jobs as well. I was a regional Maths Consultant and I did 18 months as a relief teacher at the College of Advanced Education. I was the first male Infants Mistress at Casino Primary and then became Principal. After Casino I became Principal at Kyogle Primary and following Kyogle I was Principal at Woodenbong Central K12 for 5 years.
I then had a dose of bowel cancer at 58. I had to leave my job for 8 months of chemotherapy which wasn’t much fun but I got better. SCU offered me a job so I spent the next 18 years teacher training at SCU. During that time I became the North Coast suitability interviewer for the education department and I only signed off last December.
In the meantime my wife and I raised our 3 kids. We lost a baby which was sad. Betty was a professional tennis player so when we moved to a different town they got a tennis coach as well as a Principal. Betty coached tennis for the next 30 years and had a clothing label called Fi’s Fashions for tennis gear which Don 1 sold. Our partners were Bruce and Pam Mathieson. Betty and I now live in Chilcotts Grass and she’s retired from tennis. In the meantime she was NSW champion and Australian champion a few times. Her name is Betty Whitelaw and in 1991 she won the world championship in the ladies doubles with Jan Blackshaw. We have a court at home and still play.
I got into the cancer council in 2002 as the first Chairperson with relay at Oakes Oval.. At that relay we only had about 30 teams and we made enough money to sponsor a local doctor to do a research project at Lismore Base and St Vincent’s Hospital. One of those teams was Marist Brothers League team and they set a world record for running 24 hours without stopping. Four years later the relay transferred to 18 hours. It still goes overnight but that record stands.
Don 1’s relay was the biggest with over 100 teams registered and $160,000 was raised. This year we had 54 teams, 808 registered participants and we raised $119,000. The reason we do it is I can see the money is used in a way that is helpful to people. The Cancer Council will voluntarily say that only 8% of funds raised is used for administration and they are 95% community funded. Every school in our district is a Sun-smart school, kids wear hats and are encouraged to play in the shade.
I finished with the education department last December after 61 years of teaching. I had a fair innings. I’ve since joined The Lords Taverner’s which is an organisation that raises funds to provide opportunities to disadvantaged kids and to give our kids a sporting chance. On Tuesday we reaffirmed 4 scholarships of $5000 a year at SCU and another at Armidale. Two of our scholarship winners have just graduated who were on $20,000 each for 4 years. So as well as volunteering for the Cancer Council I work with The Lord Taverner’s.
We have a camp coming up at Corndale School for kids who are disadvantaged by distance, isolation and non opportunity. Kids bring a swag and camp on the classroom carpet. They will be coached in tennis, cricket, golf, netball and softball. Prior to that we’ve had camps at Woodlawn, Lake Ainsworth and we’ve brought kids from the West by busload, kids who have never seen the beach before. They were talking later to the bus driver about the big puddle. Camps have been very special.
I’m in a team and our team takes our turn every couple of months. We provide a meal at ‘Our House’ (not our house where Betty puts on a meal) laughs. I lost a sister when she was 28 with a brain tumour and my mother went the same year at only 56. It’s a terrible thing. Every family is somehow affected by it. In my case early detection was my saving grace. I had a colonoscopy and they said , you are being operated on tomorrow.
One thing sticks in my mind. There is always funds for hardship in our office. This chap in Wollongbar was missing his chemotherapy and he had to go to Coffs for treatment but he couldn’t afford to put petrol in his car. The cancer council put petrol in his car. They are the things that make the difference.
I think Lismore is pretty special. The donation dollar has a long way to go in Lismore because so many organisations want a part of that dollar. We are in competition with all of those organisations but however, we want to keep the Westpac Helicopter flying here in our town. It would be a pity if we ever lost our helicopter so we find the community is generous on a wide scale. Our favourite places to sell raffle tickets are the Square and Woodlark St.”
