It was sad to hear the news this week of the passing of Geraldton stalwart Olly Wrensted.

Olly was a regular writer of letters to the editor in the Geraldton Guardian — ready, willing and able to offer up her opinions on a variety of topics affecting her hometown, but always, in the end, happy to “agree to disagree” with those who thought differently to her.

Olly died on Saturday, June 6 at the age of 92 in Bunbury. In her final years, Olly left Geraldton and moved to the South West city, but undoubtedly left a lasting mark on her Mid West hometown.

In a death notice, Olly was described as a loving wife to her late husband Clarry, and mother as well as grandmother of seven and great-grandmother of 10.

In April 2020, Olly and Clarry were pictured on the front page of the Geraldton Guardian. Olly had recently been forced to make the heartbreaking decision to move her beloved husband, who was suffering from dementia, into a specialist aged-care home, around the same time as the death of Clarry’s brother Charlie.

It also happened in the early stages of the COVID lockdown and Olly and Clarry could only see each other through a window and talk on the telephone.

Soon after that story was published, Clarry died. He was one of four Wrensted brothers who were star players for Railways in the 1950s and 60s.

The reporter who wrote that story in 2020, Peter Sweeney, this week remembered Olly as a “Gero legend” and “real character”.

The team at the Geraldton Guardian sends its sincere condolences to the Wrensted family. Rest in peace Olly.