One of Nature's True Gentlemen
JOHN HUNTER MOXLEY
6th July 1937 – 2nd April (Good Friday) 2010.
Funeral held at Holy Trinity,
Monday 5th of April at 1.30pm.
John “Mox” Moxley – a legend in the local wool industry and a Wainui identity for over 40 years, died on Good Friday, 2010, at age 72.
Born and bred in Gisborne, John Moxley was a popular man of strong character and an example of a type of New Zealand male that may be a vanishing breed.
A man of provincial passion he w
as dedicated to his job, loyal to his friends, mad about rugby and definitely “one of nature’s true gentlemen”.
Born in Gisborne on July 6, 1937, he was the middle child and only son of Vera and Walter Moxley of Tukura Road.
Walter was the local manager of Smith and Smith Glass. Vera was a “corsetier” who worked for Adairs department store. For many years, most of the young women of Gisborne made appointments with Mrs Moxley for the fitting of their first brassiere.
John is survived by his two sisters, Sue (Treadwell), who lives in Taihape and Michelle (Matthews), who lives in Wellington.
The young “Mox” was educated at Kaiti Primary, Gisborne Intermediate and then Gisborne High School. At high school he was a prominent competitive swimmer who won many local trophies in his day, including the local Harbour Race at age 14.
Swimming gave John a strong physique and at 15 years old and 5 foot 10 inches in height, he weighed 15 stone. In 1953 and 1954, even though he was perfectly built for the front row, he was fleet of foot enough to play on the wing for the High School 1st XV.
He stayed on the wing throughout his rugby career playing as a representative for Manawatu in 1956. He played rugby for HSOB in Gisborne up until age 22 with a stint on the wing for Poverty Bay in 1959.
He was also a competitive tennis player and generally a lover of all sports. In later life he was an ardent armchair sportsman, particularly keen on rugby with a thorough knowledge of the rules of the game. Many a test match gathering at the Moxley home would be punctuated with Mox’s passionate interpretation of proceedings.
He was a keen follower and supporter of the local Boys’ High 1st XV, helping organise reunions and for many years regularly picked up a carload of “old boys” to transport to the Rectory Field for home matches.
On leaving school in 1954, John went to Massey University to gain a Wool Diploma. On his return to Gisborne in ‘57 he took on a job with Gisborne Sheepfarmers as a wool classer and the following year married Nola Duggan, a Central Otago girl, who had come north to work in Gisborne. Son Michael was born in 1960 and Peter 18 months later in 1962.
In the very early ‘60s the family moved to Tolaga Bay, where John was the manager of the Sheepfarmers Woolstore, beside the long wharf at the southern end of the bay.
Here the family stayed until 1968. John formed a long-lasting rapport with the many farmers and workers he dealt with on the East Coast, buying wool for his employers from as far north as the Waikura Valley. The wool was stored at the woolstore, railed out along the now historic Tolaga Bay pier to be loaded onto coastal trading ships bound for export.
During his time at the Bay, John showed his ability to get on with all walks. He would often drive into the village for a loaf of bread or two while his woolstore workers prepared a luncheon feast of mussels, paua or crayfish collected from around the Tolaga wharf.
During this time, a Volkswagen Beetle was the company car and he became renown for his “low flying” dashes into the Gisborne head office. A passion for cars and driving remained until his last days. Just last year, after being diagnosed with a form of leukemia, he realised a dream and bought a beautiful 2006 Lexus GS300. He loved to drive, a legacy of the many years he drove back and forwards between Gisborne and Hawkes Bay for the regular sales at the Napier Wool Exchange. On his 60th birthday, his sons chipped in and bought a set of personalised number plates, emblazoned “4MOX”, which took pride of place on the Toyota Wyndham he owned for many years.
In 1968 the family returned to Gisborne from Tolaga Bay, renting a house in Pare Street at Wainui, as John started a new job as Area Wool Manager for Williams and Kettle. This was a job he held until his retirement.
During this time, John realised an ambition to be an auctioneer. With a booming voice and a quick head for figures, he became famous in the local wool industry for his auctioneering skills and quick-witted good humour. At one stage, after 25 years as an auctioneer, he was credited with selling over $1-billion worth of wool.
The family built a new home on a section in Murphy Road in 1973, but John and Nola separated in 1979. A year later he met up with an old friend from school days, Cherry Warren (Kane), who had also left a marriage and had moved back to Gisborne from Hawkes Bay and was working at Adairs as a beauty consultant for Elizabeth Arden. She later sold Southern Cross travel insurance and worked for 2ZG in advertising sales.
The two moved in together and formed a loving partnership which stood fast until John’s recent death. As a couple, they were known for their social generousity and in their retirement, regularly kept in touch with a wide range of friends.
Son Michael says his father was an “absolute gentleman” who believed in old fashioned values. He was a man with a loud “bark”, but his bite was never vicious. He expected other people to show similar good etiquette and would seldom “suffer a fool”.
A man of strong opinion, Cherry says there were three ways in the Moxley household: “The wrong way, the right way – and John’s way.”
While a sociable man who loved company, and was always ready with the gin bottle in times of need, Michael says he never saw his father “worse for the wear”.
John leaves behind his two sons and four grand children – Emma, Molly, Matthew and Rose.
Cherry intends to remain living in the family home in Murphy Road.
