Mari Fenton - a pen picture

Born at the Fenton homestead on Rona Road, Waitara. Registered as Mari Rona Fenton, daughter of John David Fenton and Esme, nee Loveridge. She said that Dave Loveridge, the All Black, was Pop Loveridge’s brother George’s grandson.
Mari played as a Wellington netball rep and went in a provincial exchange to New Plymouth to play against Taranaki. She played nine-a-side, when it was called basketball, now known as netball.
Mari attended Wellington East Girls College. After college, she went to work at the Electricity Department as a telephonist. Mari was a member of a marching team, and along came Jack, her future husband. Mari was with her girlfriend riding their bikes through the city and she crashed, and this handsome fellow picked me up, literally … he took my telephone number, and it all took off from there (Jack just said “this is what happens to a guy when he is in the wrong place at the wrong time.) I am going to go and belt him now … True Love and they are still together in 2002 having married long ago in the 1950’s.
Mari says ‘I was born out of the old house, out there on the farm at Rona Road, Waitara. Her mother told her a story once about the day she was born at the farm. Jack, her Dad, had been out racing the motorbikes and it was his brother Hip who brought home on his bike the bassinet for Mari… Can you see that?” To quote from Mari verbatim, ‘I am the oldest grandchild of Nana Fenton (Laura), I was born in 1934. We then lived in various homes in and around New Plymouth. My Dad, like Uncles Hip, Tui, Fred and Ike all spent several years overseas on active service. I do recall as a little girl, going with my mother out to the marae at Waitara where we met up with all of my Aunties to help pack food parcels. The Ladies did lots of knitting, gloves, mittens and scarves to send to all the Men away overseas.’ Mari was so interested and proud of her Dad’s military history and all that the boys went through, so much, that she is so happy that she now has the service records of four of them.
Mari and her huband, Jack, are parents of Joanne and Stephen and along with their grandchildren, all live in Queensland. Jack was a member of Rotary New Zealand and President during the 1970's, and a member of the NZ Jewellers Assn, an executive for LD Nathan, Auckland.
Aunty Es went to the wedding of her greatgranddaughter, Nicola. In time, Mari became a great grandmother to Emma, so named after her great-great-grandmother.