A Papakura house owned by Sir Edmund Hillary’s cousin is on the market for sale.
The 11-bedroom house on a generous 1520sqm site on 2 Shepherds Road, Papakura, was owned by Neville and Helen Wooderson and often played host to Sir Ed, Neville’s cousin, and Lady Hillary. Sir Edmund so respected Neville’s work as a master plumber that he tapped him to join him in Nepal, building schools and hospitals for over 30 years.
Neville’s son, Barry, said that his dad applied the same careful craftsmanship to building the huge brick home.
“Only the best of the best could work on his trophy home. All the arches in the brickwork and finishings in the house speak to this and shows that they were top of their trades,” Barry said.
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“Of course, Dad was no slouch at his trade either - one of the reasons he was chosen to work on the schools and hospitals by Ed Hillary on top of the world.”
From 1966 Neville Wooderson accompanied Sir Edmund to the Himalayas, a commitment that would last for over 30 years, building hospitals and schools for the Sherpa community. He even took over as team leader when Hillary was unable to travel. With the help of fundraising from the local Lions Club, of which Wooderson was a foundation member, $80,000 was raised for the first trip.
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Wooderson’s daughter Joy Sheehan is planning to publish a book on her father’s work and has collected extensive papers and photos going back to the 1960s.
“He died in 2018 in his 91st year. He’d transformed the house, turning the rumpus room into a granny flat, adding a lift and making room for 10 people to live in the house.
“He was a big part of the Himalayan Trust with Sarah and Peter Hillary.
Sir Edmund Hillary (left) and Sherpa Tensing Norgay after their ascent of Mount Everest in 1953. Photo / File
The solid brick house on 2 Shepherds Road, Papakura, was built as a trophy house by craftsman Wooderson. Photo / Supplied
“We’re going to get those memoirs finished,” she said.
Wooderson’s notes on his first trip to build a hospital in the foothills of Everest at some 13,000 feet (3962 metres) say that it took 300 porters to transport the building materials the 200 km to the site, in the middle of winter.
“I had not been home long when I got a phone call from Ed. ‘How are you placed, Nev? Do you think you could find time to build a new school at Kumjung?’” Wooderson wrote. He returned to build more schools, add solar panels to the old hospital, and, in 1975 build another hospital in Paplu, this time with Rex Hillary, Sir Edmund’s brother.
In a letter published in the local paper on his first trip, Wooderson noted the “out of this world” hospitality of the Sherpas, as they worked to ferry timber and stone from lower down the mountain in a four-hour walk.
“I never tire of the scenery: we are surrounded by peaks with snow creeping down nearer us almost daily. It is truly a mountaineers’ paradise.”
Although it has been converted with 10 bedrooms, Neville and Helen’s solid brick 1980s house still has many of its original features in the lounge, Hinuera stone foyer and kitchen. There is a second one-bedroom house and plenty of parking.
The house overlooks the Pahurehure Inlet and Papakura’s Youngs Beach. Photo / Supplied
The 1980s house was later modified into a 10 room boarding house, with a secondary dwelling. Photo / Supplied
Harcourts agent Karen Goosman is marketing the property with Amar Pannu, with a tender closing July 13. She said that the property has lots of options for buyers including as a boarding home, a large home for extended families or as a development opportunity. She noted that there will not be any vendor warranties because it is a boarding house.
But it is the waterfront location on a quiet cul de sac next to Youngs Beach, with native bush next door, which is the drawcard for kayaking and fishing locals.
The house still has many of the orignal 1980 features. Photo / Supplied
Sir Edmund Hillary’s own Remuera house was relocated as a leadership centre on the campus of Sir Edmund Hillary Collegiate, Otara. Photo / File
“Shepherds Road is a mature sought after location, it does not need talking up,” Goosman said.
“It’s a tranquil environment which borders the Pahurehure Inlet, with panoramic tidal views and sensational sunsets.”
In a fitting tribute, Sir Edmund’s own house in Remuera now sits on the campus of his namesake school Sir Edmund Hillary Collegiate in South Auckland's Otara.
It was relocated after it was bought by a neighbor, multi-millionaire and former New Zealand cricketer Terry Jarvis, who wanted to preserve it as a community legacy. The house, which was rebuilt with a replica of the ground floor, including Sir Ed's study is used as a leadership centre for the school.
- 2 and 2a Shepherds Road, Papakura, is for sale by tender closing July 13
