b. 1945 Riverton SA   
d. 2017 Albany WA

Parents James Alan Richards & Maybel Joyce Cooper

Married John William Robertson 1965 in Sth Perth WA

Children Kelly Robertson & Jodi Robertson

Married Ian (Mo) Murray Mulholland - 17 October 1981, Canberra ACT

Step Child Mathew Murray Mulholland

Jennifer Ann Richards Memorial

Jennifer as a child

Grandpa Richards with Jenni

Jennifer as a flower girl at her cousins wedding

Jenni and Robert

Jenni

Jenni on the farm with Snowy, Moonshine and Tiny the Dog

Jenni on Snowy

 

Mo & Jenni's wedding

Jenni with Matt in Canberra

Jenni and Mo at a party

Jorja, Jenni and Rhani at lunch

Jenni & Mo with their children and grandchildren

Jenni and Mo

Mo, Marriane Cannard, Jenni and Astin Cannard

Jenni, Pepper, Warren and Kelly at Jodi's wedding to Frank at their home

Jodi & Jenni in Albany WA

Bill, Judy, Mo, Jenni, Alan& Anne at Joannes home 2017

A letter written by Premier of WA Geoff Gallop (a descendant of Charles Spencer) to Jenni giving condolences for the passing of her father Jim Richards.

Jenni and Kelly

Kelly, Jenni & Jodi

Born on the 10 July 1945 in Riverton South Australia, to Jim and Joyce Richards their third child after two older boys Alan and Bill and later a younger brother Robert (Deceased).

A rather idyllic childhood in the country running around with her elder brothers and causing havoc where ever they went.

Jen attended Hornsby Girls School where she really commenced her sporting career obtaining her Royal Life Saving Society Medallion and Achievement Award to take up competitive up swimming and training at the North Sydney pool until one day Alan came home after a sporting event where he saw Ilsa Konrads and told his mother to stop Jen swimming at didn’t want her to look like Ilsa with huge shoulders and arms. Jen then drifted in rowing in coxless fours where they won some events on Pittwater.

She was a top Squash player and was in the NSW Squash Championships several times and had success at club and State level. She played Heather Mckay twice and was soundly beaten as Heather was regarded by many as the greatest female player of all time.

Her move to WA with the family saw her again top in Squash with the North Beach Club and also at State level

Mums Miss Rinso story, ask Alan

Work commenced as a hair dressers apprenticeship in Sydney that continued in Perth, she hated it. She soon secured a job with an Architectural Firm where they got her driver’s license so she could deliver plans all around Perth and suburbs. In those days you could do Uwers in St Georges Terrace she told me.

She married in 1965 and went farming. Kelly arrived in 1967. They secured an Ampol Service Station in Duncraig and Jodi followed in 1972. Divorced in 1976.

Jen had some horses and taught Kelly and Jodi to ride. She dabbled with some housing investments and lent money to a publican who was a more than little slow in repaying the loan. Here her Father stepped in and soon after regular payments then flowed.

We met in February in 1981, on a blind date. I was working in Perth for Defence we had brief and wonderful court ship and Jen moved with kids to Canberra in June 1981. Canberra was really cold, a mate had failed to have the fire wood delivered and the Store-man and Packers were on strike so the furniture could not be delivered. We survived 4 weeks on Army mattresses on the floor and four borrowed stools with a TV sitting on a Tea Box.

Jen had an all-girls indoor Cricket Team, they were not beaten in their first season. Jen then hurt her back tobogganing down the slopes at Perisha and could not bowl so she retired un-defeated. So a fairly sedentary life until we moved to Perth in 1984 when I retired from the Army.

We bought a home in Sorrento close to Jen’s elder brothers and her parents, where we entertained well and had great Australia Day parties that ran all day and into the night. We also completely revamped the garden. Jen was diagnosed with her first brush with breast cancer and was admitted to Glengarry Hospital on Good Friday 1992. After surgery she underwent both Chemotherapy and Radiation Therapy for around 9 months and was then given the all clear.

We then made a decision to move a smaller place in Woodvale that we liked and completely revamped the whole garden as you do. It was a pretty good place albeit a little small. After about 7 years (feel the itch). Jen told me we will go and look a rammed earth house in Helena Valley well Helena Valley turned out to Mount Helena just a little further on past Mundaring. So we purchased this rammed earth home on a 5 acre block and we revamped the garden (as we do). So I commuted to Perth for 10 Years. Retiring in 2009 after a few months we decided we had had enough of raking leaves and living in a perpetual fire zone that we would move to Denmark.

At the end of life, what really matters is not what we bought but what we built; not what we got but what we shared; not our competence but our character; and not our success, but our significance. Live a life that matters, Live a life of love.

'Mo'