Irene residents far and wide are getting together to record the history of their neighbourhood through the stories that they were, and continue to be, part of.
Author Robin Wheeler is heading the project, but he says it is the stories of the residents that are the core of the work.
The project is currently about a third of the way done, as community members write contributions that will become the final volume.
It is not just a collection of written stories, but also includes a video production and soundtrack.
The book Irene: Universal lessons from a global village, aims to record the history of the area, and capture a snapshot of the community.
Through the work, he aims to learn, and teach others, about the magic and dreams that formed the quaint area of Centurion.
“It has been absolutely mind-blowing – a heart explosion – learning about all the stories that make up the community,” Wheeler told Rekord.
In March, Wheeler shared his idea of taking a journey into the magic of Irene.
He said because Irene is not an estate, the sense of community holds the people together in a unique way.
Reaching back through the history of the families that formed it, and through the dreams of those who want to be part of building it, Wheeler learned the community has a magical identity.
After announcing the project, he immediately got the ball rolling.
“I was excited to get the idea off the ground, and so we began with a meeting to collect everyone interested.
“Only six people came, which was very disappointing,” said Wheeler.
He didn’t let his disappointment deter him. Residents who did come were excited about the project and spread the enthusiasm from there.
“Initially, I was going to run it all concurrently. We were going to split up the work, and everybody was going to go and write their chapters.”
However, he said the slow care of completing the work in a series got to the heart of the community.
“One of the things about the fully booked process is that it is a rigorous method of a qualitative nature.”
He said it brings together collaborative learning and action research as all the contributors to the work move through the process.
The organic growth of the work unites residents while they learn and reflect on the process of writing.
Wheeler explained looking back from the early 1900s when the community began to form, the long reaches of time become clear.
As an example, he looks at the site of the brand-new George’s Bread and Co at the old station at 10 Hack Street.
While gathering information for the book, Wheeler found a till slip from 1967 for 12c worth of extension wire from the Hack’s Stores, owned by the Hack family, that was at the site of the new bakery.
Wheeler draws a comparison between the new owners of the bakery, who left behind a life to pursue their dreams, with the Hack family that owned the hardware store all those years earlier.
He said there is something to be learned about the identity of a community that can span generations and still hold its core.
These and other accounts paint a picture of a community that spans generations, united by the efforts and dreams of the individuals that form it.
“It is not just a book, this is a transformational process,” he said.
“You can’t imagine the goodness it brings out of people, and how the collaboration galvanises the community.”
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