Between March 2011 and March 2013, the Catholic Voice,  monthly journal of the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn, published articles on notable local Catholics written by Bishop Pat Power.

We reproduce the articles with the permission of the Catholic Voice and Bishop Power.  They remain the property of the Catholic Voice and may not be further reproduced.

• Monsignor Patrick Haydon
• Sylvia Curley
• Stanley Cusack
• Lady Mary Scholtens
• Fred Quinane
• Kath Durie
• Mick Gallagher
• Ursula Southwell
• Jim Rochford
• Olive Mulholland
• Brother Don Gallagher
• Jean Reid
• Giuseppe Cataldo
• Sister Clare Slattery
• Gerry Kilmartin
• Kath Scott
• Father Tommy Wright
• Edith Dickinson
• John Buckingham
• Margaret Lyons and the Morrison Family
• Doug Blake
• Ethel McGuire
• Sir William Deane

Monsignor Patrick Haydon

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Driving along Haydon Drive in Bruce or calling into nearby Calvary Haydon Retirement Village, there is the opportunity to remember the Parish of Canberra’s first and only Parish Priest, Patrick Maurice Haydon.

When he was appointed to Queanbeyan as a 22 year old newly ordained priest in 1912, he was a priest of the Archdiocese of Sydney and Queanbeyan parish which incorporated what is now known as Canberra was part of that Archdiocese even though the Diocese of Goulburn had been established in 1862. Father Haydon became Parish Priest of Queanbeyan in 1918 when the change of boundaries brought it into the Diocese of Goulburn. When the Parish of Canberra was established in 1928, Father Haydon became its parish priest, already very much at home in the territory which he had been serving from Queanbeyan all his priestly life. By the time he died in 1949, the Diocese of Goulburn had been elevated to the status of the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn. From that point onwards, the Archbishop of the day has been notionally parish priest of St Christopher’s Parish and the priest in charge has had the title of Administrator.

Historian, Fr Brian Maher writing in Planting the Celtic Cross, paints a graphic picture of Fr Haydon on his motor bike visiting people in the work gangs, celebrating Mass in all kinds of primitive circumstances, even hearing Confessions on the back of his Harley-Davidson because that gave greater privacy than inside the hall. Fr Maher points out that one of the Mass centres was Springbank homestead, the footings of which survive today on Springbank Island in Lake Burley Griffin not far from the National Museum. Fr Haydon is depicted responding to the needs of the community during the Great Depression cooperating with his colleagues in other Churches to provide meals for needy people. Fr Maher adds “Some people were disturbed when Fr Haydon gave each unemployed man at dinner a bottle of beer and a packet of cigarettes; these luxuries were provided by Fr Haydon’s sisters, Elizabeth and Mary Haydon.”

I experienced similar generosity from Monsignor Haydon as an infants pupil at St Christopher’s School when our beloved parish priest shouted the whole school an ice cream. I have many other fond memories of this gentle giant and often wonder if he first influenced me to begin thinking of the priesthood. I often reflect that those first thoughts came to me around the time of my First Holy Communion. That day, 24 April 1949, was a day of mixed emotions for our class as Monsignor Haydon had died unexpectedly five days earlier on 19 April. I still remember Father Steve Wellington who stepped into the breach saying that Monsignor Haydon would have wanted the First Communion to go ahead.

Canberra’s first parish priest was a great community builder, leading by example and involving people at every level. The material needs of the burgeoning parish were great with St Christopher’s Church- School beginning in 1928 and the Good Samaritan Convent in the same year, the presbytery (now the Archbishop’s House on Commonwealth Avenue) in 1931, St Patrick’s Church-School, Braddon in 1935 and St Christopher’s Church in 1939. Remembering that much of the fund-raising would take place during the Depression everyone’s resources were stretched. Yet, the dances, fetes and other social activities did much to bring everyone together and to allow a whole range to talents to be brought to bear on the endeavours. It was a great exercise in bonding.

A man of the people, Patrick Haydon was just as much “at home” with senior church dignitaries and in fact was made Vicar General himself in 1940 and promoted to the highest rank of Monsignor (Prothonotary Apostolic) in 1941. He was a confidant of Catholic Prime Ministers, James Scullin, Joseph Lyons, Frank Forde and Ben Chifley and had a warm relationship with Robert Menzies and was greatly respected in the general Canberra community.

W.Farmer Whyte’s Memoir begins “This is the story of a great life, greatly lived. The story of a much-loved priest whose days were spent in the service of God and man, and whose passing is mourned by all who knew him......[On his death] at Canberra, aged 59, men and women of all creeds and classes were joined in sorrow. For he had been the friend of all, his heart as wide as the world, his love and charity boundless.”

In the days when Catholics in other parts of Australia were sometimes struggling for recognition and there was not always a good relationship with other Churches, Patrick Haydon did much to create a healthy climate in Canberra. This was generously acknowledged by the Canberra Times in its leading article the day after his death. He was described as ”a builder in Canberra” but one who built much more than edifices of stone.

“Great in stature, he was a true Australian endowed with the generosity of nature which we count as a superlative element of Australian character and spreading good-will in his earthly walks. Although he has been marked by distinctions of office, he is affectionately regarded by most people still as Father Haydon, for it is thus most of Canberra first knew him and his modesty and humility remained unaffected by the elevation that his works and faith had earned.

“During the development of Canberra, a happy feature of community life has been the absence of sectarian bitterness that has sometimes cast a transient shadow over other cities. This Christian good will was early nurtured in the pioneering days when priest and parson shared hall, school or whatever other building was available for services and church activities. Father Haydon was an exemplar of a happy brotherhood that was established among the Christian Churches in Canberra in its early days and has touched other aspects of city life.”

As we prepare to celebrate Canberra’s 100^th birthday in 2013, Catholics can be justly proud of Patrick Maurice Haydon’s contribution to Canberra’s history.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 263 March 2011, p. 11.

