Our Nursing Home The Realisation of a Dream

The Proserpine Nursing Home opened 40 years ago this month, filling an important gap in aged care facilities within our community.  Since the time of its opening, the nursing home has expanded from 30 to 103 beds today.

In March 2004, Mrs Zena Price, Past Patroness of the Proserpine Historical Museum, penned the following article on the history of the Proserpine Nursing Home.

It has been said that in every field of human life things have gone ahead because people of vision have had a dream and a hope of something that may be possible. To live comfortably in the world, we must have dreams and Margaret Rose Rigby’s dream was to have a nursing home in Proserpine - a place where invalids and the elderly could enjoy the comforts of being cared for in an environment they knew, amongst relatives and friends.

Margaret was not a native of this district.  Her husband, Jordan, became Manager of the Proserpine Sugar Mill in 1978. Soon after their arrival, in conversation with friends and from her own observations, she learned that some of our elderly were being cared for in the local hospital or in out-of-town nursing homes. She first called a public meeting in 1980 to discuss the viability of a nursing home a committee was formed with Mr Ray Botto as president.

The first estimate of $800,000 seemed impossible but the generosity of the Eddie Dray family in donating 1.6 hectares of land for a home removed a considerable financial burden from the committee. Proserpine Co-operative Sugar Mill each gave $50,000 with the State and Federal Governments providing substantial donations.

The committee left no stone unturned in its efforts to make the home a going concern. They ran goose clubs, manned the gate at the rodeo, harvested bean crops, made curry and rice for the Harvest Festival; the ladies had bridal afternoons, the Rotary and Lions Service Clubs were most generous. By April 1986, Margaret received the keys to the home. No vacancies!!

In 1990, another marathon effort, and ten units known as “Hazelwood Hostel” were connected to the southern end of the Nursing Home.  “Hazelwood” honours the memory of James Nicol, an original cane supplier to the Mill in 1897, who called his farm “Hazelwood”. The Nursing Home is built on part of that farm which was sold in 1948, to the Dray family.

In 2000, the very comfortable “Whitsunday” wing was made possible by the transfer of $350,000 from the Aged Care Association at Airlie Beach and Jubilee Pocket.

In 2003, a fourth wing named “Windermere” was opened.  The name “Windermere” is familiar to this district.  It was the name given to land purchased at Cannon Valley near Brandy Creek by Mr HW Holmes when he arrived in 1894 and is still in the Holmes family. The Windermere School, one of the district’s country schools, was built on land donated by Mr Holmes and operated for the children in that area from 1922 till its closure in 1942.

No doubt, Margaret Rigby’s dream came to fruition because of the untiring efforts of many good local residents, service clubs, good management, caring staff and government help.

Story sourced from Proserpine Historical Museum archives (PHMS Magazine Issue 54 March 2004). Photo courtesy Proserpine Historical Museum.

Captions

L-R Jean Hinschen; Margaret Perkins; Gwyn Johns; Margaret Rigby - Four hard workers seen preparing the grounds before the opening.

Photo supplied.

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