PATRICIA ANNE DENT
(nee Nolan)
1950 -
Patricia was born Patricia Anne Nolan on 16 March 1950 at the Queen Victoria Maternity Hospital, Adelaide to Mary Dawn (nee Harding) and Desmond Nolan. She was the only child of this couple and her father left when Patricia was only a few months old.
The family had lived in a caravan park in Mount Gambier for the first few months of Patricia’s life and then moved to Adelaide while she was still very young.
At first they lived with her mother’s sister, Joyce, husband Eric and their 3 children, Jennifer, Sandra (who was learning ballet) and Robert who was 1 month younger than Patricia. They were like brother and sister.
Uncle Eric was involved with the West Torrens Football Club and Patricia remembers her loyalty to that club when she was growing up and her interest in ballet too at that time.
She remembers the years with this family as being very happy ones.
Patricia and her mother had lived with the family for approximately 2 years when her mother met her stepfather Kenneth Adams over the fence of a neighbour, His best friend Desmond Were was going out with Mavis one of her mother sister’s.
They were married on June 7th 1953 and Kenneth adopted Patricia. She regarded her new dad as her real dad. No one ever talked about her real father or their divorce. She knows very little about her real father or their divorce.
The new family went to live at Magill and special friendships were formed with the Oldman and Campbell families their new neighbours.
Patricia attended Magill Primary School where she met her first friend Beverley Harris (who had hair down to her bottom) and who is still a friend to this day. Patricia and Bev played in the Penfolds winery at Magill amongst the grape vines where Bev’s father was the winemaker.
Patricia’s first teacher was Mrs McCullum and her next teacher Miss Cameron was a warm, cuddly person who Patricia remembers with great fondness. Patricia was chosen to play a leading role in the Christmas concert with Terry Annells and the teacher bought all their costumes for them which they were allowed to keep afterwards. Patricia later named one of her twins after her. Mrs Bennett - of Bennetts Pottery - was a great teacher too. Miss Lillycrapp, the head teacher once smacked Patricia on the back of her legs for whistling in the corridor!
From Junior Primary School (or Infant School as it was then called) she went to Magill Primary which was a Demonstration School and there she had Mr Cant who was really nice to everyone and would sit on the desk and swing his legs. In grade 5 she had Mr Robertson who threw chalk at children not looking to the front. In Yr 7 she had Mr Conroy and Mrs Berzins who were very nice.
Patricia enjoyed drama, sport – especially netball and bike riding. At lunch time she and some friends would ride their bikes up the Norton Summit Road to the then Premier, Sir Thomas Playford’s house and back again – something they were not supposed to do!
Playford would often drive past the school on his way to or from Adelaide and would wave to the children as he went past. He always drove himself.
Patricia went to Kensington Girls Technical School in 1963 and was among the first group of only 58 girls there in the first year. She was there for 3 years and had Mrs Rowney for Art and Sport, Miss Reid for Home Ec., Miss Skillens for Science and Mrs Wilson for Dressmaking. The Head Mistress was Miss Bleesing.
Patricia enjoyed softball, athletics and netball and regularly participated in inter school championships.
The school also held operettas and Patricia was in a production of ‘Figaro.’
The school had no school uniform for its first 3 months after opening but when one was finally decided, Patricia couldn’t wait to get one and bought her own school uniform from her bank account and felt very proud wearing it.
On one occasion she remembers colouring school friend Marie Bianci’s hair pink in the locker rooms and getting punished by being made to wash it out under a very low tap on the far side of the oval! She had always wanted to be a hairdresser since she was 9 years old.
Patricia’s sister Julia had been born in 1954, then Judith in 1958 and Michael in 1959. Sadly Michael had a severe reaction to the triple antigen injection and this led to cerebral palsy and brain damage. Patricia helped her mother to give her little brother postural drainage. Her brother Clark was born in 1965. Michael eventually went to the Strathmont Home and then to Rua Rua, and Minda Homes, then he went into independent living with carers where he died aged 30.
The remaining 4 children grew up at Magill.
Patricia joined the Girls’ Brigade when she was 9 and rose to become a Staff Sergeant. She attended a GB Jamboree in Perth and experienced the hold up of the train because the line was flooded. They lived on the train for 7days.
She was also very active in her local church and Sunday school especially as the singer, Kamahl was one of her Sunday School teachers!
She played and coached netball for the church and really enjoyed the youth groups – Christian Endeavour, Sunday school and Girls’ Brigade.