Sylvia Curley

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If Sylvia Curley had lived a few more months, her life would have touched on three centuries and two millennia. Sadly, she died (rather unexpectedly!) on 24 March 1999, aged 100. I had celebrated a Mass at St Christopher’s Cathedral for her 100^th birthday on 7^th November in the previous year. The Mass was attended by the Chief Minister, Kate Carnell and MLAs Bill Stefaniak and Bill Wood and a congregation of 350.

Reporting the Mass next day (the actual birthday), the Canberra Times noted that messages had come from the Queen, the Prime Minister, John Howard, and the Governor-General, Sir William Deane. “Miss Curley said, with a touch of whimsy, that she would have liked a message from the Queen Mother, whom she had met and who is two years her junior.”

Sylvia Curley records in her memoirs, A Long Journey, written in her 100^th year that her family was fortunate in being able to attend three important events: the naming of Canberra by Lady Denman and the laying of the Foundation Stone in 1913, the visit of the Prince of Wales in 1920 and the Opening of Parliament in May 1927.

Her memoirs record the excitement in the family when on the occasion of the opening of Parliament, her parents along with two other couples, all ex-employees of Duntroon estate, were presented to the Duke and Duchess of York, later to become King George VI and the Queen Mother. Sylvia and her sisters, Ada and Evelyn, also received invitations. Dame Nellie Melba (then referred to as Madam Melba) sang and knowing the future Queen Mother’s love for horses, Sylvia speculated on her joy at seeing the display by the Mounted Police.

She provides an anecdote which may otherwise have been lost to history: “During the latter part of the display by the Mounted Police another event occurred. Walking up from the Hotel Canberra, a traveller came into view. The traveller had a swag, carried a billy can and was followed by his little dog. The police and security guards seemed surprised but remained to attention. The traveller slowly walked to the official party, tipped his hat and bent his head and walked on to his destination. The traveller was an Aboriginal man showing his respect for the Royal Couple. I felt proud and the entire crowd of visitors showed their appreciation for his courtesy.”

Patrick and Annie Elizabeth Curley (nee Tong) had three daughters, Ada, Sylvia and Evelyn, all born at Duntroon. Patrick’s family had settled in Duntroon in 1857 and Annie Elizabeth Tong was born at Cuppacumbalong in 1869.The family moved to Mugga Mugga in 1913. Patrick Curley and Charles Edlington were the last employees of Duntroon estate when the Commonwealth Government resumed the land for the establishment of the National Capital. The Curley family home in Mugga Mugga was among a group of buildings which dated back to 1838. No wonder Sylvia Curley had such a passion for Canberra and its heritage. Driving today from Duntroon to Mugga Mugga beside Hindmarsh Drive the road crosses Sylvia Curley Bridge at Dairy Flat.

Sylvia Curley left Canberra to begin a career in nursing, commencing her training at Leeton Hospital in 1923 and graduating in 1929. After two stints as Matron at Gundagai Hospital she returned to Canberra in 1938 as Deputy Matron of what was to become Royal Canberra Hospital. She occupied that position till her retirement from nursing in 1966.

Her plaque on the ACT Honour Walk in Canberra City states that “she fought tirelessly for excellence in patient care and left a legacy of improved training and educational facilities for Canberra’s nurses, dentists and medical practitioners.” Her contribution to Canberra’s nursing profession was recognised on 17 April 1964, when Dame Pattie Menzies opened Sylvia Curley House as the new nurses’ residence at Canberra Hospital. A former Duntroon cadet recalls Sister Curley keeping a close eye on the cadets showing an interest in her nurses.

A Long Journey records Sylvia Curley’s three careers. Her second was to begin when she opened an employment agency in Manuka. She spoke of leaving nursing without any superannuation and refusing to go on the pension. Her employment agency would not attempt to compete with other larger agencies in Canberra, but rather was to cater for niche market where Miss Curley gave personalised training to her potential clients helping them to be equipped for the particular position they were about to fill. In many ways, she provided a type of “finishing school” especially for the younger women seeking employment. Her nursing background proved invaluable for positions such as doctors’ and dentists’ receptionists/secretaries. At least one Archbishop’s secretary came through her agency. It was the death of her sister, Evelyn, in 1985 which brought about another turn in Sylvia Curley’s life.

“The lease of Mugga Mugga had been passed on from father to mother to Evelyn. In her will she had requested that Ada and I continue the lease. I was to be responsible for everything and the farm and cottage was to be for education purposes.”

There were many obstacles to be overcome in achieving this. Condolence speeches in the ACT Legislative Assembly following her death are replete with ministers describing their being summoned to her home in Manuka, being treated to a pleasant morning or afternoon tea and then being seriously lobbied by this formidable lady to have her plans for Mugga Mugga to become an environmental education centre for Canberra’s future generations.

Her plaque on the ACT Honour Walk records the reward of her persistence. “In 1994, Sylvia donated the family’s original home to the people of the ACT. In doing so, she established the Mugga Mugga Memorial Education Centre for a museum and for environmental studies. The facility is administered by the ACT Government.”

Sylvia Curley was a devout Catholic, very much at home in St Christopher’s Cathedral and someone who lived out Jesus’ great commandment: “Love one another as I have loved you.”

Originally published in Catholic Voice 264 April 2011, page 9.

Stanley Cusack

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Entering St Christopher’s Cathedral through the side door and walking towards the sanctuary you will observe at the base of a stained glass window the inscription Pray for the soul of Stanley Cusack. As a young priest of the parish in the 1960s, I frequently observed Stan kneeling not far from that spot at weekday Mass. Stan Cusack’s deeply held Catholic faith and his loyalty to St Christopher’s Parish manifested themselves in all kinds of ways.

Stan Cusack’s origins were in Yass where he was elected Mayor in 1933 before moving to Canberra in 1935. It is not surprising to find him in local government given that his father, JJ Cusack, served as a Labor Member in the NSW Parliament and was member for Eden Monaro in the Federal Parliament. One of Stan’s duties as Mayor of Yass was to welcome the Duke of Gloucester as he passed through the town.

