150 Faces of SMC

150

Faces of SMC

AN INTRODUCTION BY Margaret Rootes

In the front visitors’ office at the College is a wall decal which poses the question: What makes a St Mary’s girl? (and we could add ‘boy’ to that). It says: When your daughter graduates from St Mary’s at the end of Year 12, we aspire for her to be a savvy young woman. For her to be articulate, a problem solver who thinks outside the square. Pursues excellence in her career aspirations and is comfortable with change. We aspire for her to be compassionate, with a deep sense of social justice and an understanding of the importance of contributing to the community. later by her sister, Julia. Over the decades many other women followed them into the Presentation Order, at least 50 of them students from St Mary’s College. To touch on alumni in the medical/nursing field, Professor James Vickers leads ground-breaking research in dementia with the support of multimillion dollar grants, and there is no doubt that his contributions to the world will change it for the better. Christine Jeffries is a renowned paediatrician in a remote Aboriginal community, working tirelessly in the Kalgoorlie area where she has helped improve outcomes in birth and infant mortality, as well as empowering Aboriginal people through the arts. Gillian Biscoe is an acclaimed leader in the nursing world, where she was the first female secretary of a health department in Australia and one of the first women to be appointed as chief executive of a public hospital. Another high-achieving woman in the field of nursing is Brigid Tracey, whose pinnacle of her long career was her appointment as the first lay director of nursing at St Vincent’s Private Hospital, Sydney. Both Gillian and Brigid were awarded the Order of Australia Medal for their services to nursing. Of our alumni who have gone into the arts and entertainment industry, we cannot look past Patsy Biscoe. Not only is Patsy a most successful performer with many gold records to her name, but in her later life she has given generously to her local community in the Barossa Valley, having been the Deputy Mayor of the Barossa Council, Vice President of the Barossa Arts Council and Chair of the Tanunda Town Committee. Then there’s Michael Lampard, whose prodigious talent was recognised at age nine and who is on the way to becoming a superstar baritone; John Kelly, a businessman and owner of the State Cinema, as well as an effective philanthropist who firmly believes in putting back into the community he loves; and Paul Brickhill, who today is the Head of Music/Visual Arts Coordinator at the Australian Ballet School.

These words only went up a few years ago and I find them very evocative and aspirational. In sharing the stories of many St Mary’s people over the past three years, I have also found the words to be borne out time and time again. As a great lover of the shared story and the connection it brings, I have collected so many stories which I love, sometimes mere vignettes, at other times longer in the telling. To me, always, the most heroic people of our school story are those nine missionary women who followed Archbishop Daniel Murphy’s call to establish a school in the godforsaken outpost of Hobart in 1866. They left everything behind at very short notice and in the fairly certain knowledge that they would never return to Ireland. And indeed, only one ever did. And yet, they kept coming from Ireland and soon their ranks were swelled by vocations among Tasmanian women. Gabriel Horner, who attended Mount St Mary’s on its opening day, February 3, 1868, was to be the first Tasmanian Presentation Sister, followed

Among those alumni who have gone on to spend themselves for the poor, as encouraged by Nano herself, we have Bernadette Walker, a newly graduated teacher who has established a youth help project in Hobart called ‘Little Help Project’; Claire Hawkes, who has been involved in voluntary disadvantaged youth work in Hobart since leaving school and was named Tasmania’s runner-up for a Rhodes Scholarship in 2014; and Molly Gerke who, along with her mother Dana (nee Doherty), established a foundation which provides classrooms, a library and skills for the empowerment of local women on the island of West Ambae, Vanuatu. Some of our alumni have tried to improve the world through politics and we are very proud to claim Christine Milne as our own. The now retired Senator has served as a passionate advocate of the Greens’ vision and has gone one pace beyond in her commitment to green causes. Lisa Singh too has served Tasmania in local and national politics, first as a local member for Denison where she was a Cabinet Minister and since 2011 as a Senator. To date too, we can boast a Rhodes Scholar and an Olympian. Marnie Hughes Warrington, now the Deputy Vice Chancellor Academic of the Australian National University, was the Tasmanian Rhodes Scholar in 1992. Meanwhile, Julie Kent represented Australia at the Commonwealth Games of 1982 and 1986, and the Los Angeles Olympic Games (1984) and Seoul Olympic Games (1988). We have other sporting heroes too, with Michael Di Venuto, who rose from local cricket to play for Tasmania in Sheffield Shield matches, often replacing Ricky Ponting in his national games absences. Michael played nine International One Day games and was the full time batting coach for Australia in 2013. Many St Mary’s alumni went into the education field and followed a successful trajectory to leadership roles as Principals in schools around Tasmania as well as at the College. Sisters Barbara Amott, Majella Kelly, Gabrielle Morgan, Doreen Williams, Janet Sexton, Elizabeth Vagg, Norah Donnelly, Cecily Kirkham, Patricia Shelverton, Mary Morgan, Margaret Mary Caswell, Marilyn Fryett and Betty Bowes, as well as Margaret Morse (nee McCarthy), Mary Turnock (nee Stokell), Brigid Knight (nee Brickhill), Jill Morgan (nee Wright) and Elaine Doran (nee Arnold), to name but a few. Other committed Presentation people who have led St Mary’s are former College Principals/Heads of Junior School, Tom Dorey and Cecily MacFarlane, and Ann Stanfield, who holds the honour of being first Lay Principal at the College, a huge challenge and responsibility. Another Presentation educated woman and former teacher at St Mary’s, Liz McDougall has also followed her star to principalship. It would take a whole other occasion to convey to you how impressed I have been by the stories of volunteers at St Mary’s College. Many of you will remember the late dear Misses May Hanlon and Columba Warren, who so faithfully served the Sisters and the College all their lives. And who could not love the late Mary Excell, that stalwart of the school and the P&F Association.

