By JESSE GRAHAM
FRIENDS, family and well-wishers gathered at the Gruyere Hall on Sunday, 24 July, to congratulate the Yarra Valley’s latest centenarian, Moira Burgi.
Ms Burgi turned 100 years old on Monday, 25 July, and more than 100 people gathered to celebrate the occasion at the hall, which had been decorated with pieces of family history.
Her nephew Peter Burgi said the family’s entire family tree dating back to the first generation in Australia had been printed out, metres long, and stuck to the wall of the hall.
Moira Burgi is an easy name to find on the list, being a grandchild of the first Burgi in the area – her grandfather, Johann, came to Victoria in 1854 and moved to the then-completely undeveloped Wandin area in 1866.
Her parents, Edmund and Mary, then built a house in Victoria Road, where Ms Burgi grew up and still lives now.
On a television, photos from Ms Burgi’s life flashed by in a slideshow, showing family moments and interstate trips.
When asked how she felt about her 100th birthday, Ms Burgi said it felt like “it’s happening to somebody else”.
“I’ve lived in this area all my life – I live in the same house I ever lived in,” she said.
“My grandparents were the first people in Wandin and they brought my father with them – so he and I have seen the whole of Wandin. It’s changed from the forest … to what you see here today.
“It’s incredible. It’s 150 years … such a change could take place anywhere.”
In a written note to visitors at the party, Ms Burgi said that when she grew up, there were no toys to play with and few children around, except for family members.
She wrote that church was an hour away in an open jinker (a cart used for transporting logs), but the family never missed a week.
On a table at the party were photocopies of letters congratulating Ms Burgi from Queen Elizabeth, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove, Victorian Governor Linda Dessau and Evelyn MP Christine Fyffe.
Moira is the last surviving member of her generation of Burgis, and saw off the eve of her 100th birthday surrounded by well-wishers, family and friends.
