8th May 2005 - Rita Zondagh previously Rita Bothma

Yesterday I got an email from Rita. She had found our web pages and recognised names therein. I replied, and she replied with a much longer, interest-filled email. Now boet, you can see that this lady was THERE...she deserves a medal of honour for taking the time to write her email. First I'm gonna reply, then, reading down, you'll see the emails.
Updated 26 July 2010

Rita - age 5, then at Little Beach, then at age 21, then making a twin

Wow Rita - thanks for your email. Any chance you have any photo's ? OK, I'm gonna take your email slowly, as the memories flood back. Yep, I remember the Ludicks, they went to school with us at QASS. My Mom and Dad worked across the road from where you lived. My Mom ran the Publicity Organisation and my Dad was the Electrical Engineer. At that time he had a dark grey Anglia. 1965 I was in the Air Force, then 1966 worked at Standard Bank in Main Street where Ian Lapsley was the Manager. I think I also worked there in 1967 which is when I had a yellow Mini which Manie (Blackie) Swart and I managed to park upside down in the river across the road from the bakery one night. Ai pappegaai. Ja - do you remember the sand dune called Mount Everest on the east beach - awesome ! Took absolute ages to walk back up again after a thrilling ride. In Beach Crescent you mush have lived almost next door to Barry (Elvis) Reed. He smoked Texan plain and his Dad worked at mental, to which he used to ride every day on his bicycle. Remember Stephen (with a limp) and Danie Smuts - brothers to Wilma and Irma. Their Dad (Smuttie) also used to ride his bicycle and worked at the mental. Raubenheimer was a lawyer - with the atypical little black moustache. The Ferry Man was named WALLY. Ronnie Field and I used to run those monkey paths stukkend. What a carefree bundle of fun life was. I wonder if your Dad took over from Station Commander van der Merwe - his sons were Gustav and Marinus. I the picture below you'll see the Lagoon. The folks in the picture are my niece Judy-Ann and Dessie Taylor from East London at the time. The house is at 47 Pascoe Crescent - now it would overlook the Halyards and marina. My parents built the house. Click on the picture to make it bigger.

    
47 Pascoe Cres.    Rita's dad at a "do" at the Vic

Rita's email - 7th May 2005
At our back gate (actually the police station yard gate) lived people who ate a lot of sweet potatoes. They lived right inside the railway station and had many children - I can remember all of their names. They were the Ludicke's. The one daughter, Rachel (pronounced the Afrikaans way, RAGEL) baby-sat us when my parents went to events at the Vic. My dad was Gert Bothma and my mom was Lina. She was the bookkeeper for Mr. Ian Bester's garage. I remember vividly and in technicolour ALL of Port Alfred. My peers were (some older, some younger) Heather Clayton, Judy-Lynn Heny, Marilyn and Beverly Cameron (they came from Kitwe in Rhodesia and their mom and dad had the fish and chips shop near the movie house. I remember Denise and Jennifer Gilder, Sharon Thackeray, Cecil Rudman, Neil ???, Cornelia ??, Linda Lapsley who, even at that age of 13, had magnificent legs and I remember she had a beautiful mom as well - it was at the time when sand-skiing started and my dad made us each a ski-board from hard-board. It took a very long time to walk up the sandy slopes of the unspoilt east beach and then come down and really not die! No-one wants to believe me when I tell them that the boys used to dig a way off from the sea until they struck water, fresh water, which we drank by cupping our hands. My dad played scrum-half during one of those years when they had a special rugby match called "the old crocks" and he must have been about 32 only. We lived in Port Alfred twice. We were transferred to Grahamstown for 3 years and then came back to Kowie for 3 years again. During our first stay we lived in a big old house in Beach Crescent, above the Smuts' and the Leach's (Linda was the daughter and the mother was Elaine Leach). My mom adored the Smuts' daughters - they were Wilma and Irma - very athletic and they used to do athletics on the rugby field with Louis Zimmerman. The school had only netball. I remember the quaint house of Mr Harris near the school (I did, afterall, enquire about his daughter Paula). Mrs. Clarke was my sub A teacher. I remember Heidi Raubeneimer. Was her father not a magistrate or lawyer? Do you remember the monkey paths? They were safe. My mom NEVER told us to be careful when we ran up and down the hill through the bush, via the meandering monkey paths. We used to see how fast we could run down and often fell very hard. I remember the ferry-man with the little glasses - a very old man. I swam in the lagoon every day after school - it had a looooong jetty which we called the diving board. I remember all the doctors you mentioned - also Dr. Handley. Do you remember Mr Hammond and his mother, Mrs. Hammond who were both teachers? When the fishing boats came in at eve, my mom walked there with my sister and I and she would buy fish as well as cod roe for breakfast. It looked like boerewors I seem to remember. More kids from those days I remember were Peter Jackson and an older brother Ronnie. My mom was friends with Christine and we often visited with her. Peter once cut his hair into a Mohican style, but the school would not allow it so he had it all shaved off - I guess that made him the first skinhead in the world. Judy-Lynn's mom once trained Judy-Lynn and myself to sing a duet for Christmas Carols somewhere outside near the Mental. We did it so well, I think, I wonder if she'll remember that. I remember Danie Smuts (gee I must have been 5 years old then) practicing the trumpet or bugle?? until everyone in the area complained. We lived on terraces and there were lots and lots of guava trees. White delicious guavas with lots of worms, but who cared? Do you remember the cut-out airplane petrol tanks which we used as canoes. They were difficult to steer. My dad also fixed a plank inside for 2 to sit in. Then we'd use ord. oars to steer it. We used it in the yards of some of those people's homes during at least one of those floods. Weren't there car races on the flats once a year as well, apart from the regattas? I remember Patsy Prew, Wendy and Linda Turner AND Kenny. Their mom was the main hairdresser I think. I remember a boy called Dassie - don't think he was at our school though. We used to swim in the river up to Mr. Kelly's beautiful boat and climb into it and just sit there. No-one ever chased us away. Ohhh there's so much more - I doubt if there's any other town in the country which had such a heartfelt presence for it's inhabitants. Thank you SO much for this site. I remember the Scriven girls too. Irene and ??? and a brother Lester? So many things and people.......... in such a small town. Sorry about the long letter. I'm thinking.......should I press enter or not......ah what the heck, here goes :)
Rita