Stan Cusack’s work ethic was as widely acclaimed as was his devotion as a Catholic. An historical paper lists him as Blacksmith’s Assistant, Taxi Driver, Pianist, Upholsterer, Builder, Shopkeeper, Landlord, Funeral Director, Grazier, Farmer, Land Developer. One should also add Family Man.

Stan married Alice May Dawes in St Augustine’s Church, Yass, in 1928 and they were blessed with three children, John, David and Joan who were still teenagers when their mother died in 1947. Having left school at 14 himself, Stan ensured his children had a good education at Mt Carmel, Yass, St Christopher’s, Canberra and St Joseph’s College, Hunters Hill, and he was conscientious in his role as mentor to his children after their mother’s death. In 1952, Stan met his second wife, Mary Kniepp, and to the delight of the children, Stan and Mary married in 1954.

The Canberra and District Historical Society Newsletter of August 1971 states boldly that “Stan had caught the vision splendid of Canberra” and goes on to say that he “had some firm principles, one of which was that Australians should buy and build, but not sell. Because he was not interested in quick profits and had the strength and patience to see his way through difficult times, his Canberra enterprises spread and prospered.” Having begun his furniture business at Manuka where he had bought a block at the first land sales in 1927, “he extended to Queanbeyan and acquired properties at Kingston, Canberra City and Fyshwick until Manuka became less important.”

Despite strong competition from multi-nationals today, CUSACKS is still firmly established in Kingston and Fyshwick. During a large slice of Canberra’s history, Stan Cusack’s vision unfolded in a very human way as he built up a loyal clientele of customers and staff who appreciated his kindness and fairness. Many of the CUSACK employees, including a good number of “New Australians” remained in the family business for decades. The family funeral business operating from Canberra Avenue, adjacent to the Hotel Kingston, has since changed hands a number of times and currently operates as Tobin Brothers Funerals. Stan’s business instincts prompted him to successfully invest in property in Western Australia, but that is a story in its own right.

At a time when preparations are underway to develop the Cathedral Precinct at Manuka, it should be noted that in 1958 Stan Cusack was president of a committee of parishioners which called for debentures to build the Haydon Catholic Centre which would provide a parish hall, meeting rooms, kitchen facilities and library space. The Haydon Centre was duly opened in 1962 and proved to be a valuable meeting point for parish, diocesan and community events as well as over the years catering for youth activities, marriage guidance, natural family planning, pre-marriage courses, meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous, and the beginnings of the Catholic Development Fund.

Stan was a long time member of the Knights of the Southern Cross and was active in the purchase of land in Phillip to establish the first premises of the Canberra Southern Cross Club. He was a personal friend of Archbishop Eris O’Brien who would often arrive unannounced at the family home and who called on Stan’s business acumen to bid for land for future church purposes. However, Stan Cusack’s loyalties went beyond the Catholic Church. The Historical Society’s Newsletter spoke of him as a genial man in his community associations. “He made a host of friends among bowlers in particular, first in the Canberra Bowling Club and later in the development of the Canberra South Bowling Club of which he was the first president. He was a strong supporter of Eastlake Football Club and a well known member of the Canberra Club and the Queanbeyan Leagues Club.”

Arguably, Stan Cusack’s greatest legacy to Canberra has been his family. Ann Jaeger (nee Cusack) writing the Cusack family history reflects that “there would be no more family oriented group than the Cusack clan.” She quotes Stan’s second wife, Mary, speaking of her inherited family “I have 19 grandchildren, and not a dud one amongst them.” Stan would surely agree.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 265 May 2011, page 8.

Lady Mary Scholtens

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Mary Scholtens stood proudly at her husband, Jim’s, side when he was knighted personally by Queen Elizabeth II on the Royal Yacht, Britannia, at the end of the 1977 Royal Visit, in recognition of all that Sir James had done over the years as head of Protocol in the Prime Minister’s Department. She treasures the Christmas card she receives from the Queen each year.

I joked with Mary when in 2004 when she was made a Papal Dame in the Order of St Gregory the Great by Pope John Paul II, that to be made a Dame on top of being Lady Mary would make her a Duchess! But like Jim, Mary wears her greatness lightly and finds most satisfaction in the company of family and friends, especially enjoying seeing the younger generations making their mark on the world.

Mary is unashamed in her love for Canberra and has always seen it as a great place to live. Arriving in the national capital from Queensland, as a 16 year old in 1939, Mary took up residence at Gorman House which at that time was a women’s- only hostel. Her happy times there over a four year period are chronicled by Alan Foskett in The Memories Linger On. I was happy to be at the book launch with Mary and the family on 11 April 2010. Jim was to be called to his eternal reward just three months later.

Canberra was still just one parish in those days when Mary joined with some other like-minded Catholic young women to form a group of the Ladies of the Grail and later the National Catholic Girls Movement which was to be the forerunner of the Young Christian Workers (YCW) in which Mary’s children would play a key role in the 1960s. She recalls Monsignor Haydon’s support in those days.

Mary’s first position in the Prime Minister’s Department as a stenographer led her later to be appointed to the personal staff of the war-time Prime Minister, John Curtin. Because of the PM’s dislike of flying, Mary accompanied him on many train trips, including two to Perth. She never imagined that her future husband would later occupy an important role in the Prime Minister’s Department.

Mary and Jim met while working in Canberra but married in Brisbane in March 1945 before returning to Canberra in June 1946. Jim who had a Dutch background first came to Canberra in 1942.

Mary very proudly and gratefully states that she was a “stay at home mother” to her six children when they were growing up, while being actively involved in community and church affairs. Her community activities included the Turner Pre-school Association, the Good Neighbour Council and the Turner Progress Association and in later life she was the first Lady Director of the Canberra Southern Cross Club. As a devout Catholic, she was very much involved in the parish and school life of St Patrick’s, Braddon, she worked for Pregnancy Support and, notably, was most energetic in her various roles in the Catholic Women’s League in which she served a term as National President. Mary attributes her earlier lay formation in her first days in Canberra as being significant in preparing her for future apostolic work. When Archbishop Cahill in 1976, asked me to help form a Diocesan Laity Council, I was delighted that Mary and her good friend and kindred spirit, Leone Carse, were also asked to be part of the Council which was to be a forerunner of future Diocesan Pastoral Councils. Mary showed the best of leadership qualities. Confident and self-assured and a good public speaker, she had the great capacity to draw out the best in others, enabling them to make their own unique contributions. I suspect that is exactly how Mary and Jim related to their children.

