Lerwin Nursing Home Display visit 22/11/2024
Lerwin Nursing Home invited the Auto Collectors Club of Murray Bridge to display some of their members’ historic vehicles at their annual Vintage and Classic Vehicle Display Day on Friday 22nd November. Despite the extremely warm day, the drivers and their cars gathered at the Lerwin carpark gates at 9:00 a.m., where Lerwin’s Sandy Healey welcomed them. This year’s display included 7 vehicles from the Auto Collectors Club, joined by 3 Harley Davidson Motorcycles. This day is one of the many activities organised by the Lifestyle Team at Lerwin for the residents and has become an extremely popular annual event enjoyed by not only the residents but their family members, volunteers, and staff of Lerwin.
At 10am photos were taken of the vehicles and their owners in the carpark following which they moved into the indoor activity room where they were welcomed, and introductions made. Each of the drivers then gave a short story of their vehicle, with some quite amusing stories of their pride and joy, while others focused on the mechanical side of things.
It was obvious from the excitement amongst the residents when they were taken to the outdoor carpark where they could move freely around each vehicle and talk with the owners that this event was something they had been looking forward to.
The vehicles on display were Brian Rainey’s 2000 Mercedes Benz convertible, Graham Edward 1961 Ford Zephyr, John Courtney’s 1929 Dodge Sedan, Ian Rick’s 1986 BMW 525E, Jeff Schiller’s 1969 Jaguar XJ6, Roy Bretag’s 2006 ‘S’ type Jaguar, Dianne Dawson’s 1966 Mercedes Benz. Joining these vehicles were the Harley Davidson bikes of Peter Lace, Don Tilley, and Jim ‘Popeye.’
As one can imagine there was a lot of reminiscing by the residents when they saw the variety of early model cars and bikes, which some would have owned in their younger years.
Following the outdoor vehicle display the car and bike owners, their partners, residents, family members, and staff of Lerwin were all treated to a sausage sizzle and refreshments prepared by the volunteers. Resident Lional Borgas thanked everyone on behalf of Lerwin and asked Murray Stopp to present certificates to the vehicle and bike owners together with a bottle of their special Lerwin Lager. Although eager to taste this interesting-looking drop, particularly on a day when the temperature had reached 35 degrees, staff advised that it would have to wait until 10 December. Everyone happily accepted a bottle to take home and put under the Christmas tree.
It would be remiss of me not to mention one of our club members for two reasons. Firstly the non-show of Roy Bretag’s 1925 Fiat we were all anxious to see on the road, but which we were told experienced mechanical problems as it started its journey down Leslie Street only to be rescued by Pratt Towing, leaving Roy to take the next best vehicle in the garage; and secondly, the showy T-shirt he was seen wearing emblazoned with the words “Never underestimate an old man with a Jaguar”. I am still curious to know if Roy made a quick change of clothing when the Fiat died, or was this a recent birthday present from Elaine?
Brian Rainey thanked the Lerwin staff on behalf of the Auto Collectors members, with everyone agreeing that this was a successful outing, enjoyed by everyone involved.