Patricia also wrote frequently to the Sunday Mail’s “Possum Club” and “Forget – me – not Club” through which she raised money through stalls she ran in front of the local Four Square Store and for which her mother sewed, to raise money for the Spastic Centre.
She did this for a long time and found that visiting her brother at the Strathmont Centre gave her insights into the needs of places such as this.
When Patricia was 15 years old she got pneumonia and spent a week in the Adelaide Children’s Hospital. Patricia’s mother was in hospital at the same time with the birth of her brother Clark.
Patricia started a part time job on 12th September 1965 at Linde’s Salon in Arthur Street, Magill and signed the papers to begin a Hairdressing apprenticeship in March 1966.
She attended Trade School one day a week in Twin St in Adelaide. William Litchfield came to work in the Salon from one in Gawler called ‘Schwerdts’ and they became the closest of friends.
Her apprenticeship lasted 5 years and during that time she met a number of interesting people including Ian Fairweather, the TV entertainer and host and actress Jill Perryman’s grandmother who unfortunately had a heart attack while in the salon and it was left to Patricia to look after her till the ambulance came – the old lady went on to live to be 96!
It was at this time she met one of her still close friends Valerie-Robyn Ford who also worked in the salon part time. Valerie and Patricia loved dancing and would go to the Norwood Ballroom, The Lion Hotel, and ‘Sam’s’ night club two or three times a week.
Patricia still lived at home and was very involved in the Magill Church of Christ and in sport and her 2 sisters were also.
Patricia remembers spending a lot of time at the Botanic Gardens where her father was a gardener and that they had the best garden in the street!
Her first kiss at 16 was from Anthony Brown and on the church steps. As her father was very strict she was not allowed out with too many boys. She met Tom Elliott through her girlfriend Jennifer Whitehead. He was in the Army and they went out for 12 months and wrote to each other after he was stationed in Queensland. They would go surfing to Moana every chance they had. This was her first broken heart and her dad thought the world of him – a rare thing for her dad!
Patricia lived at home until she was 21 but after working in a salon in King William Street for three months she went to work and live in Waikerie for 12 months and worked for Lynette and Terry Nitschke at Waikerie Hair Salon with the men’s salon on one side and ladies’ on the other.
She shared a flat with 3 other girls - 2 teachers and a wine lab. assistant.
In Waikerie she became very involved with basketball and Bruce Light, a Port Adelaide football player was her coach.
The social life was great and she met quite a few male friends. Patricia went gliding and was in the Waikerie girls’ rowing team. They had so much fun and were very fit.
She became involved with the Miss Australia Quest during this time, her room mate, Yvonne Herrman, asked her to do her hair for the finals judging.
Patricia remembers doing a 150 entrants’ hair in the toilet at Alden Manor at Glenelg (the hairdresser never turned up on the day!).
She was asked to come back by Kay Moller, the Quest organizer, the next day and repeated what she’d done the day before.
That was the beginning of a seven year voluntary relationship with the Miss Australia Quest and a firm friendship with Gloria Jarvis, a tireless worker for the Quest. Through the Quest Patricia met Sharon Betty - Miss South Australia and Miss Australia in 1976 and to this day they have remained close friends.
Sally –Ann Woolford was crowned Miss South Australia in 1977 and later became Patricia’s sister- in-law and beloved aunt of Matthew.
Through the salon, Patricia became very involved in the community and the local Chamber of Commerce and had a wonderful, busy social time. Waikerie was the beginning of major changes in Patricia’s life.
She came back to Adelaide with, yet again, another broken heart.
She shifted in with Valerie her friend in North Adelaide, for about 6 months then went back home to live for about 12mths.
Patricia travelled by two buses each way daily for 3 months to work at the “Lizbeth Turner Salon” at Fulham Gardens. After this Patricia went to work for her friend William Litchfield at “Vamp” on the Norwood Parade.
During this time she rekindled a friendship with Peter Dent who had been recently separated and had a two year old son Evan. Peter was the former brother in law of Patricia’s friend Valerie. Evan and Patricia were always close and he regards her as his mother. He is now married and until recently was living in Canada with his wife but has returned home.
She was at “Vamp” from 1973 to 1976. When William sold the salon to Tricia Hicks Patricia managed the salon for a few years during which time she met many prominent personalities one being Penne Hackforth- Jones - a TV actress from a show called ‘Cash and Company’ a Channel 7 series. Penne was in Adelaide on a promotional tour and Patricia’s job was to recreate the style as worn on the set.
