About Us
From Karel
My name sometimes confuses people because they are unsure how to say it. In the post-war baby boom, my mother wanted to give her first child a name that was a bit different, so it has an unusual spelling but is said just like the more common 'Carol'.
The Dutch people often expect me to be a man, since Karel is a common name in the Netherlands, meaning 'Charles'. But no, I'm a regular Kiwi girl, born and bred in NZ.
In fact, I am a sixth generation Nelsonian. My mother's grandmother, Elizabeth Fisher Wilson was the last ancestor in the family tree to emigrate from Europe. In 1880, at just fifteen years of age, she came alone, from Paisley, Glasgow, searching for a better life.
Because the colony was lacking in females, she qualified for an assisted passage and came to serve as a domestic. The Kerrs from Scotland, the Hopgoods from East Meon (Hampshire), the Hollands from Alton (Hampshire), the Allports from Birmingham and the Clarks and Hammonds from Windlesham (Surrey) arrived in Nelson on the first ships in 1842. The Halls from Kent, the Berketts from Cheshire and the Prices from Liverpool came soon after, keen workers and now able to own their own land. When the New Zealand Company couldn’t attract enough migrants, new settlers came from Germany to the Antipodes. The Lange, Schwass and Siggelkow families settled in the country district of Hope/Ranzau, just past Richmond. I grew up there on a market garden and orchard.
My family grew vegetables, on stoney ground that could grow early produce for the market. This was transported all over the South Island and the lower North Island and could attract premium prices in the days before frozen foods and imports from Australia.
Later we exported apples and pears to England, hops to Germany and onions to Japan. After 25 years of assisting in the business, my mother managed the farm for another 25 years as a widow. She has now retired to the village of Richmond.
From 1995 - 2003 I owned and operated a rest home for the elderly at Kaiteriteri. As compliance with government regulations gradually became more and more difficult for small operators, and the opportunity came for me to be in London for the birth of my first grandchild (4-9-03), I decided to close the rest home and travel overseas. For seven weeks I stayed in London, and then traveled for another seven weeks around the U.K. and Europe.
On my return I intended to go to Lincoln University to finish my degree, a Bachelor of Commerce, specializing in Property Management. I had done twelve out of twenty-four papers by distance learning in the past five years, but when I saw Cambria House for sale I changed my mind. I had always loved the home and had, in fact, investigated purchasing it in 2001. This time it was my turn, and I moved in on the 20th January 2004.
I have three children: Antonia, my eldest, is a therapist working with anorexic/bulimic patients in Tasmania. Jodie is married to Joe Clark and they live in Putney, London, with Amelie Grace Hinemoa. They work for Hillsong London, a large church at the Dominion Theatre on the corner of Oxford St and Tottenham Court Rd. Everyone there seems to be under forty! Lee, my youngest, is the only one still here in New Zealand. He is the mix operator of Talley’s icecream, Crème de la Crème, in Motueka.
My partner of eight years, David Wallace, lives in Christchurch but is often around to help. He is a national assessor for NZ Food Safety. We enjoy tramping and sailing together, as well as traveling the world when time allows. He is a marathon runner and a keen cyclist, while I am more suited to be on the support team. We are keenly interested in local history and the flora and fauna of New Zealand, and are happy to share our knowledge with our many visitors from around the world.