I can only mention in passing some of the heroes of the Board over the years: Brian Sertori, Peter Jeffries, Peter Patmore, Peter and Jackie Gannon, Patrick Yeung, Sue Gourlay, Mary and Peter Beven, Lillian Deane and Cecily Verrier. All of them, through giving freely often for years on end, and giving of their expertise and skills Not wishing to leave myself open to litigation, I must touch on a few of our brilliant stars who went into the practice of law. Mary Ingram Hodgson, now retired, spent many decades as a most respected Hobart lawyer, including among her clients the Presentation Sisters. Melissa Marcus (nee Donoghue) is a respected barrister in Melbourne and Catherine Vickers is the Deputy Clerk of the Legislative Council in Tasmania. Over the years we have been so well served by Archbishop Tweedy, who in 1948 was responsible for establishing a state-of-the-art Home Economics school at St Mary’s; Father Vincent Shelverton, who himself was educated at St Columba’s and went on to serve in a priesthood spanning decades, and more recently, Fathers Bernie Rogers, Terry Rush and Brian Nichols.

Opposite page: The Prefects of 1963. This page (top to bottom): Marnie Hughes, 1992. Gillian Biscoe, 1963. Michael DiVenuto.

Of course, our favourite face of the clergy variety is our very own Archbishop Emeritus Adrian Doyle, an old scholar and excellent friend to the College: Our newish chapel is named in his honour. I have only touched the tip of the iceberg here, and I have been very proud and inspired over the past few years as so many generous people have shared their stories with me.

Margaret Rootes College Archivist

BOOK LAUNCH Wednesday 17 October 2018

The book, titled 150 Faces of SMC, will be launched on Wednesday 17 October 2018 at St Mary’s College. Everyone is welcome, refreshments will be served, and copies of the book will be available. RSVP essential. Email principaloffice@smc.tas.edu.au or contact the College on telephone (03) 6108 2560 by Wednesday 10 October. If you can’t make the launch, the book will be available from St Mary’s College from Thursday 18 October. If you have made a previous order, we will be in touch to arrange collection. A limited number of books will also be available for purchase at the Grand Bazaar school fair on Sunday 21 October.

THE MANY FACES OF St Mary’s College

With 150 years of history behind us, it is timely to honour the many people who have helped form the rich and colourful landscape of St Mary’s College as we know it today. A special highlight of our milestone celebrations is the production of a book that will highlight the school’s rich history from the viewpoint of individuals. Researched and edited by St Mary’s College Archivist, Margaret Rootes, the publication will feature images and stories about 150 men and women who have made significant contributions to the College community throughout its years of operation. “These individuals are made up of students who went on to make their mark in the world, outstanding teachers at the school and amazing volunteers who gave so freely to St Mary’s College,” Mrs Rootes said. “Teachers whose stories are included speak of their love for the College and for their students, and of their enjoyment in being part of the St Mary’s community,” she said.

“The volunteers are usually very modest about the part they have played in the story of St Mary’s where, in fact, they have had a profound effect over the decades on the landscape of the College, both physically and metaphorically.”