When the children grew up Mary and Jim were pleased to be able to attend daily Mass, a practice which they faithfully observed almost up to the time of Jim’s death. One of Mary’s few regrets is that it is no long possible to get to Mass as often as she would like. The Scholtens were always great supporters of the priests and there was a special bond between Mary and Fr Tommy Wright arising out of them sharing the same birthday. I know how much Tommy treasured that friendship.

Jim and Mary enjoyed the retirement phase of their life even though they continued at a pace with voluntary work and spending more time with their grandchildren. Early in the piece when someone asked Mary what was it like having Jim retired, she quipped “Half as much pay and twice as much husband!”

The capacity congregation which celebrated Jim Scholtens’ funeral Mass at St Vincent’s Church, Aranda in July 2010 was as much a tribute to Jim and Mary’s fruitful marriage as it was to Jim’s wonderful life.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 266 June 2011, page 8.

Fred Quinane

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In 1959 I sat with a group of young seminarians while Archbishop Eris O’Brien explained to us that as Chairman of the ACT Advisory Council, Fred Quinane was effectively the Lord Mayor of Canberra. I don’t remember the context of the Archbishop’s remarks, but he clearly had a deep affection and admiration for Fred who had occupied that role since 1955. The Advisory Council was the forerunner to the ACT Legislative Assembly which ushered in self-government for the ACT in 1989.

Labor politics and the Catholic faith were deeply imbued in Fred’s life when he moved to Canberra in 1948 with his wife, Mary, the year after their wedding. His father, Joe, had been a supporter of HV (Doc) Evatt but there had been an acrimonious falling-out in which Fred was also embroiled. However, Fred had enjoyed good relations with Ben Chifley, Eddie Ward, Arthur Calwell and many other ALP notables. Little wonder that when he and Mary moved to Canberra one of the first things he did was to apply for membership in the ACT branch of the ALP. The officer bearers were Professor Fin Crisp (President), Peter Lawler (Secretary) and Bill Byrne (Treasurer). At that time, Canberra was still not represented in the Federal Parliament and Fred campaigned for Jim Fraser to become its first member in 1949.

Among the highlights of his time as Chairman of the Advisory Council were welcoming the Olympic Torch to Canberra in 1956, and with Mary being presented to the Queen Mother in 1958. Fred Quinane hosted a citizen’s welcome to the Queen Mother, the event taking place at the foot of City Hill. A plaque at the southern end of Northbourne Avenue records this piece of history. An important part of Fred’s duties was presiding over the naturalisation ceremonies of the time.

Retiring from the Advisory Council in 1959 allowed Fred to further his public service career and take key roles in many developments in Canberra’s burgeoning Catholic community. He was very much a “mover and shaker” being actively involved in the building of the O’Donnell Youth Centre in Braddon, St Brigid’s in Dickson and the Dominican Priory and Convent in Watson. Later in his life he was to help in fund-raising for a new chapel for the Carmelite Sisters.

In the late 1960s he was part of a group which set out to establish what was to become the Canberra Southern Cross Club. In 1971, with the Club Patron, Bishop Alo Morgan, he turned the first sod and when the Club was opened he became its first President. His fellow board members included Paul Rice, Mary Scholtens, Barney Lewis, Ron Keogh, George Wilde and John Reilly.

Alex McGoldrick, a future ambassador to Saudi Arabia, had been associated with Fred Quinane while the former was a senior official in the Department of Trade and Fred was working in the Trade Commissioner Service. Alex writes: “Running the Trade Commissioner Service was a labour of love for Fred. He was a tough manager but a compassionate one and he was liked – admired indeed – by those he regarded as his people around the world. In 1979 he himself was appointed Australian Trade Commissioner in San Francisco, retiring on his return to Australia in 1982.”

Fred Quinane’s great love for Canberra found many expressions and on his return from overseas he became the first executive director of the Canberra Association for Regional Development which was to become the Canberra Business Council. Later he was to be a member of the National Capital Planning Authority from 1991 to 1994.

Fred Quinane lived through the Great Depression growing up in Sydney and although he always had a pair of shoes himself, he vividly remembered other children who didn’t. He would forever have a concern for those less fortunate. This was part of the motivation which drove him politically and which expressed itself as he lived out his Catholic faith with a keen sense of justice. He used his fund-raising skills in helping the St Vincent de Paul Society to raise around a million dollars in 1988 assisting in the building of centres in Mitchell, Belconnen and Tuggeranong, allowing people in need to be assisted with dignity and compassion. He was always involved in parish life and served as an acolyte in St Augustine’s Parish, Farrer with his good friend, Fr Tommy Wright.

Anne Quinane summed up her father at his funeral Mass which I was privileged to celebrate following his death on 8 June 2005. “Fred was a natural leader with an impressive capacity to get things done. Sustained by his deep Christian faith and motivated by his abiding commitment to community service, Fred took on responsibilities of office because he felt it important to make a contribution.....Fred was a man of action, never happier than when chairing a meeting or launching an undertaking – relishing in the planning, delegation and execution and finally the main event. Fred could always be relied upon to deliver a great speech and ensure that everything went just right on the day.” Anne, currently Australia’s High Commissioner to Malta, has clearly been given a good share of her father’s (and mother’s !) genes.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 267 July 2011, page 8.

Kath Durie

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While St Edmund’s College, Canberra, is often viewed as a thoroughly male enterprise, no history of it would be complete without recognition of Kath Durie’s integral part in its beginnings and its growth into being the great school which so many Canberrans admire today. But this formidable woman’s achievements are not limited to St Edmund’s.

