Neil and Claire Britton
When Clare was a little girl, running around the banks and braes of Bonnie Scotland, she never imagined that her path would bring her to a mountain top in semi-tropical Queensland. But the spirit of adventure was beginning to flower and in 1980 she travelled to Australia to join her sister intending to travel. To fund her ambitions, she worked at the Royal Exchange Hotel, but two months later her fate was sealed when she met her true love, Neil, and in a little over two years they married.
Neil’s childhood was so different, catching the school bus, barefooted, no cares or worries in far north Queensland. He continued his schooling in Brisbane and from there he took on an apprenticeship as a mechanic and worked on trucks for the following six years. Lung troubles, exacerbated by motor fumes, forced his doctor to dictate employment “in the fresh air”. He began as a gardener at the Swan Road Rehabilitation Centre and when this was threatened with closure, he applied for and was granted a position at the University of Queensland. Extra study and achievements developed his expertise and knowledge and he is currently Head Curator of the University grounds.
At the beginning of the marriage, Clare worked in hospitality at the Bardon Professional Conference Centre and soon took on the catering contract. After four years of this she began a coffee shop in the heart of Samford, and from there progressed to Mt Glorious Restaurant (currently Cloverlea) During her eight years here, and with Neil’s help (great at shifting tables and chairs) they built up the business, the clientele, made alterations, especially the kitchen and awnings, updated menus, thus setting the high standard still maintained by later owners. As ninety per cent of the food was made on the premises, her food was popular, especially the steak and Guinness pie, hamburgers and scones. They catered for weddings, anniversaries, family get-togethers, car clubs, held jewellery and art exhibitions, jazz nights and often fifty people would all want serving at the same time – life was very busy.
Neil tells the story of a customer who claimed he had found a blue sealing milk bottle ring in his salmon roll, and demanded his money back or a free meal or the health authorities would be informed. Neil marched him to the kitchen and he was shown the rows of milk bottles all with pink and yellow rings. “Put that back in your pocket and get going” and he went. There was lady stuck in the toilet as she could not open the door. So Neil took out the window, summoned a small man who squeezed through the gap and the problem was solved. Neil’s stories are endless.
When Neil and Clare were searching for a block of land and were disenchanted with Brookfield/Anstead (western suburbs) they began looking here. The principal prerequisite was that the block must be within an hour’s drive of the university. They looked for some time and they not only found their dream block, but a coolness in summer, and an easy drive from the city. And good neighbours were the gift to come. An immediate decision was made, despite a nest of jumper ants to welcome them.
They celebrated their love for each other by a remarriage ceremony, this time a full blown affair with all the bells and whistles.
But now their life is less hectic. Neil faithfully helps out the woodchop section of the Samford Show, and Clare has forgotten her pots, pans and recipes and now has become a carer. A rewarding occupation that gives her and her client’s peace and harmony that we all seek from our mountain way of life.
Neil’s childhood was so different, catching the school bus, barefooted, no cares or worries in far north Queensland. He continued his schooling in Brisbane and from there he took on an apprenticeship as a mechanic and worked on trucks for the following six years. Lung troubles, exacerbated by motor fumes, forced his doctor to dictate employment “in the fresh air”. He began as a gardener at the Swan Road Rehabilitation Centre and when this was threatened with closure, he applied for and was granted a position at the University of Queensland. Extra study and achievements developed his expertise and knowledge and he is currently Head Curator of the University grounds.
At the beginning of the marriage, Clare worked in hospitality at the Bardon Professional Conference Centre and soon took on the catering contract. After four years of this she began a coffee shop in the heart of Samford, and from there progressed to Mt Glorious Restaurant (currently Cloverlea) During her eight years here, and with Neil’s help (great at shifting tables and chairs) they built up the business, the clientele, made alterations, especially the kitchen and awnings, updated menus, thus setting the high standard still maintained by later owners. As ninety per cent of the food was made on the premises, her food was popular, especially the steak and Guinness pie, hamburgers and scones. They catered for weddings, anniversaries, family get-togethers, car clubs, held jewellery and art exhibitions, jazz nights and often fifty people would all want serving at the same time – life was very busy.
