The Mighty Pen

The 2022 Past Student Awards celebrated two distinguished past students who have a winning way with words: one as a truth-seeker and award-winning journalist and the other as an award-winning novelist, who cleverly intertwines historical fact with fiction.

Grace Tobin (’05), the 2022 Young Past Student of Distinction, and Christine Wells (‘91), the 2022 Distinguished Past Student, were celebrated at the annual Past Student Awards dinner in April last year.

Grace is an investigative reporter at the ABC’s premier current affairs program Four Corners. She previously worked as a reporter at 7:30 and as a producer at Nine’s 60 Minutes, where she travelled the world extensively on overseas assignments.

Grace is a two-time Walkley Award winner for excellence in journalism. In 2019, she produced a joint investigation with Nine Newspapers on Crown Casino, which sparked two Royal Commissions and the Bergin Inquiry in NSW and triggered a clear-out of the board. In 2017, she was recognised for the 60 Minutes story on the death of Matthew Leveson, subsequently authoring the true crime book Deal with the Devil, a first-hand account of the Leveson family’s ordeal throughout the four-year police reinvestigation of the case.

Grace completed a Bachelor of Journalism (QUT) and the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism’s Summer Investigative Reporting course. Her journalism career began in regional Queensland as a crime and court reporter.

Christine is an award-winning, internationally bestselling author of 14 historical novels. Her books have been published by New York houses Penguin, HarperCollins and Macmillan, as well as Penguin (Australia), with more than 250,000 copies sold worldwide and translations in nine languages. Her new novel, One Woman’s War, A Novel of the Real Miss Moneypenny, was published by HarperCollins (New York) in October 2022, subsequently gaining much acclaim, and her next book, The Royal Windsor Orphan, is due to be published in September this year.

Christine was school captain in her final year at St Margaret’s. She then completed a Bachelor of Laws and became a solicitor specialising in corporate law at a city firm, while writing in her spare time. She was the first Australian to win the American Golden Heart Award for her debut novel, which was published by Penguin (New York).

Christine is also a writing teacher and mentor, helping people achieve their dreams of becoming published authors of commercial fiction.

Members of the wider St Margaret’s community are invited each year to nominate St Margaret’s Old Girls for the Distinguished Past Student (for alumnae who have passed their 20th reunion) and the Young Past Student of Distinction (for alumnae in their 20th reunion year or younger) and to join us at the annual awards dinner to be inspired by the journeys of our past student award winners.

Thank you to our wonderful and generous school community for another year of valued support and participation. Together, we achieved record milestones in 2022, through our Every Girl Every Opportunity Annual Giving Campaign.

Reflecting on my time as Chair, the Foundation’s work has continued to evolve with the incredible support of our community. The relationships built across our community, from the parent and past student bodies through to corporate partnerships, create opportunities for our current students and help shape their future.

In early 2014, I recall being invited to nominate as a Director on the Board of St Margaret’s Foundation. As an Old Girl and St Margaret’s parent, my passion runs deep. Fast forward three terms on the Board and nearly a decade working alongside dedicated members of our school Foundation, School Council, Old Girls’ Association and P&F, it is heart-warming to reflect on the collective impact of giving. All our stakeholder groups are strongly represented as donors, and we work collaboratively to strengthen and support our school community.

As I pass the torch, I’d like to share a few highlights from my tenure.

The three Annual Giving Days (noting online giving was not a trend back in 2014) were incredibly successful. We were very proud to be the first girls’ school in Brisbane to launch a Giving Day behind a handful of boys’ schools; once again St Margaret’s demonstrated it is confident, capable and an early adopter! This resulted in the fabulous momentum in growth of our donor community – from 157 donors (2014) to over 525 donors (2022). Our students and teachers embracing and playing leadership roles in this special day each year make it even more rewarding.

The increase in donations to the bursary program has been heart-warming. What a joy it’s been to hear of Old Girls supporting current students and members of the parent community assisting fellow St Margaret’s families through donations.

Over the years, one measure of philanthropic growth is seen through changes to our built environment. Our learning spaces have become ‘greener’, with M’s Café and the Toorak and Barley Sugar Gardens, and we have seen the addition of highly valued collaborative spaces like The Loft, the Senior Study Centre and Circular Drive classrooms.

A highlight was the delivery of the Capital Campaign for the Sports Precinct, which crossed the finishing line during a pandemic. This space is integral to health and wellbeing for our young women. Wellness of all community members is a focus for the school and supporting projects fostering a wholistic education is paramount to the Foundation.

Finally, the Endowment Fund, designed to future proof our school, has surpassed $500,000, from its beginnings of a $500 donation in 2012.

2023 will be another exciting year, and I warmly welcome our new Chair, Penny Wolff (’92), Deputy Chair Heidi Cooper and Foundation Director Andy Carrick, who with the remaining Foundation Board will lead our community’s continued enthusiastic participation in the school’s philanthropic priorities.

I’d like to thank Principal Ros Curtis and current, past and founding board members for their collective wisdom and engaging conversations. A very special thank you to Lara Pickering, Director of Philanthropy and Stakeholder Engagement, and her team, whose energy and passion for philanthropy is admirable.

The Foundation’s work ensures philanthropy becomes part of Every Girl’s DNA, and there is always Every Opportunity for students to challenge themselves and grow into future changemakers. Our community’s kindness and generosity are gifts that keep on giving.

While my time as Chair of Foundation ends, I look forward to continuing to support the school as a donor, parent, and Old Girls’ Association member.

Kylie Lamprecht (’90)