CMRT salutes Norma Hancock who, at 90 years of age, decided to follow her lifelong mantra of, “If it feels right, go for it” and bought the Guildford General Store. It had been empty for about a year after being one of Guildford’s hubs for decades. A group of locals tried to raise the necessary funds to bid for the premises when it came up for auction last year, but just fell short. Norma, with her daughter and grandson by her side, decided to take the brave step of bidding for the store when it looked like it might be passed in. We are thankful for her courage in making this decision. “It was all about family,” she explained. ”My daughter and grandson are running a business just out of Guildford, I was lonely on my own in Castlemaine and another grandson has come up here to manage the store, so I am very happy.”
Norma’s story is a remarkable one. Born in North Fitzroy in the 30’s, she studied ballet in Melbourne before winning a scholarship to train in London at 18. Quite an adventure for a young lady! She studied at the Royal Academy and Covent Garden, and subsequently was a soloist for a French ballet company for a couple of years.
On returning with her husband to Melbourne, she joined the Channel 7 ballet group, while her husband was the lighting supervisor for the same channel. This was the genesis of Australian Television, coinciding with the Melbourne Olympics of 1956.
Two children followed, and Norma concentrated more on teaching, until a phone call in 2003 from the Australian Ballet asked if she was willing to join in on a new performance of The Nutcracker featuring older dancers. Naturally she agreed, and a season at the State Theatre followed. Subsequent to that she did Tapdancing with Todd McKenney and Dancing with the Stars with the Golden Girls! Not bad for a 70 year old, but as Norma says, “If you stop, you rot!”
CMRT wishes Norma and her family the best of luck for the future, and hopefully we will be able to direct riders on the Trail to the Store for refreshment and a touch of history.