Julia Creek will farewell one of its favourite daughters on Thursday, September 7.
Shirley Eckford OAM, formerly of Isabel Downs, Julia Creek passed away last week aged 90 years in Townsville.
She was the wife of the late Jim Eckford and will be missed by family members Theresa Patel, Ron and Leanne Eckford, Lynn and Erick Slack-Smith and their families.
Art was a prominent theme through most of Shirley life, from clay sculpturing to educating on its history in her later years.
Her decades of promoting art, culture and history throughout the Julia Creek region was rewarded with an ABC Rural Women of the Award for Carpentaria (1995) and an Order of Australian Medal (OAM, 2010).
Born in Hughenden in 1926 to Ron and Ellen Collins, Shirley grew up on ‘Isabel Downs’, 48 kilometres from Julia Creek.
Her mother Ellen taught Shirley and her two siblings to grade six before being sent to boarding school in Charters Towers.
Shirley and sister Mary attended Saint Mary’s College until 1942 following the Japanese bombing of Darwin, World War II.
“All boarders from Charters Towers colleges were sent home by train for twelve months,” Shirley said in 2014.
“During this time my sister taught me through correspondence papers to a sub junior level.”
In 1943, Shirley returned to Saint Mary’s to complete her schooling up to a commercial junior level.
Aged 22, she married James Joseph Eckford, brother to her Saint Mary’s classmate Imelda.
“Our wedding was postponed until three years after peace was declared,” Shirley said.
“Jim’s World War service was with the Australian Military forces from 1939 and was sent overseas to Borneo and Papua New Guinea where he served in the 41st Australian Landing Craft Company.”
The Eckford Family including Jim owned the local Movie Theatre and the Dance Hall in Burke Street, Julia Creek.
“His family and my family were very good friends,” Shirley said.
“Until war broke out and Jim enlisted he always operated the films three times a week, needles to say this is how I knew Jim very well.”
In 1949, Shirley and Jim moved to Brisbane so Jim could complete his electrical apprenticeship and they lived for four years at Redcliffe.
The couple returned to live at ‘Isabel Downs’ in 1953, where they raised their four children; Teresa, Ronald, Janette and Lynn.
Shirley taught all four of her children via correspondence up until grade seven when they attended the Julia Creek Convent School run by the sisters.
The children were later sent to boarding school in Brisbane to complete high school.
On July 22, 1973 Shirley, Jim and family lost their middle daughter Janette, at the age of 18, in a car accident.
Inspired by Jan’s legacy and passion for art Shirley obtained funding from a Schools Commission Grant to open the ‘Jan Eckford Memorial Centre’.
The Jan Eckford gallery and centre was officially opened in 1978 by Bob Katter Senior.
Shirley devoted her time to art and pottery raising $54,000 to build a new workshop.
The workshop is used for pottery, glass cutting, mosaics and children’s workshops with Shirley teaching pottery there for 36 years.
Following the opening of the Jan Eckford Memorial Centre in 1978, Shirley began Cultural Capers in Julia Creek.
“Cultural Capers is an association I formed with its purpose to show people the cultural work and art work done in this shire,” she said in 2014.
“In 1978, I took on the presidency of the cultural association and pottery group which have today merged with the historical society.”
In 1997, Shirley travelled to Canberra with husband Jim to accept the ABC Rural Woman Award for the Carpentaria area.
The Eckfords retired in Julia Creek to be closer to the hospital as Jim became unwell.
After Jim’s passing in 2002, Shirley continued her presidency roles and involvement in Julia Creek earning herself an Order of Australia Medal in 2010.
“It was a great honour,” she said.
“I revelled to Brisbane for the presentation by her Excellency Ms Penelope Wensley AO the Governor of Queensland.”
“My daughter Lynn Slack-Smith and Rebecca Hewitt my granddaughter came with me for the presentation.”
Shirley Eckford spent her final years at RSL Care in Townsville
A memorial service was held in Townsville on Monday and the funeral will be at Holy Rosary Catholic Church, Julia Creek at 11am Thursday followed by interment aty the Julia Creek Cemetery.
Derek Barry
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