Because of the Depression, Kathleen McMahon had to give up her pursuit of a degree at the University of Sydney. Rather than return to the family farm, she decided to come to Canberra in 1933. She had attended boarding school with the Good Samaritan Sisters in Sydney and they arranged with their counterparts at St Christopher’s Convent, Manuka for Kath to have a room with them and teach some of the senior students. Up until 1954, St Christopher’s catered for girls and boys right through to the Leaving Certificate. One of the boys to whom Kath taught Latin in those days was John Kelly who was to be ordained to the priesthood. At that time, a good grasp of Latin was needed in preparation for the priesthood. As inspector of (Catholic) schools and later as Monsignor Kelly and Vicar for Education, he always acknowledged Kath’s role in own education.

As for many other newcomers to Canberra, the Hotel Kurrajong would be home for Kath as she looked to begin a career in the Public Service. It was there after moving from St Christopher’s that she met her future husband, Bob Durie, in 1935. Bob and Kath were married in 1940, by which time Bob had converted to Catholicism. Bob’s brother, David, later became a much loved and admired Anglican priest in Canberra.

The early part of the marriage saw a move from Canberra to Sydney but in 1947 the family, which now included four children, returned to Canberra and the Duries made their home in Sturt Ave, Narrabundah. Kath and Bob were very much involved in school and parish life. But their commitment went even wider when this devoted married couple began helping young couples prepare for marriage through what were known as Pre-Cana conferences. The older Durie children remember Archbishop Eris O’Brien’s personal interest in the family apostolate and his arranging to come for a meal with the household. Known to be a little absent-minded, the genial Archbishop threw everyone into a spin by arriving a day before he was expected!

While on a posting as Official Secretary at Australia House, London in the late 1950s, Bob Durie was diagnosed with brain cancer and in 1960 returned with his family to Canberra to die at the age of 43, leaving Kath with eight children.

Living quite near to the St Edmund’s site, in 1953 (the year before the college opened) Bob and Kath had welcomed the future headmaster, Brother McCarthy and the Provincial, Brother Young to their home as the Brothers engaged in the planning of the new college. It was to be the beginning of Kath’s involvement at many levels with a college on which she was to make a huge impact almost to the end of her life.

Not only were her three sons to be students at St Edmund’s, but Kath worked there in a voluntary capacity before accepting a full-time position on the college staff in the mid-1960s. College historian, Michael Moloney, writes: “She taught some classes and established the first library in the room we now call Waterford...A well as fostering her deep faith, Kath read widely and developed a knowledge and love of the fine arts, music, art, poetry and literature... To pass on her appreciation of what is good and beautiful in life to the boys gathered around her desk was one of Kath’s greatest gifts and keenest pleasures.”

Michael Moloney goes on to describe how after her own children had grown up, she would assist Tony O’Shea every Christmas holidays in running “Sunshine Camps” for boys who otherwise would not have had a holiday outside of Canberra. He also narrates how Kath took under her wing a talented young concert pianist, Geoffrey Tozer, who had joined the staff of St Edmund’s. “Years later, when he heard of Kath’s death, he returned to Canberra to perform a concert in honour of his great friend and benefactor. The proceeds of this concert he donated to establish a Kath Durie Scholarship to help talented St Edmund’s boys continue their music studies.”

In many ways Kath Durie was ahead of her times in living out much of the Second Vatican Council’s vision for lay involvement in the Church and in the world. She was a member of the Catholic Women’s League and the St Vincent de Paul Society, guided marriage preparation and post-marriage counselling, taught as a catechist at Telopea Park High School and later in life as a Eucharistic minister, she cared for the sick and housebound. At times, these commitments must have come at a cost to her eight children; yet they were proud of her devotion to others in the community and have themselves grown up as people with a well-grounded social conscience. When they gathered around her in their Sturt Avenue home as Kath courageously prepared for her death on 17 August 1993, they hailed the enormous contribution this valiant woman had made to their family and to the life of Canberra.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 268 August 2011, p. x

Mick Gallagher

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It is not altogether clear how Augustine Albert Gallagher was transformed into Mick Gallagher, one of Canberra’s great characters who contributed mightily to our city for 62 years of the centenary we are about to celebrate.

Leading up to his time in Canberra, there were many transformations in Mick’s life from a childhood in a family of 10 children in Toogoolawah and Cooroy (Queensland) faced with the Great Depression, enlisting in the RAAF in World War II, there plying his trade as an electrician and giving expression to his prowess as an athlete.

At Mick’s funeral in 2008 his son, Michael, related how these events shaped Mick’s life. “From his father he acquired a deep sense of social justice, the collective power of the common man and the values of a democratic society. From his (converted Protestant) mother he learnt family values, Catholicism and religious and racial tolerance.

“In his working life he carried these values and represented the union in the interest of his fellow workers, particularly in his early days as an electrician.

“He maintained an undiluted allegiance to the Australian Labor Party and its ideals and aspirations for a free egalitarian society. He maintained his allegiance to the Catholic Church and became a tireless worker for the advancement of Catholic schools in Canberra.”

I first knew Mick Gallagher while he was working in the Department of Customs and Excise. I recall at one point during a power struggle in the Public Service Union, both the contending parties were vying to have Mick on their ticket because everyone saw him as a man of great integrity and beyond reproach.

Mick Gallagher and Gwen Raftery were married in Sydney in 1943 and at the end of World War II, first Mick, then Gwen and their sons, began life in Canberra in a pre-fab government house in 3^rd Street, Narrabundah. Alan Foskett’s recent book highlights the significance of this part of Canberra’s history and social fabric.

Eventually, their much-loved home became too small for a family which had grown to six children. So the Gallaghers moved to their new home in Telopea Park, Barton, in 1954. Ten years later, the family witnessed nearby a milestone in Canberra’s history with the filling of Lake Burley Griffin.

Mick’s contribution to Church and community was very much “hands on”. In fact he had very little patience for people who were “all talk and no action”.

