Who’s Your Neighbour?

Addie Miller talks to local treasure Nolene White
When one thinks of Martinborough it’s often in terms of wine, festivals, and weekend getaways. This is true – this little town is a perfect spot to relax and indulge. Yet, Martinborough is truly unique and special because of the people who have shaped it and continue to do so. There is a vibrant community of individuals working alongside one another that make living, working, and visiting this town feel like you’ve just arrived home and Nolene White is definitely one of them.
Nolene was born in Martinborough, raised on the same property in which she raised her own family. When she married Freeman White, (known to most as Free the Blacksmith Farrier) over 60 years ago her family sectioned off a piece of the land as a wedding gift. Her father in law built the new couple a lovely home where they raised their 4 children. On their property they grew an extensive vegetable and flower garden that Nolene still maintains and a workshop for Freeman.
Nolene has woven her life in to this town; infusing each project with her humour, heart, and experiences. I didn’t know Nolene until arriving at her beautiful home but now I can’t imagine Martinborough without her. She’s been deeply involved in St. Andrews since a little girl and over the past 65 years as a fill in organist. She is a ‘crafty’ lady and president of the Country Women’s Institute. Nolene loves card making, crocheting, knitting, gardening, and has even learned highland dancing. The list of her achievements, involvement with organizations in the community, and interests would make an over-achiever’s jaw drop.
You can’t talk about Nolene without mentioning her late husband Free, a Farrier blacksmith and local legend. Their relationship is one of her life’s delights; when asked what the key to their happy marriage was she said teamwork, but I suspect it was also their shared sense of humour. Free was a funny man and she loved to laugh with him. Nolene and Free travelled extensively in their ‘retirement’ although Freeman never officially retired, he loved his trade and getting dirty.
A stroll through Nolene and Free’s photo collection shows years of travel to incredible places. They went to Libya and Italy to pay tribute to the graves of Free’s brothers who died in WWII. The two have trekked through North and South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. One of Nolene’s favourite places was Peru and she said she could never go to a zoo again after going on safari in the Serengeti.
Apart from her family which includes 9 grandchildren and 10 great grand children Nolene loves seeing new residents in the town and surrounding districts taking part and in some cases huge responsibilities within the community. Wife, mother, grandmother, neighbour, friend, and host -Nolene proves that you can be a global citizen even when you live in a small town.