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Slava Jezek remembers when Canberra was a ‘single set of traffic lights’ town.“There was only one set of lights when I arrived here in the late 1960s,” Slava recalls.“They were on Northbourne Avenue. Canberra was very much a bush town.”The brand new suburb of Mawson was welcome relief for Slava, his mother, grandmother and two siblings, who arrived in Canberra as refugees from the Czech Republic in March 1969. A Soviet Union-led pact had invaded their country and was enforcing mandatory conscription. Having Slava forced into the Army was terrifying for the Jezeks, so they fled.<img alt="IMG_0077" class="richtext-image full-width" height="546" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_0077.width-800.jpg" width="800">At the same time, another family from the Czech Republic, the Jelinkovas, had also left the country, bound for O’Connor, Canberra. The daughter of the family, Georgina, joined her parents in the inner north in September 1969 from London, where she’d been working as a Nanny.“I got off the plane and the taxi driver headed toward O’Connor, where my parents were living,” Georgina recalls.“I ended up saying to the taxi driver, ‘When will we actually arrive in Canberra?’“He said, ‘What do you mean? This is it.’“I’d just been in London – one of the biggest capitals in the world – and here I was in Australia, in the capital, and it was just bushland.”<img alt="IMG_0081" class="richtext-image full-width" height="554" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_0081.width-800.jpg" width="800">In a coincidence that would change the lives of both families, the Jezeks and Jelinkovas – who ”knew of each other” — ran into each other in front of Monaro Mall (now the Canberra Centre) in front of David Jones in early 1970. Slava had never seen Georgina before but right there and then he invited her to Batemans Bay for the weekend.“She said yes,” Slava says.“The rest, as they say, is history.”Over the next 54 years the Jezeks built a life they loved in Canberra. As newlyweds they lived in Holt, had two children, Monica and Mark, and then moved southside to Pearce in 1982 to be closer to a new business they’d started at Chifley shops.<img alt="IMG_0083" class="richtext-image full-width" height="543" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_0083.width-800.jpg" width="800">That business was the Bavarian Bakehouse, and if you grew up in Canberra in the 1980s and 1990s, you’ll know it was a Canberra institution. Saturday mornings saw lines around the block for the bakehouse’s pastries (which Slava taught himself to make) and the bakery’s award-winning caraway seed rye bread.“People came from all over to buy the rye bread – from Sydney, even from Melbourne,” Slava recalls.“People would call and say, can I order 50 loaves of bread? And take them home to Sydney and freeze them.“Then I started making different types of cakes, my own recipes so that no-one could copy.<img alt="IMG_0076" class="richtext-image full-width" height="567" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_0076.width-800.jpg" width="800">“Danish pastries, poppy seed strudels, walnut strudels, poppy seed croissants, cheese and bacon, custard with almonds. We were just enjoying feeding the people of Canberra.”The Jezeks sold the Bavarian Bakehouse in 2008 and spent time turning <a href="https://zango.com.au/sale/4-mclaren-crescent-pearce-act-2607-88687/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">the family home into their dream home</a>, with the addition of an extension, a pool, brand new kitchen and bathrooms, and to Georgina’s delight, in-slab heating.<img alt="4-mclaren-crescent-pearce-act-2607-88687-image-0-20231018230151257458-thumbnail-1920x1920-70" class="richtext-image full-width" height="533" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/4-mclaren-crescent-pearce-act-2607-88687-image.width-800.jpg" width="800">But now they want to be closer to their grandchildren and have purchased a block at South Jerrabomberra. Their McLaren Crescent, Pearce, home will be auctioned on 11 November.“This has been a wonderful home, so close to the shops, our business, and all the work on the home has kept us busy over the years,” Slava says.“We hope another family can love this home like we have.”Number 4 McLaren Crescent, Pearce, goes to auction at 1.30pm on Saturday 11 November 2023.<a href="https://zango.com.au/sale/4-mclaren-crescent-pearce-act-2607-88687/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">View the full listing.</a>

Former Bavarian Bakehouse owners Slava and Georgina are selling the family home of 41 years

Located in one of South Canberra’s most highly prized, blue-ribbon streets, this five-bedroom, two-bathroom family home at <a href="https://zango.com.au/sale/13-sheehan-street-pearce-act-2607-53163/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">13 Sheehan Street</a> in Pearce is ready for your family to live, work and play in a serene, spacious environment.Backing on to Mount Taylor Reserve, Sheehan Street offers direct access to the pathways of the reserve, which Soley Properties principal agent Andrew Thorpe says “is a big tick in the right box.”The home is set on a massive 1279 sqm block, similar to many others in this street, and is filled with large established trees.<img alt="13-Sheehan-St-Pearce-5.jpg" class="richtext-image full-width" height="530" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/13-Sheehan-St-Pearce-5.width-800.jpg" width="800">The property has come on to the market for the first time in 27 years as the current owners are downsizing empty nesters, so now it is time for a new family to make memories in this lovely home.Built in 1968 and built to last, Andrew says the home would suit a range of buyers.“You can move straight in, do some minor renovations or extensions or rebuild. With an impressive sales record, it would be hard to overcapitalise on this street,” he said.<img alt="13-Sheehan-St-Pearce-6.jpg" class="richtext-image full-width" height="530" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/13-Sheehan-St-Pearce-6.width-800.jpg" width="800">Manicured, fragrant gardens will greet you as you step inside the home via the sweeping front verandah and entry foyer with beautiful parquetry floors, double-sash windows, and pelmet top curtains in the formal lounge.The spaciousness continues into the dining room for celebratory dinners with family and friends. Spanning out from here, French doors take you out to a large glass sunroom for a taste of the outdoors in winter rain or summer sunshine with unobstructed floor-to-ceiling views of the backyard.The enormous kitchen is the established heart of this home. Its streamlined design features quality stainless steel Bosch appliances, a wealth of cupboards and drawers, a corner pantry, a breakfast bar and two windows where you can take in the views of the backyard.<img alt="13-Sheehan-St-Pearce-1.jpg" class="richtext-image full-width" height="530" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/13-Sheehan-St-Pearce-1.width-800.jpg" width="800">All five generously sized bedrooms have built-in wardrobes, while the master bedroom also has an ensuite.On ground level there’s a separate retreat and the option of a fifth bedroom or study, providing another dimension of living space.Ducted gas heating will keep you cosy and warm in winter while ducted evaporative cooling maintains the comfort level in the warmer months.There is plenty of storage, including under the house, an oversized garage with workshop bench space, a carport and generous off-street parking.<img alt="13-Sheehan-St-Pearce-2.jpg" class="richtext-image full-width" height="530" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/13-Sheehan-St-Pearce-2.width-800.jpg" width="800">“The garden is another stand out feature of this home. As it is an older garden, the plantings are well established, including well-manicured hedges. There is also a separate vegetable garden and orchard area with a garden shed and two water tanks at the back of the property,” Andrew says.The large grassed area surrounded by meandering decomposed granite paths, and a paved entertaining area, means there is plenty of space for kids or dogs to play.Just five minutes to Woden, the home is near quality public and private schools, and is only a short trip to the city.To arrange a private inspection of <a href="https://zango.com.au/sale/13-sheehan-street-pearce-act-2607-53163/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">13 Sheehan Street</a> in Pearce, call Andrew Thorpe on 0402 017 912.Article was originally written and published by <a href="https://the-riotact.com/time-for-new-memories-in-this-spacious-family-home-in-pearce/532754" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The RiotAct.</a>

2 news articles with tag pearce_1

Former Bavarian Bakehouse owners Slava and Georgina are selling the family home of 41 years

Time for new memories in this spacious family home in Pearce