His skills as an electrician saw him much in demand in an honorary capacity. Son Michael recalls, “Mick was volunteering his services to string the lights along the running tracks (at Manuka Oval) for the St Patrick’s Day Sports Carnival – a large event on the professional athletic circuit and a major fund-raiser for the Church and its schools. Little as we were, both under 10, Brian and I were seconded as apprentices in clicking the light bulbs into the bayonet sockets.”

The year the Gallaghers moved from Narrabundah to Barton was also the year that St Edmund’s College opened. Michael Gallagher was a foundation student and until youngest son, David, graduated in 1970 there was never a year without at least one Gallagher at the college.

There is splendid photo on the cover of the 1979 St Edmund’s Annual with Mick and a group of other proud hard-working fathers striding across the main oval. St Edmund’s was hailing the contribution they had made to the life of the college in its first 25 years.

As Mick’s boys began taking an interest in Australian Rules football, their good father from a rugby league background volunteered his services as a coach for the Manuka club. In preparing boys for an interschool carnival, Mick was impressed by a young lad who kicked the ball over Mick’s head. Mick asked “And what’s your name?” The response was “Alex”. He is now best known by his surname, Jesaulenko.

Mick’s two youngest sons, Terry and David, rewarded their father’s coaching deeds by becoming outstanding first grade players for Manuka. It is generally agreed that Terry, who kicked 11 goals in a game on three occasions, would have risen to greater heights if he had accepted offers to play in Melbourne rather than pursue his university studies in Canberra.

One of Mick’s many acts of kindness was to take Wally Wright to Australian Rules games. Wally, father of Fr Tommy Wright, had been a goal umpire in his day, but was by then stricken with blindness.

Mick used to give Wally a running commentary on the game and was amazed how later at the post-mortem at the Manuka Club, Wally was able to describe the highlights. It was bitterly ironic that Mick was to lose his sight in his last years.

In October 1993, I had the joy of celebrating Mass in St Christopher’s for Mick, Gwen and their family marking their 50^th wedding anniversary. It was not long afterwards that Mick lost his sight. Gwen’s devotion to Mick was total until she developed cancer which led to her untimely death.

Mick spent his last years in Villaggio Sant’Antonio in Page. Always interested in current affairs, he was then constantly up-to-date with the radio as his constant companion. His neighbour just across the corridor was his old friend, Bishop Alo Morgan. After the evening meal and the news, they recited the Rosary and had a whisky together.

God called Bishop Alo to his eternal reward in May 2008 and Mick the following September. Within a few months, Canberra had lost two of its most loved and admired citizens.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 269 September 2011, page 8.

Ursula Southwell

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Listeners to ABC Radio 666 in Canberra think nothing of the fact that three of the four radio hosts are female. But when Ursula Southwell performed such duties from 1942 – 46 for what was then 2CY it was rather exceptional for a woman to be heard in command of the air waves. Ursula was in fact one of the first female radio announcers in Australia.

Ursula Lynch was one of nine children born in Sydney where she attended St Vincent’s College, Potts Point. This afforded her the opportunity to study French, Latin, German and some Russian. After school she completed a steno/secretarial course which enabled her to work for the ABC in Sydney with Radio Australia short wave broadcasting.

When Ursula was transferred to Canberra in 1942, the ABC occupied a small studio in the Melbourne Building in London Circuit, Civic, above what is now the Charcoal Grill Restaurant. She boarded at the Hotel Civic and had a phone in her room (rather unusual in those days) in case an urgent broadcast had to be made from Canberra.

A fascinating interview with Ursula conducted by Rod Quinn on ABC 666 on 8 May 1995, can be accessed at www.tinyurl.com/6h3yteq. She recalled how 2CY was effectively a regional ABC station, taking most of its programs from 2FC and 2BL in Sydney. However, being the war years it played a big role in recording messages from Australia’s parliamentary leaders. Care had to be taken even in the selection of music lest a particular song or tune be substituted and played as a signal to the enemy.

In the course of her work, Ursula recorded messages from Prime Ministers, Menzies, Fadden, Curtin and Chifley. She shared with Rod Quinn the pride and joy in recording other notables such as Lord Reith, the Chairman of the BBC, Sir Charles Moses, General Manager of the ABC and Governor-General, the Duke of Gloucester.

Clearly the highlight of her career up to that point was the end of the War when there was dancing in the street in Civic on VE Day.

Ursula described Canberra in 1945 as a lovely country town and to the end of her days she saw Canberra as the “bush capital”. She told the story of how her fiancé, Malcolm George (Mack) Southwell, was droving a mob of sheep through Civic. He paused and let them graze for a while on City Hill as he visited Ursula in the ABC office on London Circuit for morning tea. Keeping control of the mob of sheep was no difficulty as Mack simply whistled orders to the sheep dogs from the open window of the upstairs office.

Ursula and Mack were married in 1947. Mack was part of a pioneering family of the Canberra region with connections to both St Ninian’s Presbyterian Church and the St John’s Anglican Church. He converted to Catholicism and played an active part in the St Vincent de Paul Society as well as participating in many community services.

Mack and Ursula lived the first eight years of their marriage at “Rosevale” Barton Highway Ainslie as it was then designated. Their home once stood where the North Lyneham shops are now located. Their first two children, Jane and John were born whilst there.In the mid 1950s, Mack drew a soldier settler’s block of land further out past Hall. Two more children, Robert and Simon, were added to the family at “Ginnagulla”.

Ursula continued to maintain her contact with social and church groups in Canberra. On one occasion she was loading up the car with trays of lamingtons and cream cakes. Having all the trays placed across the seat of the old Plymouth car, she quickly went back inside the house to collect her handbag before setting off for town. On her return to the car, she was greeted by “Tibby” the black pony displaying a snout white with icing sugar, cream and coconut and not a cake to be seen!

Ursula Southwell was a person of deep faith which expressed itself in personal and family prayer and a deep commitment to making the world a better place. This was part of her motivation in the Catholic Women’s League.

