GERHARDY FAMILY

Gerhardy Family. Gerhardy Family. Gerhardy Family. Gerhardy Family. Gerhardy Family.

Long time residents – Current

Charles Rheinhold (Charlie) Gerhardy
Charles Gerhardy was born on 23 September 1905 at Black Hill, Mid Murray Council, South Australia and died 15 May 1991 (aged 85) Nyabing, Kent Shire, Western Australia. He was married to Meta Constance (aka Connie) Langley and the couple had six children – Lorna Clara (Hobbs), Wilfred Edgar, Charles Clement, Ronald William, Stanley, and one stillborn male.

GERHARDY:
Relatives and friends of Mr Alfred Allan (Butch) Gerhardy of Albany and formerly of Nyabing are respectfully informed that his Funeral Cortege is appointed to move from the Nyabing Cemetery gates on MONDAY (12.10.2015) at 11am for a Graveside Service at the NYABING Cemetery. B.D. Coventry & Sons Katanning.

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Written by Parrot (with Aly’s prompting!)

Charles Gerhardy

I was born on 8^th May 1962, the second child to Clement and Dorothy Gerhardy (nee Kimberly). Debbie, my older sister, Me, then Glenice, Greg, and last was Christine. We all went to Nyabing Primary School, and then continued our education in Katanning. All my siblings have one way or another found their way over to Queensland now, and I am the only one left in Nyabing.

Dad had grown up in Nyabing with his siblings Ron, Allan and Lorna (now Hobbs). I don’t know much about them. Uncle Allan was known as “Butch” and used to shear a bit with Dad and Leo Tuffley.

Nyabing Agricultural Show Stewards (unknown Year)
Keith Lee, Keith Stephens, Clem, Ron & Allan Gerhardy, Cliff Langley

Grandad, Charles Rheinhold Gerhardy, and Grandma, Meta Constance (aka Connie) Langley, had always lived in Nyabing as far as I remember. Grandad Charles Gerhardy used to work on the Kent Road Board as a loader driver. He was good fun and enjoyed a drink from what I remember.

I don’t know how Great Grandma Joyce got tied up with Uncle Sonny. He was a very good post cutter. Out on the North Moornaming Road, he made the sheep yards there… well he split the jam posts. I suppose he would have started out with a hand saw, but I always remember him using a McCulloch chainsaw when we were growing up.

I didn’t really enjoy school as such. Each school holidays, “Beetle” Darryl Beattie, Tony Broadhurst and myself all had jobs on the Shire. This was because Mr Broadhurst was the Shire CEO. They would drop us out on the boundary of the Shire in the morning. With a tin of black and a tin of white paint we would have to walk back painting all the guide posts. We thought we would get smart and ride our bikes in between the guide posts, and finished the job quicker. The next week when we turned up, we had nothing to do. Safe to say that we then walked in between the guide posts from then on!

We got to pick up our pays from the front of the Shire Office. This was before the Shire Office was built as we know it today. They had the Shire office at the front of the Town Hall. To the left was the office where you could pick up your pay, and to your right was the library I think. I didn’t use that too often either! Mum used to clean the Shire Office and Town Hall, which was when they were merged together.

After one lot of school holidays, about Term 3 in Year 10, Mr Broadhurst approached and offered me a full time job. I was so excited I nearly got myself killed running over the road to ask Dad if I could take it! He said “Well you’re not liking school, so you may as well be working” and we went over and accepted the position. Then we went and told mum and she said the same thing!

So I started at the Shire when I was 16. My sole job was to pick up sticks and open tailgates on the trucks. This was before I had my license. Rain, hail or shine, I was there picking up sticks – it was still better than school! I got my license when I was 17, but was still the Chief Stick Picker until I was 18, then I got my truck license, and also drove the loader.

I lost my right arm on the 18^th April 1981. I was 19 and had my 20^th birthday in the Rehab Unit. But this stage I had left the Shire and was working up the road at Jack and Cheryl Cheetham’s farm. (Ross Mills has most of it and Jury’s have the other bit now (this is the old house opposite the Pistol Club entry). So we were out Koonaking on Langley’s farm, and had a few beers. Somehow the Ute managed to roll, and I was on the back and managed to get my arm stuck between the rail and the ground. It hurt just slightly.

Langley’s had the farm on the left hand side on Kuringup Road, opposite Brockman’s, about 1km out. I went straight through to Royal Perth Hospital and then to Shenton Park Rehabilitation Hospital for about three months all up.

In Shenton Park, the nurses used to get me up doing exercises and helping them out in general. One day I was helping them clear up the plates in a six bedroom room, and there were only a few plates left. So I passed the stack that I already had collected to the “Right Arm” and dropped the bloody lot! The nurses said to me “You forgot your arm wasn’t there” (and they were right!) followed by “You’re not the first one to do that and you certainly won’t be the last one either!” I will remember that day for the rest of my life!

Parrot with New Shire Loader March 1990

After that I came back out to Jack and Cheryl’s farm and worked for them until times got tough on the farm. I then approached the Shire again to see if they had any work going. I re-sat my car and truck licence in the meantime to make sure I could drive after the accident. The Shire loaned me the loader for the weekend to let myself become accustomed to it, and I had a job first thing on the Monday morning.

In 1985, I started timekeeping at the football. We were playing in the Ongerup Football Association at this stage and the next season I was timekeeping when the boys won the B Grade Premiership. That was exciting times then! I have time kept all the way through till now.

I enjoyed Pistol Shooting and go-karting which took up the rest of the year after footy season ended. I was involved in quite a few clubs back then except for tennis – I hate that game! I used to race Super-Mods as well with Mick and Duane Jury and, for the last three years, I had been helping Mick with his drag Ute.

How did I get the nickname “Parrot”?? Well, that was Wayne Tuffley. We were going to work one day and I was just dribbling shit on the way, and Wayne just told me to “Shut up cause I sounded like a Parrot” and well it sort of stuck from that day on!

Other than that, after most footy games, “Church” was had at my shed early on a Sunday morning, with a lot of young fella’’. Those young fella’s like Chaddles, Noddy, Chooka, etc, are now all off having kids!! I am known around town quite a bit I guess.

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