It's Been 10 Years

After living at number 4 Mulgoa Ave, Dandenong for thirty plus years, and raising a family there, the opportunity arose for us to move to a new house for our retirement years.
We actually moved just seven kilometers along Stud Road to a place named Rowville.
We were able to purchase a vacant block of land in the South East corner of this fast growing suburb and proceed with the building of a house as "Owner Builders" due to the generosity and expertise of our third son Greg. He supervised all aspects of the building and personally did all the framing and fixing.
Our second son, Larry gave us a lot of help with the painting.
Proverbs 27:5 has it, "Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord, and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man, so are children of his youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate". The size of quivers differ considerably, Mine holds six!
The year was 1995, we had open land between us and the golf course but Melbourne's insatiable need for more housing has made the view disappear.



Now at the end of 2005 vacant blocks are scarce.

Salerno Way is near an edge of a triangular area which borders on Stud Road, Bergins s Road and Wellington Road and when we need to exit on Stud Road we take our lives in our hands, but yesterday things changed for the better
We now have traffic lights at the corner of Bergin and Stud


Rowville, like every other place has a history which would go back long before the Rev James Clow became the first squatter there c1838 when the Kulin people used to come and go in there relentless search for food. They fished in the swamps surrounding the Dandenong Creek until white men came and drained the swamps to get the redgum from there for the streets of Melbourne.
Stamford Park

In 1868 James Quirk sold his 424 acre property bounded by Stud Road, Wellington Road and Dandenong Creek to Frederick Row for one pound and ten shillings an acre.

Frederick Row was a wealthy wool broker who was moving up in colonial society. He bought the property beyond the Stud Park Shopping Centre and on the opposite side of Stud Road with the intention of turning it into a country estate. He named it Stamford Park after an estate of the same name owned by the Row Family in Linconshire, England. The present grand homestead on the property was built in 1882 by his son, Edward Row.

The home became the focus for Melbourne's wealthy and well-connected people during Christmas and the spring racing season. The famous actress, Nellie Stewart, was a frequent guest and later married Frederick Row's youngest son, Richard. Leading members of Melbourne society including the Governor, Lord Hopetoun, were also guests at Stamford Park.

Near the traffic lights there are two monuments, the first one to the Blacksmith Nick Bergin who ran his business at the same corner from 1865, a colourful character indeed. Nick is credited with the naming of Rowville, due to his respect for the Row family of Stamford Park.



The other monument is to the War Servicemen. In 1942 an Australian Army Base was established for tactical purposes should Japanese invasion eventuate. Within the year the Australian troops moved out and American troops moved in and when they went to the Pacific to battle the base was used as a POW camp for Italians captured in North Africa. When the war finished several of the Italians absconded, not wanting to return to Italy, but to settle in Australia.

Lastly, there is a sign at the corner of Bergins Road saying that the Lunar Drive In is situated just 5 Km down the road, actually it is nearer 10 Kms.
Rowville had a great Drive in just a short walk from our house. It was built and run by a local lad commencing about 1957 and surviving until the day of the DVD.
I remember stopping on the hill on Stud Road on more than one occasion for a free look

Mark 1:1-8

Almost 50 years ago I traveled through floods to the North Nar Nar Goon Methodist Church.
It was so wet. There were a few places where I wondered if I would get through the waters flowing over the unmade road in my 1947 Dodge. When I arrived there was only one other person present. He was to be the preacher.
He was a young Rev Dallas Clarnette. He was passionate about the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
He went on to become quite a figure among Australian Christians and is the author of the book, "“50 years on fire for God”, the story of Walter Betts and the People'’s Church, Kew, Victoria.
Perhaps I was meant to be there that morning.
We sat together on the stage of the hall, just the two of us, and he opened the Bible at Marks Gospel, chapter one and verse one and for at least half an hour talked with me about this verse of scripture, "“The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God"”.
While I felt privileged, I also felt a little puzzled that he made so much of these few words.
As a result of this "“discipling"” when ever I turn to Mark chapter one I have the sense that I am opening an ordinary looking jewel case filled with precious stones, mysterious stones and glittering priceless ornaments.
I intend to try and hold up and display a few of these precious things at the New Market Baptist Church this Sunday morning.
Psalm 119:162 "I rejoice at thy word, as one that finds great spoil"

50 years seems a long time to a person, but to God it's probably a blink of the eye.

This is what happened to the little boy in the top photo in that time