Neil tells the story of a customer who claimed he had found a blue sealing milk bottle ring in his salmon roll, and demanded his money back or a free meal or the health authorities would be informed. Neil marched him to the kitchen and he was shown the rows of milk bottles all with pink and yellow rings. “Put that back in your pocket and get going” and he went. There was lady stuck in the toilet as she could not open the door. So Neil took out the window, summoned a small man who squeezed through the gap and the problem was solved. Neil’s stories are endless.
When Neil and Clare were searching for a block of land and were disenchanted with Brookfield/Anstead (western suburbs) they began looking here. The principal prerequisite was that the block must be within an hour’s drive of the university. They looked for some time and they not only found their dream block, but a coolness in summer, and an easy drive from the city. And good neighbours were the gift to come. An immediate decision was made, despite a nest of jumper ants to welcome them.
They celebrated their love for each other by a remarriage ceremony, this time a full blown affair with all the bells and whistles.
But now their life is less hectic. Neil faithfully helps out the woodchop section of the Samford Show, and Clare has forgotten her pots, pans and recipes and now has become a carer. A rewarding occupation that gives her and her client’s peace and harmony that we all seek from our mountain way of life.
Steve and Denise Cloake
Want to know about mines and life in a mining town? Denise and Stephen have a wealth of knowledge in this area. Stephen is a mechanical engineer and has worked in Rio Tinto mines around Australia. Denise is a nurse, and worked in the same communities of Weipa, Perth, Karratha, Roebourne and Emerald. They are no strangers to an unusual, always changing, way of living.
Whilst working in a Western Australian salt mine, they decided and planned to return to their childhood homes in the Brisbane and Toowoomba areas. Before their daughter flew the nest, they wanted her to know the background of her family and her position in the family history. So in 1995 they arrived back in Brisbane. Having bought an “architecturally interesting” timber house in Everton Hills in the mid 80’s that they found very difficult to sell when they moved, and vowing not to do the same thing again, the search for a new place began. And they were introduced to Mount Glorious, to a house that had been built by Vic Summers and his dad. Another “architecturally interesting” timber house. Love at first sight (again) for Stephen but it took a bit longer for Denise to recognize the magic of the place – definitely not helped by burst water tanks a few days after they first moved in. Now the old-timers think nothing of problematic water tanks – not really the end of the world!
They continued in the workforce, Denise at Prince Charles Hospital and later in aged care. Stephen worked at an Emerald coalmine. Gradually they completed house extensions, made a garden, experimented with three short-lived sheep and farewelled their daughter, now living in Tasmania. Stephen says,”I couldn’t think of anywhere else to live”: Cool, clean, mountain air, the sense of community, recognition of other local folk, an obliging mailman, and their precious wonderful neighbours.
They have learned to circumnavigate could-be problems. To go to an evening event in the city, they stay overnight, if the weekend traffic is too heavy, they stay home and they tend to shop locally thus avoiding the crowds. After racing superkarts for forty years, Stephen is still tinkering, fitting a new motor to the current superkart which was a 25th wedding anniversary present nearly 20 years ago. In this time it’s had 4 new chassis and this is the 4th engine but it’s still driven in a precious gift appropriate manner at 240 km/hr. Denise spends her time reading vociferously. What more could they possibly want?
Whilst working in a Western Australian salt mine, they decided and planned to return to their childhood homes in the Brisbane and Toowoomba areas. Before their daughter flew the nest, they wanted her to know the background of her family and her position in the family history. So in 1995 they arrived back in Brisbane. Having bought an “architecturally interesting” timber house in Everton Hills in the mid 80’s that they found very difficult to sell when they moved, and vowing not to do the same thing again, the search for a new place began. And they were introduced to Mount Glorious, to a house that had been built by Vic Summers and his dad. Another “architecturally interesting” timber house. Love at first sight (again) for Stephen but it took a bit longer for Denise to recognize the magic of the place – definitely not helped by burst water tanks a few days after they first moved in. Now the old-timers think nothing of problematic water tanks – not really the end of the world!