Footnote – Leanne from Cancer Council “The 2 Dons are amazing. I just don’t want them to be modest because they do a lot. They are the first to put their hands up. They are very generous with their time and their passion to help other people. The team raise funds and the committee raise funds to put the event on and to add to the tally. I would have to say 95% of the work done here is by these two men. They sit and sell raffle tickets and they are the faces of our raffles. Cancer Council do a lot of programs that people aren’t aware of such as The Sunsafe in all the schools. Last year they purchased a van to transport people to treatment for free. They give a lot of money to ‘Our House’ and also money to 17 research projects across the state. There’s not many people who haven’t been impacted by cancer. Relay for Life has been run in 20 countries around the world. We are very thankful for our 2 Dons.”
Don 2 – My grandfathers name was Don but Don Bradman was the hero of the day and we’re that age where we were named when Don Bradman was at his peak.
Don 1 – Well I have a signed photo of Don Bradman but I never actually got it. I tried to get it off my sister but it seemed to disappear.
Don 2 – “I’ve got his bat and he signed the bat. It’s not mine though, it’s Jim’s. Don 2 and I are both 80 and we’ve been friends for a long time. I had a clothing label and Don sold our clothes.”
Don 1 – “I grew up out at Whian Whian and moved to Byron till I was 14. I came to Lismore to get a job. I started at Bert Mullins and then went around to Mewings where I stayed for 9 years. I ended up being a Traveller (travelling salesman) when I left Mewings for a big Brisbane company called Thomas Brown and Co, which was based in Lismore. After a while I moved over to another firm called Robert Reids. Long story short it closed down so I was out of a job but had lots of contacts. I had already bought a shop downtown which my wife Margaret was running at the time and I decided to put my own warehouse over the shop.
We had our 3 daughters through this time and when the square opened up it did kill us a little bit. Our shop was called Hajjars which sold lingerie, Manchester, school wear, haberdashery, wool and clothing. Eventually we decided to trade at home so my wife worked from home and I did the travelling. We did that for 20 years. Don 2 had a label so I helped him by selling his merchandise as well. I also sold a lot of jewellery. I ended up closing down. I had a lot of stock left and we got mucked around trying to sell it so I packed it all up and I gave it away. Don 2 was on my back about joining the Cancer Council and I decided that was one job I would like to do. I still run a trash and treasure at the Presbyterian church downtown which keeps me busy. I started working for Relay for Life in 2002. My wife had cancer so that’s why we gave the business away. It was a lot of work as she did a lot of heavy work lifting big fabric roles.
Margaret works at the Cancer Council Information Centre. She had cancer so she like to give some time there. I think it would be great to have that service at the Base Hospital as well as St Vincent’s.
I also ran a Boys Brigade for nearly 32 years and we built a camp out at Rock Valley.”
Don 2 – “I’m a native of Taree. My mother and I lived with her parents while my father was in the war and we moved to town when I started school. I went right through school at Taree. As a 16 year old I went off to train as a teacher. Those days we only had to do 5 years in high school and 2 years teacher training. I was an 18 year old teacher in charge in 1957. My first appointment was Stienbrook just out of Tenterfield where I had 14 students. Only last weekend I went to a reunion in Tenterfield for the 100th anniversary of Tenterfield Tigers Rugby league team and some of my ex students were there.
The education department shifted me to Sandy Flat due to the school closing for not having enough students. I did 3 years there as teacher in charge. I got married at the end of that. I found Betty! We married in 1960 and transferred to Port Macquarie for the next 10 years. Our 3 children were all born in Port Macquarie. My first Principals job was in 1970 and we moved 800kms west of Port to Quambone where we stayed for 5 years before transferring to Lismore. That was 42 years ago.
I came to Lismore as Deputy Principal at the demonstration school which is now Lismore Public school. I did 10 years there and during that time I had other jobs as well. I was a regional Maths Consultant and I did 18 months as a relief teacher at the College of Advanced Education. I was the first male Infants Mistress at Casino Primary and then became Principal. After Casino I became Principal at Kyogle Primary and following Kyogle I was Principal at Woodenbong Central K12 for 5 years.
I then had a dose of bowel cancer at 58. I had to leave my job for 8 months of chemotherapy which wasn’t much fun but I got better. SCU offered me a job so I spent the next 18 years teacher training at SCU. During that time I became the North Coast suitability interviewer for the education department and I only signed off last December.
