The Third Age shines a light on interesting folks over 65. Today, 78-year-old volunteer extraordinaire Garry Wolfgram.

Many years ago, teachers had to lock their classroom doors because there was one “little fella” who wanted to escape back to the farm. The young Garry Wolfgram preferred spending his days in paddocks. 

Garry went on to become a teacher for “years and years”, then a principal, before eventually working for the Ministry of Education. He’s retired now, though his daughter says his volunteering duties are like having three part-time jobs. Just over a year ago he moved with his wife Lana from their house in Whangārei to Summerset Milldale. Their brand new home with windows overlooking Waterloo Creek is where I met them. After a long, warm conversation over coffee, Garry zoomed me around the streets of their retirement village in Millie, the golf cart. 

Why did you move from Whangārei?

I must admit, I was reluctant. I had a lot going for me up north. We were going to buy a house down here, and then thought, well, we’re going to end up in a retirement village sooner or later, so we decided to go for it. It’s been a great decision because it’s a lot easier for us to support my daughter, who is a high-flyer, see the other kids and do what we can down here.

We have 15 grandchildren between us, many around Auckland, and we wanted to see them as much as possible.

What did you have going on up north?

I was a volunteer for the hospice for five years with a wonderful, very good friend of mine, Maurice. We delivered hospital beds throughout the north – from Kaiwaka to Whangārei.

What do you mean by ‘delivering beds’?

Maurice and I would take the big medical beds, break them into parts, put them into a van, then put them in their home. We delivered beds to all sorts of different people – some young, some old. The patients’ families were always very grateful for the service provided.

I learned a heck of a lot from that. We went in at what I call “the hard end”. It was difficult at times. Maurice and I would travel around in the van and solve the problems of the world [laughs]. It was good to have two of us, because, well, it’s quite a confronting experience. Due to the fact that there was a bit of heavy lifting, both of us decided to stop. 

What did you do next?

I was a handyman for the Pacific Support Group in Whangārei. Lana was the principal at a school, they offered me a job, but I preferred to volunteer. So I coached rugby, touch rugby and supported school activities like sports days, camps and field trips.

Eventually I saw that St Johns was looking for volunteers in the emergency department at Whangārei hospital. So I thought I’ll try that. I learned what it’s like to be in an accident and emergency department and help people. Your task is to engage with people appropriately – not everyone wants to hear a joke. I did that for three years, and then the team leader left, so I picked up the leadership.

What volunteering are you doing now?

Now I’m a member of the St John Hibiscus Coast and have taken on a property manager type role. I look after the maintenance of the hall and the ambulance station. If there’s a problem, I organise the repair. 

I’m also a Caring Caller for St John. I’ve been allocated two clients, who I’ve been calling for just over a year. I don’t know their second names and they don’t know my number. I just ring up, say hello. It takes time and patience and at first people can be really shy. They can’t see your face and sometimes you can tell by their voices that they’re a bit nervous. As the relationship formed, my clients now yak away about everything, and I enjoy that. It makes me feel good at the end of it. I call them about once a week, or sometimes more if something is going on. 

I am also involved with Community Patrol. It is a volunteer service that involves working with the Police, patrolling the streets and sharing safety in the community and reaching out to Police when required.

It seems like you’re very busy.

I think I’ve got the balance right. It’s good for me to keep busy and occupied, keeping my mind active and alert and learning new things. My grandson, Josh, loves cars. I send him photos of my models, and he just loves it. With all I do, I love to engage with many age groups and cover many topics. 

Is there anything that’s surprised you about living here?

One of the things we like about living at Summerset is that we have retained our independence. 

The village is supportive of us enjoying what we love to do – for me, family and volunteering is very important. The people here make it easy and enjoyable. They encourage you and ask how you’re doing. It gives you opportunities for doing stuff when you’re a tired old devil [laughs]. You know, I like my freedom, and when we got here, we were able to just be us. 

What surprised me too was meeting the people in the village. A lot of them have got a lot of different skills, they’ve got a lot of different things they can talk about. They have a bit of what I call depth, they’re real and they’re friendly. If I’m walking around with a plaster on they’ll say, “Oh Garry! What have you got yourself into this time?” 

What do you think is a big change that’s happened in New Zealand since you were young?

I was born in 1946 which meant I was a kid through the 50s. When we were kids, everybody was pretty much the same after the war – everybody was struggling. They didn’t have a lot of money and most people were pretty much on the same level. I think the big thing that’s changed is you’ve got all these people that are gathering all the money and other people are struggling to get it. It is real, there’s a lot of stats to tell you about it. That’s the biggest thing I think has changed since I was a kid.

Is there something that has surprised you as you’ve gotten older?

I’m surprised at how well I am and how my mind’s still ticking over. Lana tells me not to be competitive, but sometimes I reckon I’ve got as much going for me as a lot of young people! It surprised me to get to this age and be like I am – a lot of my mates have gone, or started to go, some earlier, some later. Being retired provides opportunities to strengthen parts of yourself – to get better at things and learn new things. I like to always try and improve. Not in big bites, but in little steps.