St John's Anglican Church at Raymond Terrace was filled to capacity on Tuesday, with mourners bidding a final farewell to treasured teacher and Raymond Terrace stalwart, Pauline Myrtle Meredith, nee Elkin.
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Known fondly to so many as simply 'Mrs Meredith' the gifted pianist and teacher died on February 15, 2021.
She was born on January 3, 1931 in the maternity hospital on Adelaide Street, Raymond Terrace; the town where she would spend almost the entirety of her life as a wife, mother, grandmother and great grandmother.
She was delivered by Dr Meredith, the man who would one day become her father-in-law and started at Raymond Terrace Public School in 1937 - where she was classmates with her future husband Jim Meredith.
It was also the school where she would later teach at for close to 30 years.
Pauline attended Maitland Girls High School.
Her family described her as 'passionate about music, teaching, her church and of course, her family'.
Pauline grew up as an exceptionally gifted pianist, honing her craft with Sisters Philomena and Loretto at the convent in Raymond Terrace and later going on to study at the Sydney Teachers College which had a conservatorium of music that allowed her to become a high school music teacher.
Her son Peter Meredith and daughter Wendy Bright [nee Meredith] at the funeral spoke of a young Pauline walking 'rain, hail or shine' on the edge of the road to piano lessons because the path was so overgrown' before venturing to Morpeth on a punt across the river and followed by a bus, in a demonstration of her commitment to her passion.
Following her education in Sydney, Pauline began her teaching career at Maitland Boys' High, married her love, Jim Meredith on her birthday in 1959 and then had her two children, Peter and Wendy.
According to her family, After taking time out to raise her children, she went on to teach at Raymond Terrace Primary School for 28 years before retiring in 1998, however she continued on teaching scripture for many years and giving her afternoon piano lessons.
She was a dedicated piano teacher, helping hundreds of students learn music from her home on Parkway Avenue, Raymond Terrace.
An active member of the Raymond Terrace Lions Club, along with her husband Jim, she served as a Lions Lady until his death in 1994 and in her later years enjoyed participating in Probus and View Club events.
She was also a devout parishioner of St John's Anglican Church, where her parents worshiped, for her entire life and served as the church's organist for the better part of 70 years.
Her grandson Hugh-Angus Bright wrote: 'In 1960, she had my uncle [Peter] and in 1965, my mum [Wendy]. She would be blessed with nine grandchildren between 1988 and 2005.
'But even with all these kids in and out of the house, she still managed to inspire and educate the thousands of students that passed through her classroom as a music, piano, kindergarten and scripture teacher.'
'Weekends were often spent with Grandma in Raymond Terrace, playing carpet bowls in the hallway and leaving Monopoly on the dining table for days at a time. The ultimate game of family domination.
'I still remember so vividly Grandma picking a frog up in the hall and proudly showing us while I cowered behind her.
'Her favourite story to tell us was the milkman coming to deliver the milk, I always found it funny seeing as she lived on a dairy farm'.
Her granddaughter Kimberley Meredith also wrote fondly of her grandmother: 'To many, she was Mrs Meredith, but to her family at home she was Mum and Grandma - kind, caring, supportive, ready with a slice and a cup of tea.
'It was only in the past five years, when she she was no longer able to care for herself, that she moved in with her son Peter and his family around the corner on the family farm.
'We will miss her beyond words.'
Pauline passed away peacefully on February 15, 2021 after succumbing to dementia at Calvary Care, Cessnock, where she spent the past four months of her life.