Friendship still going strong

A friendship that began over babies, coffee and antenatal classes is still going strong 50 years later.

Margaret Cresswell, Dawn Thompson, Jane (name withheld by request), Linda Buckle and Helen Thomas met at an antenatal class at North Shore Hospital in 1976, when they were all living in the East Coast Bays.

Another member of the original group, Mary Aitken, sadly died 25 years ago. Mary was a very dear friend within the group and is still remembered fondly.

Over the decades, some of the women have moved further afield, including to Ōrewa and Dairy Flat, but they have continued their regular get-togethers.

Dawn initially took on the job of keeping the antenatal group together, organising coffee catch-ups that eventually became regular lunches.

When their children were young, the women met for play dates and morning teas. Later, they began putting $25 a week into a shared fund, which helped pay for trips around New Zealand and eventually to Australia.

As the children grew older, the gatherings expanded to include their husbands. These days, the women meet for lunch one month, followed by dinner out with the men the next.

Margaret says the women are very different personalities, but the friendship has endured through the many changes, challenges and celebrations that come with 50 years of life.

“We support each other and it’s a very deep friendship, warts and all,” she says.

The group says there has been remarkably little friction along the way.

They have two celebrations planned to mark their 50th anniversary. In mid-October, the women will head into town for dinner and a show, followed at the end of October by dinner with the men and a show at the Bruce Mason Theatre.