What an interesting life our guest speaker has had. John was born in 1937 and then experienced a disruptive childhood. John’s dad was a carpenter at Islington Railway Works and worked on the Nullarbor, making and repairing bridges during WWII. John and family lived at Christies Beach, when Beach Road never had a shop. He left school at age 12 and became a fibrous plaster, eventually recreating many of the old ceiling decorations of historic buildings. His skills were passed on to the next generation when he worked for TAFE. John is a great believer in learning skills that make you fit for purpose and job focused. Lung problems from plaster meant that John had to leave TAFE in 1999 after collapsing at work. To fill the void, at age 63, he embraced working with timber (he had already built his first boat at age 16). 1146 Bulletin
