Rex's Website

THE GISBORNE YEARS: The early years

Me, at the age of 1 year & 10 months at Waikanae Beach in Gisborne; the beach was an important part of my life during the summers.

Life History File

Here is an account of the early years in Gisborne. On clicking, it will open in a new tab:

The early years (1940 ~ 1957)

Alternatively, you may like the file to open in the file viewer at the bottom of the page. If so, click on the link here.

The early years (1940 ~ 1957) [file viewer]

Baby and early years

Here is a copy of my birth certificate together with photos of my early years in Gisborne. On clicking, they will open in a new tab:

Birth certificate:

File viewer

A few photos of my baby and early years:

Same photos (in file viewer)

Baby book

Here is the baby book that my mother kept:

File viewer

Slideshow

The same photos of my baby and early years as a slideshow (embedded with music to 'entertain' you):

Primary school years

Here are my primary school reports:

Mangapapa School reports:

Some class photos, fancy-dress ball pictures and the result of a Standard 2 writing competition:

Primary school photos Same photos (in file viewer)

THE GISBORNE YEARS: The later school years

Me with Dreyfus the cat ca. 1953

Life History File

Here is an account of the later years in Gisborne. On clicking, it will open in a new tab:

File viewer

Intermediate school years

Here are my intermediate school reports:

School reports for Forms 1 and 2: School reports

Same reports (in file viewer)

Photos and Form 2 certificate: Intermediate school photos Same photos (in file viewer)

Secondary school years

Here you can view my secondary school reports:

School reports for Forms 1 to 6A (Form 6A is now called Form 7):

School reports Same reports (in file viewer)

Class photos and others: Photos, etc.

Same photos (in file viewer)

Class notebooks

My Form 2 Science notebook:

File viewer

My Form 3 Social Studies notebook:

A special section: My mother's recipe book

My mother used to do most of the cooking and baking for our household. Over time, she had a very large collection of recipes.

Click on the link below to see the the categories of these recipes.

The recipe book

Another special section: The war years

I was born during Word War II but grew up, perhaps naturally being in New Zealand, being unaware of it. Except at the end of the war, when a Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) Lancaster bomber (similar to the one pictured, right) flew across our town in its circuit around the towns and cities of the country. We went up a hill behind our house to watch it. I can still remember this, though the memory is a blur rather than a clear image.

As I grew up, I learnt more about wars and how men in my family were involved. My mother's father went to South Africa at the age of 19 and fought in the Boer War. He survived.

An uncle of my mother, Bernard Harper, died at Messines Ridge in Belgium during World War I in 1917. For more on this, go to the Later HK years page of this website when, in 1993, I and my family visited Messines Ridge (and other WWI battlefields) while on holiday in Belgium.

And a cousin of my father, William Heyworth, died in a notorious Japanese prisoner-of-war camp in North Borneo in 1945.

For more on my mother’s father and my father’s cousin, refer to the file below:

In Memoriam: Robert Vallance and William Heyworth File viewer

The links below provide pictures and additional information about these folks. There is some overlap/repetition of comments made above.

Files and photos Same files and photos (viewer)