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Charlie, the “Kaitiaki” of Green Bay – gone but never forgotten He has been described as majestic, stubborn, adorable, iconic, a celebrity, an amazing sloth of a cat, the godfather of Green Bay, his own person. Most regulars of the Green Bay shops knew Charlie, a large black cat who knew everybody and claimed all the shops as his own personal territory. FIONA DRUMMOND talks to those who knew him. People used to make a specIal visit to the Green Bay Bookshop just to give Charlie a pat while he snoozed in his dedicated chair in front of the counter. Not many cats have the mana to occupy valuable floor space in a retail store but Charlie was no ordinary cat. If not in front of the counter, he would be behind it, ‘helping out’ the Bannister family – David, Carole and Paul – while sprawled amongst the paper bags, etc. For a while David had a doll’s cot in the shop window and for days on end Charlie would sleep in it, much to the amusement of passers by. He also had a favourite spot on the bookshop roof, giving him a cat’s eye view of the going ons of Green Bay. Maybe this is where he learnt how the pedestrian crossing worked. As a traffic-wise moggy, he used the crossing to hang out with friends across the road, including people in the council flats. The Bannisters embraced Charlie as part of the chattels of the outgoing bookshop owner Peggy Higgins when she sold the shop. Peggy in turn had inherited him from Marilyn Lynch and Richard Irwin, who lived at the first house on Vardon Road and owned around four cats at the time including Charlie’s sister Jandals. From around two years old Charlie decided to spend most of his day at the bookshop with Peggy, as well as at the florist shop. When Marilyn and Richard moved to Thames in 2009, Peggy asked if Charlie could stay, and although Marilyn was sad to leave him, she knew the Green Bay shops were his forever home and he would be well cared for. Ann Haszard worked at the florist shop from around 2003 to 2014 and was one of Charlie’s early friends along with Margaret Lewis, the florist’s owner. Charlie preferred to drink out of the flower vases rather than from a bowl. He commandeered the florist counter and if Charlie, ready for St Patricks’ Day. moved would jump back up straight away so the florists became resigned to working over and around him. Ann referred to Charlie as her “work station.” He also loved the flower cooler room in the summertime. At night he would burrow under the counter or in the corner FRINGEADLTD.pdf 1 hide 15/11/16 16:33 of the window, and it was always a bit of a chasing game to get him out. As he got older he
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Charlie – an amazing sloth of a cat.
took to spraying, which could prove disastrous when paper or flowers were in the firing line. Ann got to know the signs when Charlie’s tail quivered and would spray him first with a water bottle, so he got the message. Eventually they had to ban him from the shop which saddened them. Once Charlie went missing for a few days and Ann who was quite concerned organised a Missing Cat poster, which went up around the shops. Soon after she was visited by a small girl from La Rosa Street who had seen the poster, and came and told Ann that her older brother had taken him to their house, so Ann hopped in the car with the girl and brought catnapped Charlie back home. Ann said they used to dress him up for the relevant celebration, a green ribbon for St Patricks Day, red for Valentines Day, etc. Even the New Lynn Detective Sergeant Smith was quite worried at his disappearance, he often brought food for Charlie and would ask Peggy, “How’s the boy today?” One time Charlie needed ongoing vet attention for an ear issue and Ann from the florists set up a donation box for people to contribute. The generosity of locals and the popularity of Charlie meant there was excess cash left over, so the Bannisters set up an account with the Green Bay vets for future vet costs. Local Jenni Child was a little shocked to find that her husband Gary had given $200 to cover a vet bill shortfall, such was his esteem for Charlie. Jenni had another anecdote about Charlie. Her son Martin was down at the Green Bay shops late at night and, seeing Charlie, went over to give him a pat. His intent was misconstrued by a local tramp who, thinking he was out to harm Charlie, landed a punch on poor unsuspecting Martin.
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