She was the first Archdiocesan President of the CWL serving from 1954 to 1956. Her big aim was to have the League spread outside Canberra. At the end of her term in 1956, the CWL had grown to five branches with 362 members. During 1960-61 she filled the position of National Vice-President during the period that Jean Reid was National President. In 1968, Ursula’s media skills were called on when she was appointed Publicity Officer. In 1974 she lobbied vigorously in a campaign to raise standards in the mass media.

Perhaps sensitized by her study of other languages Ursula had a particular passion for assisting European migrants and their families. This resulted in numerous picnics being held at “Ginnagulla” with numbers of migrants and their families joining in celebrating the Australian bush with barbeques, games, much fun and laughter.

She was part of the establishment of Daramalan College, playing a key role in the annual College Art Exhibition, which proved to be a significant fund raising activity for the burgeoning college.

Following Mack’s death in 1975, Ursula came to live in Belconnen taking part in parish and community life as well as supporting her adult children and their families.

She continued to drive almost to the end of her life. There is a youthful vibrancy in her voice in her 1995 interview with Rod Quinn and Ursula remained young at heart right up to her death on 1 September 2004.

Ursula Southwell would have loved to have been part of Canberra’s centenary celebrations as she epitomised the best of the spirit of Canberra.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 270 October 2011, page 8.

Jim Rochford, born 10 August 1913

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Alexander Rochford aged 22 arrived in Australia in 1863 from Bannow, County Wexford.  He walked from Melbourne to Queanbeyan to join his brother John at Yarralumla working on the property of Irishman Terence A. Murray.  They conducted a small leased farm there.  Alexander married Elizabeth Rolfe in 1872. By 1882 they moved with several children to Bedulluck near Hall ACT and developed a farm ‘Forest View’ from virgin bush.  The district contained many small farms for families such as McCarthy, Hibberson, McAuliffe, O’Rourke, Rolfe, Cavanagh, Ryan, Coulton, Blundell, who formed the nucleus of a Catholic community.  A son George Rochford married Alice Curran and developed ‘Forest View’ into a successful farm.  Their children were Zena (Coulton), Ronald, James, Bernard, Clarence, Kathleen (Curll) and Alma (Endean).  The boys grew up, hardened by farm work, being physically strong and self reliant.  Ron and Jim, at age 11 and 8 took a dray loaded with wheat over rough roads and creeks to Crago’s Mill at Yass (over 30 miles) to be milled.  They slept overnight under the dray and returned home next day with milled flour.  The children walked two miles to Glenwood Public School.  Jim left school aged 14 and got casual jobs at Jeir Station, the largest property nearby, but it was great Depression time so there was only ‘tucker’ provided, no cash for work done.  Then he joined a team of shearers working as a rouseabout in sheds through war torn NSW as far as Broken Hill.  He attended a course in Sydney for shearing machine ‘experts’.  Boarding in North Sydney, age 20 he walked each day to East Sydney over the new Harbour Bridge to save the 3d. fare.  Returning home, he rejoined the shearing team to care for the machinery and shears.  After some years he took over a declining blacksmith shop in 1938 and began to deal in agricultural requisites and motor vehicle repairs.  In 1939he joined the A.I.F., serving in Transport units in New Guinea.  On returning home to Hall, he expanded his business taking on agencies and dealerships for vehicles, refrigerators and household appliances.  With growing success, he purchased a farm of 1200 acres on Wallaroo Road, grazing up to 4000 sheep.

Jim with his brother Ron, played a major role in the Hall Agricultural Show which later developed into the Royal Canberra Agricultural Show.  Ron Rochford became for many years the public face of this event.  Meanwhile their brothers Bernard and Clarence joined the Police Force.  Bernard had a very successful police career, serving in the Northern Territory and finally was a Police Commissioner in the ACT.Clarrie stayed in NSW.

When the Little Company of Mary came to open Calvary, Jim wanted to do his best to help the sisters so he attended the first ‘auxiliary’ meeting, which he described as 70 women and one man.  Jim was appointed to an executive position and was forced to ponder financial matters.  In 1979 he decided to conduct an Art Show, an idea suggested by his artist friend Averil Muller.   For eight years he organised this event with the guidance of Averil.  They solicited top professional artists to exhibit works with outstanding success.  Jim developed skills as a picture framer which he continued to old age.  With increasing demands on his business, and art show politics and bureaucracy pressing him, he withdrew and the project collapsed, after raising thousands of dollars for Calvary.

Jim was active in local civic life promoting his village of Hall ACT to gain essential services such as reticulated water, electricity and sewerage, yet retaining its village atmosphere.  He was a long time member of Rotary.  He organised a Memorial as a tribute to ex World War 2 servicemen with the help of Rotary.  He published a family history ‘Sons of Wexford’ which is a valuable social record of pioneering rural ways of life.

Jim in later years wrote a history of St Francis Xavier Hall ACT church ‘Catholic Churches at Ginninderra & Hall’ (1985) and attracted helpers to renovate the church, to repair roof and windows, plaster and flooring plus landscaping and toilets.  The Rochford, Rolfe, Southwell, Rule, Murphy and Cavanagh families had served the small community for years, providing breakfast for the visiting priests, fund raising and maintenance.  The church centenary was celebrated in 2010 with Archbishop Coleridge as celebrant.

The church over the years has been attended by priests from Yass, Queanbeyan, Watson, O’Connor, Braddon and now Evatt.  It is much favoured as a source for weddings, enjoying spectacular views over farmland and distant mountains.  The pines planted decades ago give it a wonderful atmosphere and it is still a tribute to our pioneer Catholic families.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 271 November 2011, page 8.

Olive Mulholland

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It takes a formidable woman to keep four Archbishops on course. Olive Mulholland was such a person. Remembering that the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn came into being only in 1948 (previously it had been the Diocese of Goulburn), Olive began work in its service in 1950. At that time the Chancery was located in the presbytery behind Sts Peter and P aul’s Cathedral in Goulburn. Archbishop Terence McGuire was the first Archbishop and Monsignor Edward Favier the Vicar-General.

