A FRIENDSHIP THAT BEGAN OVERSEAS AS CHILDREN, RE-IGNITED AT A CHANCE MEETING AFTER 15 YEARS APART, AND CONTINUES IN RETIREMENT AT THE SAME OVER-50’s LIFESTYLE RESORT ON THE SUNSHINE COAST, IS A TOUCHING STORY SHARED BY JULIE O’NEILL AND FIONA KEATING.
Growing up in Papua New Guinea during the 1960s together is a fond memory that is as clear today as it was all those years ago for GemLife Pacific Paradise homeowners and best friends for 57 years, Julie and Fiona.
“We’ve shared a wonderful friendship and were lucky to meet each other at such a young age and in another country, and still be friends all these years later. It has been a fabulous journey that we are continuing here at the resort,” said the two `besties’!
The story of friendship began in Papua New Guinea. Fiona, who had an older brother and sister, was born in Port Moresby but Julie and her family, which included seven brothers and sisters, moved into the area from Rabaul, a township in PNG’s East New Britain, when she was ten. The pair met when Julie started at St Joseph’s Catholic School. Both were in the same class and clicked straight away.
“From the moment we first met we knew we were going to be friends. We did everything together,” said Julie.
“Fiona’s brother and sister were at boarding school so she was like an only child, and I would spend a lot of time at her place. I also remember riding our bikes to the local coffee shop. We’d both feel very grown up because we would have a banana split and a milkshake. It only cost about $1 back then.”
Fiona’s mother used to make the young girls matching dresses and headbands, which they would wear out and about together.
After leaving school, Julie went to teachers’ college and Fiona pursued a nursing career. The pair lost contact for more than a decade until a chance meeting at a cooking class in Brisbane.
“Fiona’s brother was my doctor, and he would keep me updated on what Fiona was doing, but it wasn’t until years later – after I already had a family of my own – that we both turned up at the same cooking class and rekindled our friendship,” said Julie.
The meeting was such a surprise, according to Fiona who said she was running late for the well-attended class and had to tell everyone her name when she arrived.
“Julie leaned forward and tapped me on the shoulder. It was like we had never been apart, and our friendship flourished again immediately. We couldn’t have been happier.”
As fate would have it, both also ended up buying at the same over-50s lifestyle resort at GemLife Pacific Paradise on the Sunshine Coast.
Julie and her husband Bill had already made a deposit on a new home at the resort and were returning the contract to the office. Fiona and her husband Gerald had heard about the resort through another friend, who would also be moving in soon, and took up Fiona’s invitation to accompany them, so they could check it out for themselves.
“The display home was amazing, and it was close to Mudjimba Beach where Gerald likes to swim. It ticked all our boxes and we ended up moving in six months before Julie and Bill.”
Their days as best friends in Papua New Guinea may be a long time ago now but Julie and Fiona’s friendship has never been better and has grown to include a huge circle of mutual acquaintances.
“We don’t live in each other’s pockets, but when we get together, we laugh so much and can talk about anything and be totally honest, which is not something you can do with everyone,” said Fiona.
Julie added: “It makes a lot of sense though when you consider that we have known four generations of each other’s families and have been there for each other through the good times and bad. It truly is so very special. We cherish it and feel so lucky our friendship is still going strong after 57 years.”