MICK LOARING OF PIESSE BROOK SCHOOL  
By Marie Parton (Nee Loaring)

Marie Loaring, better known to all her family as Meeka or Mick, came to the Piesse Brook district in 1925 as the bride of Will Loaring, younger and only surviving son of A. C. R. Loaring. The couple took up a property in Aldersyde Road where they established a small mixed fruit orchard and flower garden which later became a source of income from cut flowers. Will was a quiet studious sort of person, who liked nothing better than to spend his limited spare time in the bush pursuing his great interest in natural history or at home reading or writing up meticulously kept notes of his bird observations. Mick, on the other hand was a fun loving extrovert who liked to be with people and who always took an active part in the social life of the district. Despite the contrasts in their personalities or perhaps because of them, it was a remarkably happy marriage. The couple maintaining a close and caring friendship for all of their lives together.
 

MARIE "Mick" LOARING

There were four daughters of the marriage, the eldest Joan, being enrolled at the Piesse Brook School in 1932 to be followed by her sisters, Elva (1934), Marie (1936) and Gretchen (1938). Mick joined the Parents and Citizens Association in 1932, and remained an active member until the closure of the school in 1954. She was always to the forefront in organising functions, either for the children or for the adults, and became well known for her ability as a cook and provider of interesting party food. Many of the ex-pupils seem to remember her ice-cream churn which was always brought out when there was a special celebration such as a fancy-dress ball or a picnic. She loved music and dancing and often, in the earlier years, playing the piano for the social nights and joining in the dancing and games with enthusiasm. It was her positive outlook on life, her optimism and her warmth which made her a well-liked and often loved member of the community, and she is still regarded as a very special person by many who knew her.

Will Loaring died in 1968, and, unable to cope with the loneliness and responsibility of the Bickley property, Mick moved to Kalamunda, where she continued to take part in community activities through the Walliston C.W.A. She often expressed regret for the demise of the Piesse Brook School, believing as she did, that with it went the social and community focus of the district. She died in 1980 at the age of 74.

Article:           By Marie Parton (Nee Loaring)

Image:          Kalamunda & Districts Historical Society

Copyright : Gordon Freegard  2008 - 2023