In the meantime my wife and I raised our 3 kids. We lost a baby which was sad. Betty was a professional tennis player so when we moved to a different town they got a tennis coach as well as a Principal. Betty coached tennis for the next 30 years and had a clothing label called Fi’s Fashions for tennis gear which Don 1 sold. Our partners were Bruce and Pam Mathieson. Betty and I now live in Chilcotts Grass and she’s retired from tennis. In the meantime she was NSW champion and Australian champion a few times. Her name is Betty Whitelaw and in 1991 she won the world championship in the ladies doubles with Jan Blackshaw. We have a court at home and still play.
I got into the cancer council in 2002 as the first Chairperson with relay at Oakes Oval.. At that relay we only had about 30 teams and we made enough money to sponsor a local doctor to do a research project at Lismore Base and St Vincent’s Hospital. One of those teams was Marist Brothers League team and they set a world record for running 24 hours without stopping. Four years later the relay transferred to 18 hours. It still goes overnight but that record stands.
Don 1’s relay was the biggest with over 100 teams registered and $160,000 was raised. This year we had 54 teams, 808 registered participants and we raised $119,000. The reason we do it is I can see the money is used in a way that is helpful to people. The Cancer Council will voluntarily say that only 8% of funds raised is used for administration and they are 95% community funded. Every school in our district is a Sun-smart school, kids wear hats and are encouraged to play in the shade.
I finished with the education department last December after 61 years of teaching. I had a fair innings. I’ve since joined The Lords Taverner’s which is an organisation that raises funds to provide opportunities to disadvantaged kids and to give our kids a sporting chance. On Tuesday we reaffirmed 4 scholarships of $5000 a year at SCU and another at Armidale. Two of our scholarship winners have just graduated who were on $20,000 each for 4 years. So as well as volunteering for the Cancer Council I work with The Lord Taverner’s.
We have a camp coming up at Corndale School for kids who are disadvantaged by distance, isolation and non opportunity. Kids bring a swag and camp on the classroom carpet. They will be coached in tennis, cricket, golf, netball and softball. Prior to that we’ve had camps at Woodlawn, Lake Ainsworth and we’ve brought kids from the West by busload, kids who have never seen the beach before. They were talking later to the bus driver about the big puddle. Camps have been very special.
I’m in a team and our team takes our turn every couple of months. We provide a meal at ‘Our House’ (not our house where Betty puts on a meal) laughs. I lost a sister when she was 28 with a brain tumour and my mother went the same year at only 56. It’s a terrible thing. Every family is somehow affected by it. In my case early detection was my saving grace. I had a colonoscopy and they said , you are being operated on tomorrow.
One thing sticks in my mind. There is always funds for hardship in our office. This chap in Wollongbar was missing his chemotherapy and he had to go to Coffs for treatment but he couldn’t afford to put petrol in his car. The cancer council put petrol in his car. They are the things that make the difference.
I think Lismore is pretty special. The donation dollar has a long way to go in Lismore because so many organisations want a part of that dollar. We are in competition with all of those organisations but however, we want to keep the Westpac Helicopter flying here in our town. It would be a pity if we ever lost our helicopter so we find the community is generous on a wide scale. Our favourite places to sell raffle tickets are the Square and Woodlark St.”
Footnote – Leanne from Cancer Council “The 2 Dons are amazing. I just don’t want them to be modest because they do a lot. They are the first to put their hands up. They are very generous with their time and their passion to help other people. The team raise funds and the committee raise funds to put the event on and to add to the tally. I would have to say 95% of the work done here is by these two men. They sit and sell raffle tickets and they are the faces of our raffles. Cancer Council do a lot of programs that people aren’t aware of such as The Sunsafe in all the schools. Last year they purchased a van to transport people to treatment for free. They give a lot of money to ‘Our House’ and also money to 17 research projects across the state. There’s not many people who haven’t been impacted by cancer. Relay for Life has been run in 20 countries around the world. We are very thankful for our 2 Dons.”