They continued in the workforce, Denise at Prince Charles Hospital and later in aged care. Stephen worked at an Emerald coalmine. Gradually they completed house extensions, made a garden, experimented with three short-lived sheep and farewelled their daughter, now living in Tasmania. Stephen says,”I couldn’t think of anywhere else to live”: Cool, clean, mountain air, the sense of community, recognition of other local folk, an obliging mailman, and their precious wonderful neighbours.
They have learned to circumnavigate could-be problems. To go to an evening event in the city, they stay overnight, if the weekend traffic is too heavy, they stay home and they tend to shop locally thus avoiding the crowds. After racing superkarts for forty years, Stephen is still tinkering, fitting a new motor to the current superkart which was a 25th wedding anniversary present nearly 20 years ago. In this time it’s had 4 new chassis and this is the 4th engine but it’s still driven in a precious gift appropriate manner at 240 km/hr. Denise spends her time reading vociferously. What more could they possibly want?
bev fitzgerald
Bev has been a resident of Mount Glorious for 27 years, and to quote her "I intend to stay here ... and nothing can drag me away."
Despite spending her childhood in suburban Brisbane, Bev knew from an early age that she was not a city person, an awareness perhaps instilled by her
father, a lifelong horticulturist and dahlia grower. When her children had completed their education, she visited Scattini's Mount Nebo nursery, and Maggie mentioned there were some 40 acre blocks at Mt Glorious. As the children left home, a house on a smaller block seemed more practical, so she went looking. So what enticed her to this area? Cool clean air, the fertile basalt soil, the far horizons and the myriads of birds. In fact, when she viewed the house that was to become hers, she stood in the driveway and a male satin bird landed at her feet - a harbinger to this new and peaceful place.
So she set about making and resurrecting a garden she had always yearned for. Today this garden is testament to her fulfilled dreams, a most pleasurable place to sit and sit and sit. Anyone who has sat under Bev's spreading liquid amber tree and eaten cucumber sandwiches, has been privileged indeed. In the garden was a defunct swimming pool, and herein lies a funny story. The original water level had dropped considerably, and one day, after work, Bev arrived home to find an exhausted cattle dog unable to get out, and making his last feeble strokes. Billy Nicklin, the owner of the dog, rescued it - the dog survived and slept for a whole week. Imagine eight hours of dog paddling!
The eighties brought changes - some of us remember the road going through to Wivenhoe. Bev lived for a time overseas as part of her career and back in
Australia she set up the Abused Children's Trust (now Act for Kids) which advanced the expectations that a child centred, family focussed program was a better way of helping both the child and the parent than the damaging removal of children. Bev acknowledged that for some children separation is necessary for their safety, but for the majority of families, they just want help to make things better. After a stint in Canberra she became President of the Queensland Children's Services Tribunal. She still lives by the dictum that all children need someone to love and hug them.
Bev is now semi retired and is able to find more time for her loved Grandchildren; she writes poetry and short stories and is delving into family history. She is thankful for the mountain community – caring, kind and helpful without intrusion. And, of course, her garden, in which there is a small cottage surrounded by flowers she lets out as a Bed and Breakfast.
She recommends "Ten for the Day". Take ten seconds every day to rediscover or appreciate a special moment or object - surely an exercise to help all of
us.
Despite spending her childhood in suburban Brisbane, Bev knew from an early age that she was not a city person, an awareness perhaps instilled by her
father, a lifelong horticulturist and dahlia grower. When her children had completed their education, she visited Scattini's Mount Nebo nursery, and Maggie mentioned there were some 40 acre blocks at Mt Glorious. As the children left home, a house on a smaller block seemed more practical, so she went looking. So what enticed her to this area? Cool clean air, the fertile basalt soil, the far horizons and the myriads of birds. In fact, when she viewed the house that was to become hers, she stood in the driveway and a male satin bird landed at her feet - a harbinger to this new and peaceful place.