Patricia had a regular clientele of young deaf teenagers who she enjoyed being with.
The salon was sold again and in November 1976 and Patricia opened her own salon in Romilly House on Dequetteville Terrace called ‘Mahogany Hair Designs’.
Patricia and Peter married on 27th March 1977 at Clayton Wesley Church Norwood Parade. Their reception was held at the Stonyfell Winery. It was unusually held on a Sunday.
The couple went to live at Salisbury.
Patricia became involved with the Tanya Powell Modelling Agency teaching young prospective models how to look after their hair and skin. She also lectured on hairdressing to young apprentices at the O’Halloran Hill TAFE.
Patricia was also a technical adviser to Clairol, working with Phyllis Gray OAM and her husband Gordon, founders of ‘Gray and Palmer’ a hairdressing wholesale company. They were Adelaide’s first co-founders of the International Hairstylist Society. Today they are still very close friends and Phyllis is now 93.
Patricia also lectured for many different hairdressing companies at seminars.
She became involved with the International Hairstylist Society while still an apprentice and was involved with it for 44 years becoming National Vice President and was State Chair for 8 years, State Chairperson of Judges for 8 years and received an Award of Merit in 1983, Life Membership in 1986 and a Directorship Award in1999 - the highest Award bestowed on a member of the IHS.
Patricia has travelled extensively through Australia and overseas to New York, the World Hairdressing Cup in Berlin and other places in Europe with the Hairdressing Industry.
Patricia and Peter shifted to Frost Road, Brahma Lodge as Peter had gone into a trucking business and they needed more land.
Patricia gave birth to twin boys 8 weeks premature - Matthew Stuart Agin weighing 1100grms and Cameron Heath Agin weighing 1250grms on the 13th February 1980 at the Queen Victoria Hospital.
Cameron only lived for 2 and a half days and died of a brain tumour, Matthew remained in hospital for a further 3 months.
Patricia still had to run her business and went back to work part time, still going to the hospital to visit Matthew daily.
Patricia sold her salon when Matthew was 14 months old and worked part time for a few years.
When Matthew was 2 and a half he got measles and Patricia noticed that he had stopped speaking despite speaking clearly up till then. They discovered that the measles had affected his hearing and he was profoundly hearing impaired in his left ear and moderately affected in his other ear. Matthew had hearing aids fitted at the age of 3. He attended the Cora Barclay Centre from the age of 3 to 6 years.
Patricia joined the mothers’ club and was President, then joined the board of the Cora Barclay Centre bringing changes to the school through fundraising. She is still is a strong supporter of the school. Cora Barclay passed away in 2010.
They moved to a 10 hectare property at Bibaringa with a small hobby farm and a palomino that they loved to ride.
Matthew went to Evanston Primary School where he received special support. Helen Sands was deputy head at the time and Matthew formed a bond with her straight away.
Patricia was working part time at ‘Gawler Hair Care’ and three other salons as well and would travel to Leabrook and Unley. The salon had a name change and shifted to Todd Street and became ‘The Hairdresser.’ Patricia worked there for a total of 7 and a half years and managed it during that time making some long friendships with the girls she worked with and they catch up regularly.
She then had a change of employment and worked at Angle Vale at ‘Country Flair’ where she managed the salon for Christina Merenda for 8 and a half years. Many great times were had with all the staff from that salon.
Patricia and Peter sold the Bibaringa property and shifted to Lyndoch Road next door to the Immanuel School where they lived until Mathew was 12 and a half.
Patricia then split up from her husband and she and Matthew went to live in Gozzard Street in Gawler East for 2 years after which they moved to her sister’s house in Popham Avenue where they had the granny flat for 18 months.
It was during this time that Matthew was diagnosed with epilepsy.
In 1993, Patricia took Matthew (now 13) overseas, visiting Singapore, London, Scotland and the village of Dent, 1750 feet above sea level and home of the Dent family heritage. It was important to Patricia to take Matthew there.
They then went to Paris and Germany on a Eurail pass and Vienna. They flew back to London and then to Orlando, Florida, then by bus to Washington DC, Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Los Angeles, Honolulu, Fiji, Sydney and home. They were away for 33 days and Matthew returned to go to high school the next day!
Matthew had joined the Scouts in 1989 and Patricia became involved in the Gawler community through the Scouts. She joined the committee and helped organise some great fundraisers.
