New friendship through classical music

A firm friendship between two classical music fans living at Juniper Rosemount Retirement Village in Dianella is all thanks to a simple tote bag.

Lynn Koehler (79) was heading into a craft class at the village in January this year when she spotted fellow resident Frances Hadfield (80) holding a bag promoting performances of Wagner’s ‘The Ring Cycle’.

For those not in the know, The Ring Cycle is a series of epic musical dramas written by German composer Richard Wagner in the mid-1800s.

“I was delighted to look at Frances’ bag to see The Ring Cycle and I said ‘oh a fellow Wagnerian’, but then we also discovered that we had both worked in the justice system too,” Lynn said.

The duo personifies the importance of International Day of Friendship, which is celebrated on July 30 each year.

“When I think of my friendship with Frances, it’s been one of the most valuable things that I’ve found here (at Rosemount) because she is the most wonderful listener, and is very understanding,” Lyn said.

For many years, Frances has served as a minister with the Uniting Church, which previously included a chaplain role at Bandyup Women’s Prison for more than a decade.

“I’m meant to be retired, but there’s an awful lot of stuff that I still do as a minister, and they want me to, and I don’t mind,” Frances said.

With a background in education and training, Lynn delivered training programs at prisons across WA including at Bandyup Women’s Prison to help participants develop their skills for the jobs market.

Most recently, Lynn applied for a part-time role in the employment services area to support people with disabilities as “having a role in society” remains hugely important to her.

While their prior roles at Bandyup never overlapped, Lynn and Frances have made up for lost time during the past six months by both joining a University of the Third Age (U3A) choir as well as attending concerts and movie screenings together.

Lynn also plans to join Frances and fellow Perth-based Wagner fans at upcoming Richard Wagner Society of WA get-togethers.

“When I think of our friendship, I am so glad to have discovered someone who loves music, and who’s in a choir with me – I’m happy about that,” Frances said.

The duo is also in full agreement that other shared interests such as reading, contributing to the community and past times like scrabble, continue to strengthen their friendship bond.

“I think if you have an open mind and explore the wonderful opportunities that are here (at Rosemount), there’s so much that one could do that I have to limit my activities,” Lynn said.

“I’m not in a retirement village to retire, I’m out every day.”