Legends of the Garden - Terry Shadbolt

Terry Shadbolt is a Life Member of the Emu Valley Rhododendron Garden. He served two terms as President of the North West Rhododendron Society. He held the positions of Treasurer and Chairman of the Garden Committee, was the National Council delegate and was the first Chairperson of EVRG Inc.

But first and foremost, Terry was a school teacher, well respected by his students.

One wrote: “Terry was my favourite teacher. He was a big, gregarious, charismatic man who made his subject easy to learn. It was fun to be there. He treated his students with the same respect he demanded from them. He was a genuine hero, a member of the famous 1960 Tasmanian football side who beat the Victorians. A hero for the whole state as well as for me.”

A second student wrote: “Mr Shadbolt, a Taurean, is sometimes unpopular due to his favourite pastimes of giving students homework, tests and exams. However, he compensates for this with his good sense of humour, a quality native to Taureans. This may be why he likes gorillas so much, as he says they have a great sense of humour. Mr. Shadbolt does not believe in Santa Claus because it costs too much.”

Ant Dry spoke to his widow Kay:

ANT: You’re both life members. Is this interview to be about you both or just about Terry?

KAY: Just Terry. If he was here, he’d probably say “no” to that too! He never sought recognition. He didn’t really seek life membership either.

ANT: Where was he born?

KAY: Ulverstone. His parents had a farm at North Motton. He went to North Motton Primary School and then to Devonport High. He’d catch the train from North Motton, board in Devonport during the week, and then catch the train home again. They didn’t have a car in those days.

ANT: What did he do after school?

KAY: He was a good football player. Richmond came over to sign him up to play in Melbourne, but he decided he’d rather stay in Tassie and do uni. He went to Hobart and did a double major degree in Chemistry and Geology, and then his Diploma of Education. He then came up to Burnie High in 1958 to teach science and maths.

ANT: Where did you meet him?

KAY: At Burnie High. I’d just finished school and I was teaching there.

ANT: You spent some time in Canada?

KAY: Yes. In 1968 after 10 years of teaching, Terry was due long service leave. His ambition had always been to go somewhere and do something. He applied for four positions and was accepted by all of them, but we chose one on Vancouver Island. He taught at the senior secondary school there for four years. After that he went back to Burnie High and then went to Hellyer College where he was senior master for

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sciences. He always just wanted to teach. He was offered promotion but he felt his forte was in the classroom.

He wasn’t a member of the teachers’ associations. He would never go to those meetings, he would rather stick to his neighbours. He wasn’t keen on reunions either. He took redundancy when he turned 58.

ANT: Did he enjoy teaching?

KAY: Oh yes, and coaching sport. He got a lot of satisfaction from seeing his students progress and seeing them do well. He regularly helped the neighbourhood kids with their homework too.

ANT: What did you do when he retired?

KAY: We bought a motor home and did a lot of gem fossicking. He had the machines to cut stones, which he used to give away. Wherever we stopped he’d trot them out and tell everyone what they were. We’d go away for three months at a time all around Australia.

ANT: How did he get involved in the Emu Valley Rhododendron Garden? KAY: I had no interest in rhododendrons and I don’t know where his interest came from. It’s still a mystery to me. His mother was a keen gardener, and we did have a property at Sister’s Beach where we had put in a couple of rhodos. They were growing okay.

He saw an advert in The Advocate , “the next meeting of the society will be on such and such date. All welcome.” He went, and I said, ‘I’m not going.’

ANT: What did he do for the garden?

KAY: Promote it. Get it up to a business level. He was a good administrator. From football and teaching he had a lot of contacts which came in use when he wanted a bit of assistance somewhere. He wasn’t frightened of confronting bureaucracy. He was comfortable talking to anyone. He was instrumental in getting funding for a number of projects. Did the funding submissions. He scrounged the caretaker’s cottage from one of the mines.

Working at the garden has always been fun. It provides therapy. It was good for Terry too. It was a complete opposite from the scholastic side of things.

ANT: Tell us about your children.

KAY: Our eldest, Justin, is in Perth. He went into metallurgy. He works for a multinational. Our daughter Stephanie went to uni in Japan and did an arts degree. In her spare time she taught English. She was in Japan for 10 years. One of her jobs was with Olympus and that’s how we found sponsorship to build the Olympus Bridge in the Garden. She’s now living in the USA. Our youngest is Craig. He has a PhD in Microbiology. He’s in Sydney working for NSW Department of Primary Industries in biosecurity and food safety.

ANT: Apart from the Garden, what were his hobbies?

KAY. Fishing — trout, flathead, squid, abalone and crayfish, and so on. We fished a lot at Sisters Beach.

ANT: How would you describe Terry?

KAY: For me, I’d say he was my hero. He was generally liked and respected. A gentleman. Astute and wise. Thoughtful caring and wise. A good judge of character. He soon worked out who was who and what was what.

ANT: Did he have any faults?

KAY: (laughs).

ANT: What was his philosophy of life?

KAY: Probably, “Do unto others as you would have done unto you.”

These “Legend of the Garden” interviews were collated by Ant Dry and edited by Katie O’Rourke