Retirement Living
If diversity is the key to life, SwanCare resident Gillian Wieringa holds the master key!
1st July 2025
Life is Experiences Had
If diversity is the key to life, SwanCare resident Gillian Wieringa holds the master key!
Born in India, Gillian’s early years were dominated by the Second World War. With her father in the army and mother working as a nurse, she was sent to boarding school early at just three and a half years old. The school, which still exists today, is in the Himalayas, and at the time catered mostly to European children. “I remember it being very big and very cold,” said Gillian. “I hated it because I was always so homesick.” However challenging her early childhood, Gillian also has many fond memories from being at home with family. “I remember riding on the back of my father’s motorbike when I was about seven, I loved it!”.
From India to Australia
Gillian’s family left India when she was seven. It was the partition of India, when Britain left India and formed two independent countries, India and Pakistan. An Indian Independence Act was passed by the British Parliament in 1947. “It was a pretty horrific time,” remembers Gillian, “and quite scary as a child seeing all the riots.” They moved to England where they lived for four years, her father worked for Shell. Then in 1951 they were posted to the Cape Verde Islands, a Portuguese colony off West Africa. She was homeschooled by her mother, but Gillian remembers that there wasn’t much schooling going on. “She spent most of her time galivanting around playing tennis!” laughs Gillian.
After another three years of boarding school in Sussex in 1956, the family then migrated to Australia as ten-pound poms. “We left Easter Sunday and arrived on ANZAC day,” said Gillian. “I remember the journey over on the ship. I was 16 and surrounded by lots of Danish boys, which was overwhelming after spending my life in a convent! There was the option of moving to Canada too, but I’m glad we didn’t as it is too cold there! Also, my father’s mother and her sister were in Australia, so it made sense”.
Bound for the Army Life
Gillian went to Business college and landed a job at Peet Estate Agents. “I loved my job and life,” said Gillian. “I was seeing a medical student 13 years older than me which my parents were not happy about, so they nipped that in the bud and sent me to the army in the eastern states”. Gillian made life-long friends in the army and settled in well - she said it was a lot like boarding school! She was automatically discharged after three years of marrying her first husband, Brian. They had two children, Suzy and Jim. They eventually separated, and Gillian went to work at Gregory’s selling Volkswagens, which is where she met her future husband, Don. Don went on to build Parkland Mazda in Cannington and left it a thriving business in 1979. The next challenge was a small marina in North Fremantle which was sold to launch Fremantle Boat Lifters. The Fishing Boat Harbour was dredged to accommodate a large hard standing area shed to the WA Fishing Industry. Three marine travel lifts were imported from Florida for boat and prawn trawlers to be maintained. It was a very successful business.
America’s Cup and Crocodiles
During the America’s Cup, Don and Gillian hosted the New York Yacht Club on one side of their premises and the Kookaburra syndicate on the other side. “It was just wonderful!” said Gillian. “There were masses of people cheering, the whole thing was so exciting.”
They later sold the business to Kailis but kept a slice of the land to build a crocodile park! “Don always loved animals,” explained Gillian, “and maybe Crocodile Dundee was popular then! We raised the crocs until they were three feet long, then we’d sell the skin to Italy for tanning and the meat went to China. But the business got too big, so we sold it to Little Creatures Brewery and moved the hundreds of crocodiles up to a farm in Wyndham in the East Kimberley region. We loved it up there, it’s fantastic country. It wasn’t easy living though; it was very isolated. Neighbours became family.”
Gillian and Don spent 13 years in Wyndham. But after three bad farming years, the business went downhill, and it folded. Not long after, Don passed away from a rare virus. Gillian moved to Perth to be with family and went to work for her son-in-law in injury management, where she worked until she was 80. Three years ago, she moved into SwanCare, where one of her neighbours is her son!
“I love SwanCare!” said Gillian. “I can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be. The staff are wonderful; the environment is beautiful. We’re very lucky here.”
