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WALKER Estelle (Pallister)

Walker Estelle ESTELLE ROSA3 PALLISTER (GEOFFREY FLEMMER2, EDWARD1) was born 16 November 1944 in Boksburg Transvaal. She married DEREK GRAHAM WALKER 10 December 1966 in Barberton Transvaal. He was born 21 February 1943 in Port Elizabeth. She is the granddaughter of EMMA BETTY MARTHA6 FLEMMER (TOGER ABO AUGUST5) born 12 June 1876 in Cradock Cape, and died 24 April 1908 in Cradock Cape. She married EDWARD PALLISTER 26 January 1907 in Cradock South Africa. He was born 6 January 1879 in York England.

I went to Rhodes University (after matriculating at Union High School. in Graaff Reinet) in 1963 where I managed to scrape home with a Social Science Degree(an academic, I am not!!! ). My husband Derek also matriculated at Union High School with so and me our romance continues to date.

He joined the Hide and Skin and Wool Industry and has been in it ever since. About six years ago he and a group of his colleagues went on their own and we are SO blessed that it has turned out to be a very rewarding career move. He is now most anxious to retire!!

I was not able to get a post in Social Work in Johannesburg where we spent three years, so I did Vocational Guidance, Aptitude Testing etc. for what was then called Department of Labour. Then we were transferred to Durban where we spent eleven years before returning to Port. Elizabeth (Derek's home town ). We have been happily living here since 1980.

We had our family in Durban so I have been a " Home Executive", nursery school teacher and part time sales merchandiser since. We are privileged to spend Christmas at the Wilderness year after year with the immediate families and it was there that we lost Wayne, our eldest and only son, and Geoff's son Garth, in a freakish bakkie accident in 1986. Wayne was 16 years old. He was a complex child with an insatiable hunger to LIVE life. There were never enough hours in the day for him and sleep was a waste of time. His passion was the outdoors, animals and anything related to the sea or water. Built his own surf boards at age 13, wind surfed etc,etc. He and Garth were such buddies.

Marcelle is my oldest daughter, now 32 years of age (was 16 months younger than Wayne). She married in January last year (2002) and they have just relocated from London to Johannesburg where Chris, her husband, is opening a branch for a European based Company dealing in courier work for dangerous goods. They have only been their four weeks, so everything is very hectic. Marcelle has only had one passion and that is ballet. Went to University of Cape Town Ballet School and danced and qualified as R.A.D ballet teacher. She taught in George and then went to London. She taught for a while in Wales and then back to London to enter the business world, necessitated by lack of money which, I may add, she loathed. She has now qualified as Pilates Instructor (new field working in conjunction with Physiotherapists and Chiropractors, sports training and, of course, Ballet studios.) She has many contacts inJohannesburg so hopefully will find her feet soon. She obtained her British passport via the ancestral Walker connections. She has also collected Aerobic Certificates along her life path !!

Jeanne Marie, our younger daughter and a bit of a "laat lammetjie" is now 25 years of age. She has been married to Jerran for 2 years and they live in our garden cottage (where my Mum, Marie, stayed before she packed herself off to Fairhaven Home). She was given a talent in sport that, unfortunately, has caused her and Jerran to do a 360-degree readjustment to their life plan. Two months after their marriage she developed back problems and to cut a long story short, has undergone treatment - back surgery - and has not been able to work. Because of all her sport activities she wore her disc away almost completely. Two years down the line and she will only begin to do some tennis coaching this year, God willing. She got a full tennis scholarship at De Paul University in Chicago, U.S.A. where she was for 4 years after she matriculated. She got a degree in Bachelor of Science in Physical Education. While there she played in satellite tournaments in France, coached at the Nikki Tennis Camps etc., so had a wonderful time. She and Jerran were at school together so the romance survived, he here in the Motor Industry, and her there. He spent a few months with her in the States and Europe. She came home and was offered a job to be the Tennis Professional at Club Med in Cancun, Mexico where she spent six months. We all went for a holiday and it was spectacular. Their plans to return to the States, he on transfer and she to resume tennis career, were aborted and the rest is history. We are just grateful for her positive attitude and fortitude they have both displayed in adversity. Just to add that Jeannie is so like her brother Wayne, it is quite uncanny.

"Fluit fluit, my storie is uit!!!"

 

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