A chance meeting in a migrant hostel led to a long and happy marriage for Sutherland Shire residents George and Valerie Hurley who celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary on November 9.
George is known to many in the shire as a councillor with Sutherland Shire Council and through his involvement with the Sutherland Sharks Football Club, and Valerie through her involvement with the council’s Long Day Care centres.
George and Valerie met aged 18 at the East Hills migrants hostel after immigrating from England.
George had arrived with his family from London when he was aged 17.
Valerie had been living in the hostel for several years after arriving with her family from Hull in Yorkshire.
They met at the 1954 New Year’s Eve dance at the hostel, the day after George’s 18th birthday.
They were married at All Saint’s Church, Liverpool on November 9, 1957 while both still living at the hostel.
After moving into a one-bedroom flat next to East Hills station, George and Valerie started exploring Sutherland Shire looking for a future place to live.
One day they got of the train at Miranda and walked into Shaw’s Real Estate.
“The owner, Mr Shaw took us out to look at a block of land in Bondell Avenue, Gymea,” George said.
“We didn’t have any deposit or money saved but Mr Shaw said if we could come up with ten-pounds in a week he would hold the block of land for us.
“People were different in those days.”
George and Valerie bought the land and built their home in 1959 where they both still live.
“We moved into the house ten days before our first baby, Christine, was born,” George said.
“We had no furniture. I built a lot of our furniture out of boxes and even made the venetian blinds. Life was completely different then.”
In 1968 George and Valerie, in partnership with their neighbours Keith and Norma, opened a fish shop in Gymea shopping centre.
“At that stage it was one of the largest shops in the shire,” George said.
“We would go to the fish markets early in the morning several days to buy produce then Valerie would drop me at the station to go to work. After work wd would come back to the shop to clean the fish.
“After four years we sold the shop and took the kids to Europe for three months in a motor van.”
George played football for the Sutherland Sharks Football Club and played in the club’s only international game, against Fiji in 1961 at Seymour Shaw Park.
He was the club’s president in 2002 and is currently the club’s general manager. He also initiated the Sutherland Sharks scholarship which allows a young 16-year-old player to play in England every year.
George became a Sutherland Shire councillor with the Shire Watch Independents in 1999 and he and Valerie were responsible for starting Neighbourhood Watch in their suburb.
Valerie was a cook at Frank Vickery Village for a number of years and was an accomplished clothes-maker.
George was called up for National Service in 1956 and served in the Air Force. He is a member of the National Service Association and the RAAF association
He was on the management committee of Sutherland Shire Community Transport for nine years and was president for five years.
Valerie was in the Leader several years ago after finding her long-lost brother, Chris who had been adopted out in England in 1942.
George and Valerie have two children, Christine and Michael, five grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and one great-great grandchild.
They celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary with a family gathering at their daughter, Christine’s home at Helensburgh.
“It’s been a good life,” George said. “We have worked hard and been involved in so many things. It is important to be involved.”