Hi Rita, How great to hear from you. Hey, I also used to ride on Uncle Basil Clayton’s horses. You can ask Mary, Heather’s elder sister. Judy-Lynn lives in PE – in Summerstrand, where my family does. Pauline Harris – now that was Uncle Rex’s daughter – they lived up there nearby the school. I must admit, I haven’t seen the members of your “team” for years. Maybe Little Dup in Graaff Reinet would know more. The Cameron girls…they would probably be Jock Cameron’s daughters. Where do you live now ? Can anybody else help ? Thanks and keep well, Martin

7th May 2005
Hi there Martin, I grew up in Port Alfred. My dreams are of Port Alfred, riding on Mr. Clayton's 3 horses, Rusty, Beno and Whisky for 50c a day. Heather was a class-mate of mine. Judy-Lynn Heny was also in my class. I have been searching and searching for a bunch of girls called Linda (Lulu) Walsh, Pauline Harris and the sisters Beverly and Marilyn Cameron. The five of us made some kind of silly pact. MY father at the time was the station commander when we were all very small. At the time there was a sergeant Du Preez and a constable Stander. I saw SO much of Pixie John. Used to buy mud-prawns from him to catch flatties in the Cowie River off the jetty at the library where Mrs. Snyman was the Librarian. Her daughter Helen was my music teacher. Have you any contact with any of those girls mentioned. Would greatly appreciate. Kindest regards and God Bless you sir! Rita Zondagh (nee) Bothma.
czondagh@telkomsa.net

26 July 2010
 

Dear Rita
I came across the attached page on Martin’s virtual book website and saw a name I recognised - Paula Harris.  Paula and I go back a long way to the 1980’s when we worked for the same company in Port Elizabeth before I moved to Cape Town.  The reconnected briefly about 10 years ago in Cape Town but I’m afraid haven’t kept in touch.  The last contact details I have for her are:
Paula Bongers (she was married then)
3 Ryk Street
Brooklyn 7405

I have no idea whether you will still be able to find her there but good luck!

By the way, both my parents grew up in Port Alfred, got married and moved to PE before I was born.  My father was Gerald, eldest son of Harry Mould, brother to 12 siblings and my mother, Gwen Waters.  I still have two uncles living in Port Alfred – Les Mould (who used to be the postman) and Brian Mould who owns the Toyota dealership in Port Alfred.  My brother, Trevor Mould works for my Uncle Brian.  The Thackerays are cousins of ours.  I have fond memories of spending every holiday in Port Alfred where my grandparents had a modest house in Campbell Street, just up the road from the Thackerays. I was thrilled to find the website but although many of the names are familiar to me, I am just a bit too young to remember many of the people (born in 1954).
Good luck with finding Paula. Have you thought of trying Facebook?
Regards

Back to Index                        martin@martins.co.za