Gardening is therapy for Cherine Hitchcock. Photo: Oliver Jacques.
Renowned Griffith hairdresser and cancer survivor Cherine Hitchcock is set to open her tranquil Japanese-inspired Hanwood garden to public visitors to raise money for cancer charity Can Assist.
The quarter-acre block garden will be one of eight open for exploration between Friday, 14 October, and Sunday, 16 October as part of the Griffith Spring Fest, an annual celebration of food, wine, music and citrus sculptures in the town. Can Assist staff will be on hand each day at Ms Hitchcock’s garden to sell morning and afternoon tea, the proceeds of which will go to local families battling the financial costs of living with cancer, such as having to travel to bigger cities for treatment. A proportion of the $8 entry free will also be donated to the cancer charity.
Ms Hitchcock offers something completely different for those accustomed to exploring the expansive Italian-style farm-attached gardens famous in the region. Her intimate, 35-year-old front and back yards feature a windy white gravel pathway on which visitors can walk along to see Japanese weeping maples, birds of paradise flowers, irises, petunias, fibreglass ponds, Buddhist statues and much more. Meditation music will play in the background, creating an ambience that will be a million miles away from the hustle and bustle of the Griffith town centre located just 10 minutes’ drive away.
The white gravel ripples like water. Photo: Supplied.
The retired hairdresser was inspired to raise funds for Can Assist after being diagnosed with a nasal cavity tumor in 2008.
“It was a very rare type of cancer affecting your sense of smell that grows underneath the brain,” she said. “I had to go to Melbourne to be treated. I needed an eye surgeon and a brain surgeon. After the operation, I stayed in Melbourne for six months for radiation therapy and chemotherapy. I was fortunate to be able to stay with my daughter who lived there.”
“I was opening my own salon at the time, all the hairdressers in Griffith rallied around to help me. I also had two really great staff.”
Ms Hitchcock realised that she was in the fortunate position of maintaining an income and not having to pay for a hotel while receiving treatment. She wants to help those who would be in financial ruins if not for charities like Can Assist.
“Because of my previous experience, I’ve tried to help them where I can. As a hairdresser I would donate my services whenever they were trying to raise money.”
Cherine’s own experience has inspired her charity. Photo: Oliver Jacques.
The Hanwood local worked as a hairdresser for more than 50 years, retiring in 2018. She began working for popular Griffith hairdresser Tony Spark in the late 1960s, before starting her own business with her mother Gladys Cappello in 1974. She is perhaps best known for her TV advertorial “Hair Chat”, which appeared on the station MTN Nine on Wednesday afternoons. On the show, which became the talk of the town, she spoke about hair care, offering tips and recommending products.
“I absolutely hated it. I didn’t like putting myself out there, I don’t like being the centre of attention,” she said.
Now 70, she is far more comfortable in the tranquility of her backyard, where she spends several hours each day. But it’s not always easy in Hanwood, a town known for its extreme weather conditions.
Petunias. Photo: Oliver Jacques.
“Gardening is a way to unwind and not have to talk,” she said. “It’s therapy for me.
“It’s slowly evolved since we moved here in 1986 … I’ve had to choose the plants that will cope with the heat and the frost. I’ve learned from my mistakes. I’ve tried to go against nature and it doesn’t work.”
Ms Hitchcock’s garden, located at 64 Leonard Road, Hanwood, will be open from 9 am, Friday 14 October. Celebrity gardener and TV presenter Costa Georgiadis will appear at the garden to give a talk at 2 pm on the Friday. The $8 entry fee can be paid on-site.
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