One of three children, Irma was the daughter of a butcher at Victor Harbor. Her mother was not strong, having suffered a bout of rheumatic fever, and when Irma was fourteen she had to leave school to help with family responsibilities.
At the age of twenty-one she married a dairy farmer, and went to live at Back Valley, about 15 km from Victor Harbor. They had two sons and a daughter.
When the children were still in their teens Irma's husband died, and at 42 she felt that her life was over. However, her eldest son took over the farm, the other got work in a bank, and they managed to put her daughter through the university.
She later married again, and with her husband she spent some time travelling around Australia, NZ and the Pacific.
Widowed once more, she moved to Victor Harbor in 1980. She was already a member of the Fellowship of Australian Writers, and writing now became a priority for her. Other interests have been church groups and the National Trust. As well as the work itemised here she has written local histories, articles, and biographical pieces.
