A year later she went “on her OE — to Wellington”, the only time she has lived outside of Woodville in her life. She worked as a seamstress and loved the year in the big city — the job and social life a big change from home.
Returning to Woodville, she worked as a seamstress in a factory making clothes for Woolworths and McKenzies stores, and met Eric, her future husband, who had returned from serving in the Pacific in World War II. They married in 1948 when Betty was 20, and bought 100 acres of bare land in Pinfold Rd to create a dairy farm. She said it was tough in the early days because they had to fence the land and build a dairy shed, other sheds and a house.
The couple raised five children — Paul, John, Kay, Colin and Malcolm — and were heavily involved in their upbringing, particularly with sport.
Betty was a renowned and vocal sideline supporter and a son-in-law reckons she was the first spectator to be yellow-carded by the referee and forced to stand by her car during a rugby match in which Paul was playing.
The couple continued to farm their 100 acres until Eric died, Betty staying on the farm, which was leased until 2007 when it was sold.
It was then she bought the property on the corner of McLean and Vogel Sts. The family, project managed by son John, built her a home, making sure there was lots of room for family and friends.
Betty says one of the best things she did after marriage was to join the Papatawa Women’s Institute. She said, “That’s what you did back then, otherwise you learnt nothing about living.”
She said rural women had very little social contact in those days without it and the institute taught many community and life skills as well as providing company. Betty was treasurer for 50 years and is still a member of Woodville WI.
In Christchurch at the NZ Women’s Institute national conference in 2017, Betty was awarded the institute’s highest award, the Gold Honour Award, having served 41 years on its committee and filling the roles of president, secretary and treasurer — the latter for 50 years.
Betty has served three terms on the WI Southern Hawke’s Bay Federation (now Tararua Federation), taking on roles as president, vice-president and treasurer and attending numerous national conferences as a delegate.
Betty was involved in other local organisations like Breathe Easy to support Eric’s emphysema, and taking the bookings for the Victoria Domain Board, getting the reputation for “never being at home”. She held leadership roles in the Woodville Old Folks Committee and was in the Woodytawa team in the Manawatū Relay For Life for 17 years.
Betty was the instigator and main organiser of the team and kept meticulous records of their contributions to the fight against cancer, right down to the final total of money raised: $77,827 and 32¢. “And all of it from Woodville,” she said proudly.
Betty recalled they initially had a campsite in the centre of the oval but realised how much fun it was when they were offered trackside “and we kept coming back just to retain the site”, she joked. Certainly for baton carriers, the rainbow-decorated site with its words of wisdom on its noticeboard was a highlight.
In 2016, the Tararua District Council awarded Betty a Civic Award in recognition of all she had done. Mayor Roly Ellis in presenting the citation and flowers, said, “Tararua would not survive without volunteers like Betty. The district owes you a helluva lot.”
Betty in reply thanked the organisers of the function and hoped her Papatawa club had fun putting together the application. She said it was not all about her because without the support of everyone she would not have been able to do her work. “Life is about people and you do what you need to do,” she said.
Her family says at 95, Betty has not changed. She still drives her car all around Woodville as well as several times a month to Palmerston North, and hopes to drive the new highway and perhaps even open it!
