Lois Yvonne Koukoumas
Our Carlton House consisted of a three bedroom, dining room, kitchen, bathroom with storeroom called a Californian Bungalow. The single storey red brick with tuck-pointing was built in the 1950s. We lived in a working-class area and raised our three children there. Our home was typical to others in the street and our neighbours were always friendly. One neighbour would call on us many nights of the week to provide us with delicious meals of tabouli, hummus, kofta or Lebanese sweets at Ramadam. Our neighbours all had three or four children of similar ages to ours. The neighbours' children spent many happy hours with our children in our backyard sandpit, playing on trikes or playing dress-up in the long yard filled with flowers down the boundary.
Once the children were school age, we sent them to Blakehurst Public and then Connells Point Public School where they made school friends within the school boundaries of our latest residence. The area around Connells Point provided good soccer grounds for practice before team sports day every Sunday in winter and playgrounds in the local park at Donnelly and Carss Park. Netball, jazz ballet and sports aerobics were recreational pursuits enjoyed by our children held weekly at the local RSL Clubs at Kogarah and Oatley. Each weekend we enjoyed BBQs and picnics at Oatley Park followed by bush walks around the Georges River.
Carss Park became a popular place for families to celebrate New Year's Eve by walking down to the sandy beach and sitting on rugs to await the annual fireworks events. This event was provided free to the public by the Kogarah Council and our family and friends would look forward to this celebration with much excitement. Unfortunately, this enthusiasm was not shared by the locals' pets that would flee until the next morning when the gun powder had cleared and the noisy crackers dissipated.
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| Carss Park Life Saving Hall - picture courtesy of L. O'Brien |
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| Carss Park Bay picture courtesy of L. O'Brien |
Our children enjoyed growing up in the Connells Point area with family and friends living in close proximity. There was always someone to go for a walk with, attend a movie or just visit. Moores Reserve became popular for family exercising and with the inclusion of a pond with ducks and wildlife, the wetlands became an interesting place of interest for bird watching and catching up with friends. Our lives have been made richer for the parks, schools and facilities provided by the local community and as the children went into high school, the public libraries became a focal point for study groups and as a resource centre for books and computers.
In 1992 we moved into Connells Point and as the children grew through their high school years, our post war American style house built in the late 1950s expanded with a larger kitchen and family room. Birthdays became celebrated at home with school friends and family and soon their school friends became university colleagues. Part- time jobs were obtained and our children were taxied to and from their casual place of employment and sporting venues. Living in the Georges River region has provided many opportunities to venture through bush walks and occasionally along the waterways of the Georges River on the Captain Cook Cruise boats whilst listening to and noticing the historical places around which we have lived.
The Connells Point area now is vastly different to the place we moved into. It still provides the parks and waterways enjoyed by families having BBQs and using sailing boats at Donnelly Park however the size of the residences have enlarged. The shopping centres are more modern. There are many varieties of Asian food stores and restaurants. Hurstville is now a city and one of our shopping centres close to home. The railway station there operates with faster trains and more carriages however trying to find a seat during peak hour can be a challenge. Although 'Vicky's Cakes' and bread shops have been replaced by Asian drink and cake shops they provide an opportunity to taste a variety of foods. We endorse the richness provided by multiculturalism.
By Lois Yvonne Koukoumas
http://loisyk.blogspot.com.au/
22.11.2016
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