Detailed biography

The following biography is the work of the late Dean Saegenschnitter, who collected and compiled ‘Before and After’, a Family History of the Saegenschnitter descendants of Auguste Emilie Lydia Becker and Carl Friedrich Gustav Saegenschnitter.

Permission was given by Deans’ family to publish the biographies which he called ‘Backgrounds’.

Pompoota and Murray Bridge

Rita was bom on 12th October 1930 at Murray Bridge, growing up at Pompoota where her Parents had a dairy farm. As with her brother, she went to the Pompoota school, leaving when 13 years old, to help on the farm and in the house, as her mother was sick for a long time, and often in hospital. Her parents sold the farm in 1947, moving to Murray Bridge, while waiting for their house to be built, the family spent some time visiting relatives in the mid-north agriculture region.

While living in Murray Bridge she had a few part time jobs, but most of the time was spent looking after her mother. Following her mother’s death and her brother’s marriage in 1953, she left home and moved to Adelaide.

Adelaide

There she worked at Mareeba Babies Home, later at the Railway Station as a waitress in the dining room, living on the premises. She vividly remembers the earthquake on the 1^st March 1954. They were trapped, because the lift would not operate, and being scared of after shocks, she stayed at her Fiance’s place.

She married Roy Lambert in September 1954 in Adelaide. They had a family of a daughter and twin sons. Rita worked most of the time during the marriage. Many years later, when the children were older, the couple separated, later divorced. Following the divorce, Rita changed her name by deed-poll to Connery.

She continued to work until involved in an accident, and following this, was unable to continue to work, so finished up on an invalid pension.

Retirement

For a time she lived at Woodville, finally in January 1989 moved to a Trust unit at Ridgehaven, just north of Tea Tree Plaza, here she remained, but having to battle poor health, she finally, quietly passed away at home on the 5^th March, 2001. She was laid to rest in the Enfield cemetery a few days later.

 

©   “Before and After”

by Dean Saegenschbitter