So she set about making and resurrecting a garden she had always yearned for. Today this garden is testament to her fulfilled dreams, a most pleasurable place to sit and sit and sit. Anyone who has sat under Bev's spreading liquid amber tree and eaten cucumber sandwiches, has been privileged indeed. In the garden was a defunct swimming pool, and herein lies a funny story. The original water level had dropped considerably, and one day, after work, Bev arrived home to find an exhausted cattle dog unable to get out, and making his last feeble strokes. Billy Nicklin, the owner of the dog, rescued it - the dog survived and slept for a whole week. Imagine eight hours of dog paddling!
The eighties brought changes - some of us remember the road going through to Wivenhoe. Bev lived for a time overseas as part of her career and back in
Australia she set up the Abused Children's Trust (now Act for Kids) which advanced the expectations that a child centred, family focussed program was a better way of helping both the child and the parent than the damaging removal of children. Bev acknowledged that for some children separation is necessary for their safety, but for the majority of families, they just want help to make things better. After a stint in Canberra she became President of the Queensland Children's Services Tribunal. She still lives by the dictum that all children need someone to love and hug them.
Bev is now semi retired and is able to find more time for her loved Grandchildren; she writes poetry and short stories and is delving into family history. She is thankful for the mountain community – caring, kind and helpful without intrusion. And, of course, her garden, in which there is a small cottage surrounded by flowers she lets out as a Bed and Breakfast.
She recommends "Ten for the Day". Take ten seconds every day to rediscover or appreciate a special moment or object - surely an exercise to help all of
us.
Roseanne quick
With so many vibrant and colour filled gardens on our mountain, Rose, as a florist of ten years’ experience feels quite at home in our lush green area. She with her partner Damien lived at Albion where it was “hot, noisy, unpleasant and small”. When they discovered that their daughter was on the way, they agreed that a better environment was needed for the new addition.
After investigations into Google, hearsay from friends in Joelle Lane and several walks, Damien thought seriously about Mount Glorious. A weekend visit in the pouring rain, and the discovery of a huge barking spider, did not deter him, and when they both returned two weeks later, the sun was beaming, the sky was blue, the air was cool and clean, people were friendly, and they were hooked. And although they can still be considered as newcomers, five years is enough time to be entrenched in and accepted by the mountain milieu.
In January 2015 a significant storm wrought a lot of damage, cutting off power lines and preventing access in or out of properties or streets. This lasted for three or four days, and as Rose and Damien had solar power, they welcomed local phones plugged in constantly and many many cups of coffee consumed. And indeed, Damien’s brew was especially welcomed, as he is a coffee roaster by trade, and venues such as the Shack and Bell Brothers Coffee House, use his beans, so carefully chosen and roasted.
Now that their little girl is in school, Rose returned to her creative gift of floristry, and has opened a small business at the Lifestyle Centre, Highvale. FLORA Botanica Florist is steadily growing, and specialises in floral arrangements and gifts. Rose and Damien both love the mountain living and feel completely at home with their new friends and neighbours.
After investigations into Google, hearsay from friends in Joelle Lane and several walks, Damien thought seriously about Mount Glorious. A weekend visit in the pouring rain, and the discovery of a huge barking spider, did not deter him, and when they both returned two weeks later, the sun was beaming, the sky was blue, the air was cool and clean, people were friendly, and they were hooked. And although they can still be considered as newcomers, five years is enough time to be entrenched in and accepted by the mountain milieu.
In January 2015 a significant storm wrought a lot of damage, cutting off power lines and preventing access in or out of properties or streets. This lasted for three or four days, and as Rose and Damien had solar power, they welcomed local phones plugged in constantly and many many cups of coffee consumed. And indeed, Damien’s brew was especially welcomed, as he is a coffee roaster by trade, and venues such as the Shack and Bell Brothers Coffee House, use his beans, so carefully chosen and roasted.
Now that their little girl is in school, Rose returned to her creative gift of floristry, and has opened a small business at the Lifestyle Centre, Highvale. FLORA Botanica Florist is steadily growing, and specialises in floral arrangements and gifts. Rose and Damien both love the mountain living and feel completely at home with their new friends and neighbours.
cathy and Ian Lilley
After childhoods spent in Brisbane suburbs and elsewhere, and then careers spanning many countries, Cathy and Ian have now discovered a permanent home amongst the rainforest of our mountain.
