Bazel and Margaret dance their way to 65 years

GOOD LIFE: Greytown's Bazel and Margaret Hewison say "stickability" is the key to a long and happy marriage. PHOTO: GEOFF WALKER

As a young woman, Greytown's Margaret Hewison "had her pick" of the local gentlemen, but the one she chose has been at her side for almost seven decades.

She and husband Bazel Hewison were married on March 31, 1955 -- "the day before April Fools Day and the end of the financial year", as Margaret puts it.

The Hewisons celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary at the Masterton Cosmopolitan Club with cake, champagne and old-time dancing -- which they have loved since their youth.

Bazel and Margaret have had an eventful life, farming with few home comforts and sometimes no electricity, raising six children, contributing to the Martinborough Fair from the start and dancing at a whirlwind of social events.

The two met at a dance organised by a church group in Martinborough -- and, though she had her share of suitors, Margaret was impressed the young farm manager from Pahiatua.

"I had my pick of the men -- I worked at a shop in Martinborough, and I got a lot of male visitors," she said. "But when I saw Bazel, I thought, 'I can get him'. We've been together ever since -- it's been a good life."

The couple were married at First Church, Martinborough on Jellicoe St, and had their reception at the Masonic Lodge. They relocated to Pirinoa, where Bazel was farm manager at the Gillies Estate.

For the first few years, they lived in a "tiny, horrible single man's cottage, right out the back of the paddock."

"There was no road in sight, we hardly had power, we couldn't use the phone after nine o'clock at night," Margaret said. "I had a three-month old baby, and the Plunket nurse got stuck trying to find us, so she never came back. I didn't drive, so I was stuck at home a lot."

Eventually, the couple moved to more comfortable lodgings, and their children caught the bus to Pirinoa School and Kuranui College.

Margaret was involved with the Pirinoa Women's Institute and Lakes Garden Club, Bazel was part of a civil defence group and enjoyed outdoor pursuits, and they attended many social dances.

"It was wonderful -- we danced at the halls at Pirinoa and Kahutara, and went to debutante balls and cabarets," Bazel said. "I went whitebaiting and fishing at Ngawi, and there were always pigs and deer in the hills. We never went hungry."

Margaret was also one Martinborough Fair's first ever stallholders, and was involved for 32 years, becoming famous for her melting moments, Anzac biscuits, and sultana cakes.

"It was hectic, especially having to make 500 dozen melting moments in a small kitchen," she said.

The couple retired to Greytown, and are active in the community. They attend Probus, keep busy in the vegetable garden, and dance at the Cossie Club.

They say the secret to a long marriage is "stickability".

"But it's all right to have a scrap now and then," Bazel said.