Over the past 75 years, Vince Vaina has seen Werribee transform. The life-long resident shares tales of the past with Adem Saban.
How long have you lived in Werribee?
I was born in Werribee in 1941 and never left. I was born out the back of where McDonalds is now … the old Werribee hospital. My father migrated to Werribee from Sicily in 1927, and my mother came in 1932 from Calabria. They married here. My dad had a market garden in Werribee South, but there was a drought so he was restricted in what he could do. That’s when he turned to hens laying eggs. When the drought broke, he kept growing vegetables too – tomatoes, cauliflowers, anything he could.
What was your childhood like?
I went to the state school in Werribee. I remember walking an hour to get to school, and an hour to get back home. I’d help out on the vegetable and egg farm when I had spare time. After school I’d drive the tractor on the farm, until I left school at 14. Then I worked on the farm market gardening, feeding the chooks and picking up eggs.
What was Werribee like then? How does it compare to Werribee today?
In the old days you’d be able to leave money on the letterbox for the whole week’s milk and bread and nobody would touch it. You definitely can’t do that now. I remember there being horse troughs on the main street, we had two grocery stores, but they definitely weren’t self service ones. There were quite a few dairy farms and orchards. We had no swimming pool; we’d go swimming in Bungey’s Hole. There was no train station at Hoppers Crossing, it was all cow paddocks. We knew everybody down the main street by their first name. In the late 1960s the housing commission bought out the spud farm and that’s when Werribee just expanded.
How did you meet your wife?
We met through a friend in 1965, she was from Thornbury. We were married in February 1966. We celebrated 50 years of marriage recently. We have two sons and a daughter, and four grandsons.
How do you spend your time today?
I’ve retired. I spend a lot of time gardening, or helping my wife out around the house. Sometimes I go down to the casino, or just down the street to meet some friends.
Would you ever leave Werribee?
I’ve always wanted to live in Queensland, but I wouldn’t leave my family behind here. I’ve made my garden look like Queensland, with palm trees and stuff. I now look outside my window and pretend I’m in Queensland.
