This was one of the 4 pieces I did for family treasures.



Grandad Tony

 

My great grandfather was amazing. He was born in Taupapa 1923 which is located on the banks of the Wanganui River. He was named Edward Tony Stanton Workman but was known as Tony. With only one sibling (an older brother named Ray) his mother had five stillborns. He was raised in Taupapa by his Mother Edith Mary Workman (maiden name Cole) and Father Tom Workman. When he was young to get to school he rode his horse but when he broke his arm he was taken by canoe.

My Grandad had great ancestry. His Great Grandmother was a Maori Princess who was from the Ngatie Kahunganua Tribe that originated in the Waiarapa. Raephanga (the Maori Princess) married a Scottish man and that Scottish man was the first man to introduce horses to New Zealand. That makes Grandad Tony one eight Maori.

As years crept by Grandad Tony decided he wanted to be a teacher. But when war broke out it destroyed any and every chance of him becoming one. So with no backup plan he made the leap and lied his way into the army. After a short period of serving them they found out he was too young and he was quickly removed.

Soon after getting married to Nolene they sealed a deal with the Maoris. They had just gained a ninety nine year old lease for the Mangohie farm. Mangohie is a 2000 acre dry stock farm down in Pipiriki. With four children, Garrick, John, Linda and Marie living on Mangohie was a dream, but that dream was about to be crushed. Grandad Tony and Noelene (my Gran) could no longer afford to keep Mangohie up and running, so in 1967 they sold the lease.

Grandad Tony was a very successful man. He won the first calf roping title in Raetihi. He was one of the original founders of the Waimarino Rodeo, and he wrote the first rule book for Rodeo’s all over New Zealand. Sadly on September the 8^th 1991, two weeks before his birthday, at age sixty seven Grandad Tony lost the battle against second degree spinal cancer. Grandad Tony had a remarkable life. He worked hard, he was successful, he never gave up and he loved his children dearly.