They have been regular weekend visitors to Mount Glorious throughout their lives. Ian even has an early family photo of picnicking at Maiala when he just 2 months old. After a joyous evening celebrating at a friend’s wedding at Glorious in the early 1980s they decided to move to the mountain, but later reluctantly bought in the inner city vowing to return to live on the mountain someday. With growing disenchantment of inner-city living, in 2003 they bought a mountain house which they rented out while their three girls’ education became more settled. They finally moved here three years later – a move they have never regretted.
Cathy, a Cannon Hill girl, and with her two sisters and three brothers relished exploring, yabbying and running through the bush and visiting the local cattle sale yards. Ian’s father was an Army aviator. Owing to the demands of his Dad’s work, with his two sisters Ian’s childhood involved regular moves around Australia as well as exciting periods in England and New Guinea. So, this preparation led them onto an adventurous pathway. They had found each other as young hopefuls in the UQ Army Reserve regiment, which Cathy laughingly calls “the chocolate soldiers”, during their early student days. Cathy became Sergeant in the army reserve, worked as a lecturer at TAFE and later a varied career in Human Resources and management in Commonwealth and Queensland public-sector agencies.
Ian has continued his adventurous journey, becoming an archaeologist researching across Australia, Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia and elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific. He currently assesses nominations of World Heritage sites for UNESCO and advises on the protection of valuable cultural, natural and historic sites around the world. He is Professor in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies at UQ and also holds the Willem Willems’ Chair in Archaeological Heritage at Leiden University in Holland. He has also been a Leverhulme Professor at Oxford in the UK.
Both Ian and Cathy love the spiritual haven in the forest, where they can have ‘me’ time, at peace with themselves and the world, using the long drives up the mountain road as a recovery cycle, ‘shedding like a coat the pressures of the city’.
Cathy is building a small business venture selling fossil jewellery, and now that she has stepped back from fulltime work she is involved in our Community Association, and keen to record our mountain history. Ian continues his investigations into the archaeological riches of the past.
Together they are a devoted couple well-integrated as Mountain folk.
They have been regular weekend visitors to Mount Glorious throughout their lives. Ian even has an early family photo of picnicking at Maiala when he just 2 months old. After a joyous evening celebrating at a friend’s wedding at Glorious in the early 1980s they decided to move to the mountain, but later reluctantly bought in the inner city vowing to return to live on the mountain someday. With growing disenchantment of inner-city living, in 2003 they bought a mountain house which they rented out while their three girls’ education became more settled. They finally moved here three years later – a move they have never regretted.
Cathy, a Cannon Hill girl, and with her two sisters and three brothers relished exploring, yabbying and running through the bush and visiting the local cattle sale yards. Ian’s father was an Army aviator. Owing to the demands of his Dad’s work, with his two sisters Ian’s childhood involved regular moves around Australia as well as exciting periods in England and New Guinea. So, this preparation led them onto an adventurous pathway. They had found each other as young hopefuls in the UQ Army Reserve regiment, which Cathy laughingly calls “the chocolate soldiers”, during their early student days. Cathy became Sergeant in the army reserve, worked as a lecturer at TAFE and later a varied career in Human Resources and management in Commonwealth and Queensland public-sector agencies.
Ian has continued his adventurous journey, becoming an archaeologist researching across Australia, Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia and elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific. He currently assesses nominations of World Heritage sites for UNESCO and advises on the protection of valuable cultural, natural and historic sites around the world. He is Professor in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies at UQ and also holds the Willem Willems’ Chair in Archaeological Heritage at Leiden University in Holland. He has also been a Leverhulme Professor at Oxford in the UK.
Both Ian and Cathy love the spiritual haven in the forest, where they can have ‘me’ time, at peace with themselves and the world, using the long drives up the mountain road as a recovery cycle, ‘shedding like a coat the pressures of the city’.
Cathy is building a small business venture selling fossil jewellery, and now that she has stepped back from fulltime work she is involved in our Community Association, and keen to record our mountain history. Ian continues his investigations into the archaeological riches of the past.
Together they are a devoted couple well-integrated as Mountain folk.