In 1994 they moved to King Street where they lived for 2 years while Patricia was still working for ‘Country Flair’ at Angle Vale.
She had been single for 18 months without dating anyone and had known friend, Peter Weaver for some time and they started seeing each other in 1994. He moved in with Patricia when she shifted into her house at Duldig Avenue.
Like most people Patricia became involved with, he also found himself drawn into her fun filled projects and never complained. It was a very busy lifestyle both working very long hours and in 2006 Peter and Patricia went their separate ways but they still remain good friends.
She then opened ‘The Sanctuary Hair and Beauty’ in 1997 with her friend Dione Burt in Gawler. The house she had been renting in Duldig Avenue she later purchased in 1999.
On her return to Gawer life she became involved with the Gawler Show Society and ‘Fashions on the Field’ with Fay Washington and then worked on the ‘Miss Showgirl’ committee. After having a break for a while she became involved again with friend Lesley Clark on the Miss Showgirl committee until Lesley resigned.
Gawler Show girls included Leah Dawkins and Esther Lindstrom with Rural Ambassadors Peter Angus and Nicky Krieg and more recently Matthew Hamatti and Aisha Hargraves and Megan Weston - just to name a few.
Patricia then became the Show Girl organiser and today is the Rural Ambassador Awards coordinator.
She was elected to the Tourism and Trade Committee in 2000.
In 2003 Patricia became an inaugural member of the Gawler Health Foundation.
In 2001 she was involved with fundraising for young cancer victim Zachary Clayton raising $13,000 at a Family Fun Day. This received the ‘Community Event of the Year’ award for this fundraiser at the Australia Day Awards in 2002.
Her friend Dione married her business partner Alistair Douglas and they had their first child, Magnus in 2003 and decided to move to Chiltern, Victoria where her husband’s family lived. This was a very hard time for Patricia with her close friend moving away and it took a while for her to adjust but they continue their friendship long distance!
Patricia has also fundraised for the Salvation Army and then 10 years ago, in 2000, she became the facilitator of the ‘Look good - feel better ’ program for women cancer victims at the request of then councillor Diane Field, herself a victim of cancer.
Patricia’ mother had died of cancer in 1999.
In 1996 Patricia received the Highly Commended Award in the Employee section of the Rotary Club of Gawler’s Quality of Service Awards.
In 1999-2000 she served on the committee for the Olympic Torch Relay and received an Australia Day Achievement Award for the Olympic Torch Relay pageant in the town of Gawler and was nominated to run with the torch in Gawler and raised funds for a para-Olympian to buy his torch. She was also honoured to run through Hewitt with the Queen’s Commonwealth baton for the Commonwealth Games, into a sea of students – one of her most memorable moments!
For a number of years Patricia was both a sponsor and organiser of the ‘Fashions on the Field’ for both the Balaklava Racing club and the Gawler Jockey Club.
In 2002-03 she served on the steering committee for the Gawler Intergrated Transport Study.
Patricia was the South Australian Volunteer of the Year in 2004 for the ‘Look good - feel better’ project in 2004.
Patricia was awarded ‘Zonta Woman of Achievement Award’ in 2005 and the Order of Australia Medal in 2006 for service to the Hairdressing Industry and the community of Gawler.
Patricia is a committee member of the Gawler Agricultural, Horticultural and Floricultural Society.
In 2008 Patricia was the brains behind the ‘Farewell to McLeod’s Daughters’ at Princess Park in Gawler attended by 3,500 people. This was a fundraiser for the Gawler Health Foundation.
In 2009 she helped with Reconciliation Week and assisted young people with a fashion parade.
In 2009 Patricia raised $4000 at a fundraising dinner for ‘Look good - feel better’
She was awarded the ‘Gawler Citizen of the Year’ on Australia Day 2010.
Patricia sponsors the ‘Giants’ softball team.
She was elected a councillor to the Town of Gawler Council in 2006 and has worked on the Gawler Volunteering Advisory Committee, Youth Action Committee, International Women’s Day Committee, the Gawler Skate Park Committee and has done work for the Gawler Community House and is involved with the extension to the ‘Lost Babies’ section of Willaston Cemetery.
She has supported and been involved with many other community initiatives involving service clubs, sporting groups and charitable organisations in the Gawler and surrounding areas.
Patricia is a bundle of energy and ideas and is never happy unless she’s involved in helping others.
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