We’re lucky to have you too, Gillian, thanks for sharing your fascinating life stories!
Life is Experiences Had
If diversity is the key to life, SwanCare resident Gillian Wieringa holds the master key!
Born in India, Gillian’s early years were dominated by the Second World War. With her father in the army and mother working as a nurse, she was sent to boarding school early at just three and a half years old. The school, which still exists today, is in the Himalayas, and at the time catered mostly to European children. “I remember it being very big and very cold,” said Gillian. “I hated it because I was always so homesick.” However challenging her early childhood, Gillian also has many fond memories from being at home with family. “I remember riding on the back of my father’s motorbike when I was about seven, I loved it!”.
From India to Australia
Gillian’s family left India when she was seven. It was the partition of India, when Britain left India and formed two independent countries, India and Pakistan. An Indian Independence Act was passed by the British Parliament in 1947. “It was a pretty horrific time,” remembers Gillian, “and quite scary as a child seeing all the riots.” They moved to England where they lived for four years, her father worked for Shell. Then in 1951 they were posted to the Cape Verde Islands, a Portuguese colony off West Africa. She was homeschooled by her mother, but Gillian remembers that there wasn’t much schooling going on. “She spent most of her time galivanting around playing tennis!” laughs Gillian.
After another three years of boarding school in Sussex in 1956, the family then migrated to Australia as ten-pound poms. “We left Easter Sunday and arrived on ANZAC day,” said Gillian. “I remember the journey over on the ship. I was 16 and surrounded by lots of Danish boys, which was overwhelming after spending my life in a convent! There was the option of moving to Canada too, but I’m glad we didn’t as it is too cold there! Also, my father’s mother and her sister were in Australia, so it made sense”.
Bound for the Army Life
Gillian went to Business college and landed a job at Peet Estate Agents. “I loved my job and life,” said Gillian. “I was seeing a medical student 13 years older than me which my parents were not happy about, so they nipped that in the bud and sent me to the army in the eastern states”. Gillian made life-long friends in the army and settled in well - she said it was a lot like boarding school! She was automatically discharged after three years of marrying her first husband, Brian. They had two children, Suzy and Jim. They eventually separated, and Gillian went to work at Gregory’s selling Volkswagens, which is where she met her future husband, Don. Don went on to build Parkland Mazda in Cannington and left it a thriving business in 1979. The next challenge was a small marina in North Fremantle which was sold to launch Fremantle Boat Lifters. The Fishing Boat Harbour was dredged to accommodate a large hard standing area shed to the WA Fishing Industry. Three marine travel lifts were imported from Florida for boat and prawn trawlers to be maintained. It was a very successful business.
America’s Cup and Crocodiles
During the America’s Cup, Don and Gillian hosted the New York Yacht Club on one side of their premises and the Kookaburra syndicate on the other side. “It was just wonderful!” said Gillian. “There were masses of people cheering, the whole thing was so exciting.”
They later sold the business to Kailis but kept a slice of the land to build a crocodile park! “Don always loved animals,” explained Gillian, “and maybe Crocodile Dundee was popular then! We raised the crocs until they were three feet long, then we’d sell the skin to Italy for tanning and the meat went to China. But the business got too big, so we sold it to Little Creatures Brewery and moved the hundreds of crocodiles up to a farm in Wyndham in the East Kimberley region. We loved it up there, it’s fantastic country. It wasn’t easy living though; it was very isolated. Neighbours became family.”
Gillian and Don spent 13 years in Wyndham. But after three bad farming years, the business went downhill, and it folded. Not long after, Don passed away from a rare virus. Gillian moved to Perth to be with family and went to work for her son-in-law in injury management, where she worked until she was 80. Three years ago, she moved into SwanCare, where one of her neighbours is her son!
“I love SwanCare!” said Gillian. “I can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be. The staff are wonderful; the environment is beautiful. We’re very lucky here.”
We’re lucky to have you too, Gillian, thanks for sharing your fascinating life stories!
