I am English born in the County of Kent at a 
          quaint village called Downe which is also
          the adopted  residence of Charles Darwin.
          My father was a milk herdsman, probably     
          called a share milker today. The family moved   
          to Camberwell in south London in the late 20's
          to be close to other family members I think.
          This was the area I grew up in as a boy and
          I still have have fond memories of. We moved
          to outer London just before the outbreak of
          the 2nd world war and lived there throughout the
          bombings etc until June 1944 then evacuated
          to south Yorkshire until the end of the
          German war.I started working at the age of 14
          as a laundry van boy, then into the building trade
          as a plasterers improver doing bomb damage
          repairs mainly to houses in the Plumstead
          and  Woolwich areas. After becoming a
          plasterer, night school beckoned me to
          improve my work status and after many years
          of study I eventualy qualified as a structural
          engineer, This led me into migrating to New
          Zealand in 1971 with my wife Mary and our
          3 children. My only occupation was with the       
          Blenheim Borough Council for some 17 years
          as an earthquake engineer and other works.
          I have now been retired for about 17 years . 
                                 
                                    *****
                                                     
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