Fathers Day – week 24 – loades of branches

Although, for an Australian the date is wrong for Fathers Day, this week is a good time to reflect on fathers and my father in particular.

Edward Waller LOADES known as Neddy was born on the 23rd March 1928. He was the second son of Edward Waller LOADES and Jessie May HALL. Neddy was one of four boys born to Edward and Jessie. He was the only one in his family who was born deaf. he had inherited this from his maternal grandmother.

At the age of 12 and half Neddy went to school at the South Australian Institution for the Blind Deaf and Dumb, commonly known as Townsend House. He joined his cousin Margaret Schlegel who had started school in 1938. Why the family did not send him to school earlier is lost in the clouds of time. Communication was not an issue in the family as all his maternal relatives could sign to communicate with his grandmother. It was to Townsend House that Neddy returned to after the car accident in 1941 when both his parents were killed. Neddy completed his schooling and undertook a range of trade type subjects.

A firm memory of my father is one who was dapper, who liked to look stylish, who enjoyed dressing up and looking smart. He also liked every new tool and gadget on the market. He was always an easy person to buy a present for as there was and always is a new electric tool or gadget that has come onto the market. He took pride in his car and would maintain the vehicle himself. His greatest edict was that only one person should drive the vehicle, as different drivers handle cars differently and this wasn’t good for the car. Who knows if he was right, it certainly has stuck as a part rule in the family.

009 — Leaving the church on Norwood Parade

In November 1953 at the age of 25 he married Moira Joan COOPER at the Wesley Church Norwood. Together they had 4 children.

Having worked in country South Australia the family moved back to Adelaide in the late 1970’s. On the 6th June 1985 at the age of 57 Neddy LOADES passed away from a heart attack. He was buried at the Dudley Park Cemetery on the 12th June, 1985.

So while it is no where near Father Day in Australia, this week is the anniversary of my father’s death so a fitting time to remember a life well lived.