MUCH-LOVED Gawler icon and returned serviceman Sidney Louis Ey will be farewelled at what is expected to be a well-attended local funeral tomorrow, after passing away last Wednesday aged 103.

Mr Ey, or ‘Sid’ as he was known to most people, lived his entire life in Gawler and spent 70 years married to his soul mate, Beryl, who passed away in 2017 aged 96.

He is survived by his two sons, Ross and John, who spent some time on Monday to speak with The Bunyip about their father’s incredible life.

The early years

Mr Ey was born in 1916 to parents Louis and Elsie, and raised in Gawler at his family home that once stood on Light Square.

He was the second eldest of four siblings – one older brother and two younger sisters, the latter who were “very good” on piano and violin, according to John.

“Dad was quite a good piano player and singer himself,” he recalled.

“He loved singing.”

Mr Ey was involved in the family business, a grain store that was located in a building at the east end of Jacob Street.

War-time hero

When the Second World War broke out, a then 24-year-old Mr Ey enlisted for duty as a stretcher bearer in the 9th Division at Tobruk, El Alamein, Syria, Lebanon, New Guinea and Borneo.

It was during this time where he became of the famed ‘Rats of Tobruk’ who fought for eight months to hold off the German and Italian forces from marching on Egypt.

While the Siege of Tobruk and Battle of El Alamein remain two defining moments of the Allied WW2 campaign, Mr Ey never spoke of his experiences with his family when returning home after the war.

Only last year did he talk in detail about the topic during an interview with the Gawler Community Broadcasting Association, a recording of which can still be found online.

“I’ve found out more about what he did in the war in the last couple of years from his interviews (with the GCBA and elsewhere) than what he ever told us,” John said.

“The way I look at it, whatever happened in the war – and we’ll find out a fair bit more on Thursday (at the funeral) – he packed it up and he put it in an archive, when he got back from war, and got on with his life.

“He didn’t gratuitously bring any of it up whatsoever at all, not with the family.”

Raising a family

During a stint home from leave from military service, Mr Ey met Beryl – who he would later marry – and the pair became inseparable for the next seven decades, heavily involving themselves in
the Gawler community after the war.

The pair shared a passion for sport, in particular tennis and bowls, with Mr Ey also being a passionate Sturt supporter and one of the first official members at Footy Park.

“They were busy people, they were active, they loved sport; their common love of sport was a key thing,” Ross said.

Mr Ey was a life member and former president of the Gawler & District Tennis Association, and played a significant role in establishing the clubhouse and lawn courts at the Essex Park complex on Victoria Terrace.

He also served as president of the Gawler Bowling Club for many years and won the club singles championship five times.

A hard worker Mr Ey has worked hard his entire life to support his family, with him and Beryl spending many years as the owners and operators of the BP service station in Willaston.

“He was focused on his business; mum took us on holidays, but generally he couldn’t go with us,” John recalled.

“Only at Christmas time we used to go down to Seacliff or West Beach for a couple of weeks.

“He’d always come down on the weekends, for Saturday afternoon and Sunday.

“Sometimes he’d come down after work, stay the night and then drive back to Gawler first thing in the morning to open the shop at 8 o’clock.”

“He always said, and this is not unusual, parents always want a better life, or more opportunities in life, for their kids than they had.

“That was very much his drive, he wanted better for his kids than what he was able to have.”

Mr Ey’s work ethic continued right up until his passing, with Ross saying he was still busy chopping wood for his fire and keeping his Willaston home tidy only recently.

“His house is probably half an acre, and he’d go around raking up the leaves and the bark, and he’d bend down and pick it all up, and he’d fill the green rubbish bin and use his walking stick to stamp it all down so he’d get more in!,” Ross laughed.

“And quite often it was only twigs and leaves, but it was darn heavy because he’d rammed it in like a wool press.”

Celebration of an amazing life

Sadly, Mr Ey’s health took a turn for the worst a few weeks ago, only days following the two-year anniversary of Beryl’s passing, which Ross thinks took its toll on his dad.

“I’m assuming that had something to do with his eventual demise, because mentally he’d probably had enough,” he said.

Mr Ey’s funeral will be held at Taylor & Forgie’s Adelaide Road chapel at 2pm tomorrow, Thursday, October 3, and his family welcomes the Gawler community to join with them in celebrating his life.