When the second Archbishop, Eris O’Brien, moved to Canberra in 1960, Olive was “part of the furniture”. Her home in Bonython Street, Downer was arguably the last street in north Canberra. She played a key part with Monsignor Favier, Fr George Weissel and Fr Eddie Bourke in establishing the Chancery in the Archbishop’s House in Canberra. Frs Adrian Cork and Paul Rheinberger would become part of the scene prior to Archbishop O’Brien’s retirement in 1967.

It should be remembered that office equipment in those days lacked the sophistication we take for granted today. Computers, faxes, even photocopiers were unheard of then. Olive laboured skillfully on a manual type-writer and produced the diocesan circulars on a gestetner machine. She also kept a watchful eye on the account books, but, most of all, acted as a very important and trusted person especially in relation to the priests of the Archdiocese. They recognized her great integrity and saw her love for the Church and the Archdiocese translated into doing whatever she could to help it carry out its mission of bringing the love of Christ to his people.

These were the days following the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) and there were monumental changes taking place in all sorts of ways. Olive was secure in her own faith and open to the adjustments which were needed in those times. Often she provided a shoulder to cry on for some who found the challenges difficult to handle.

Every Archbishop has his own particular style and personality, so when Thomas Cahill succeeded Eris O’Brien in 1967, Olive was working for a man who had very definite ideas and was probably more “hands on” than his predecessor in the running of the office. Olive Mulholland played an invaluable role in providing continuity and a great store of knowledge of the Archdiocese and the people and offices associated with it. She had the trust of the clergy and her own unthreatening way of communicating both to priests and bishops. A few months after his arrival, Archbishop Cahill chose another Goulburn person, Fr Ron Flack, as his secretary. He and Olive were a powerful combination bringing their experience, wisdom, good humour and executive skills to bear on the episcopate of Thomas Cahill. The Archbishop showed his gratitude to Olive by sending her on the inaugural Qantas one-stop flight to London. If Archbishop Cahill is often posthumously praised for the kindness he brought to his ministry as Archbishop, it should be acknowledged that Olive and Ron played important roles behind the scenes.

Fresh from three years study in Rome, I succeeded Fr Ron Flack in mid-1975 and greatly benefited from the gentle guidance provided by Olive. With the death of Archbishop Cahill in 1978, the leadership of the Archdiocese passed temporarily to Bishop Morgan who relied on Mrs Mulholland for background and advice.

Edward Bede Clancy, the fourth and last Archbishop Olive was to serve, came to Canberra at the beginning of 1979. Olive did three more years before deciding that full-time work was getting beyond her. She officially retired in February 1982 and was given the Papal award BENEMERENTI (well-done) in April 1982.

Olive Mulholland had a life outside her career, raising her three children, Terri, Robyn and Peter in Goulburn and being very much part of the life of the community in Canberra. She and her good friends, Iris Sloane and Flo Cobb, set up a women’s conference of the St Vincent de Paul Society in Dickson in the early 1960s with Olive maintaining her membership in the Society until failing health in 2003 necessitated her retirement. The Vincentian apostolate included home visitation, the Shelter in Turner, Ainslie Hostel, and visiting and supporting unmarried mothers and their babies in a women’s refuge and in the flats around Civic. As a Justice of the Peace, she was an advocate for people in all kinds of need.

Olive was also a member of the Catholic Women’s League for a time and active in other community work. She was awarded an Order of Australia medal (OAM) in 1999 for her work for the Church, the St Vincent de Paul Society and the community. Her home was always “open house” where visitors experienced her hospitality and sound advice. Olive had a special love for the trainee teachers at Signadou College. Eventually, she had to give up her trusty VW Beetle (now in the proud possession of her daughter, Terri). After independent living became impossible, this gentle but spirited lady spent her last days in Ginninderra Gardens in Page. Her death on 26 November 2006 marked the passing of one of Canberra’s great characters.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 272 December 2011, page 8.

Brother Don Gallagher

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Canberra is fortunate in its abundance of works of art not just in the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery but in a whole host of art-spaces with an appeal to connoisseurs of art and ordinary citizens alike. Local artists have made a huge contribution to such cultural richness.

Br Don Gallagher deserves to be counted among those painters who have given pleasure to large sections of Canberra’s population since his arrival here in 1967. His October 2011 retrospective exhibition 58 Years Behind The Brush was the culmination of a series of exhibitions which latterly have been held in his own studio at St Edmund’s College.

College historian Michael Moloney describes how it all came about. “In 1994 ex-student Tony Larobina noticed that Br Don didn’t have a suitable place to paint. He spoke to other Old Boys and the word soon spread. They came in their dozens to donate materials and their knowledge and labour to build, free of charge, his dream studio and gallery. In my experience, this is the greatest tribute that has ever been paid to any teacher by a group of his ex-students.”

Donald Gallagher was born in Warrnambool, Victoria, on 23 July, 1925. His blacksmith father, Daniel, and devoted mother, Jean, provided a loving atmosphere for their three children who would all ultimately follow a religious vocation, Don as a Christian Brother, Laurie as a priest and Imelda as a Sister of Mercy.

Don Gallagher’s years of formation which began in 1939 were at the Brothers’ training college at Strathfield in Sydney. Although a native Victorian, all of Don’s appointments were in New South Wales before he was posted to St Edmund’s College, Canberra. He got closest to home when he was appointed to Albury. It was there that he began to paint in 1953.

It was my good fortune to become live-in chaplain at St Edmund’s towards the end of 1967 and to share community life with Br Don and his Brothers until I was transferred in February 1971.

I witnessed first-hand his gentle nature and his natural rapport with students, enabling him to bring out the best in them. This was true in the fields of singing and music, sport and art, as well as in teaching the “Three Rs”. His students as well as his fellow teachers and parents were able to recognise that his deep faith informed all that he did and how he related to others.

Br Gallagher’s Folk Group was formed in 1968 from some of his primary school students, singing at functions at Parliament House, the Prime Minister’s Lodge, embassy gatherings and naturalisation ceremonies.

They took part in concerts and eisteddfods in Canberra, Goulburn and Albury. Michael Moloney reflects: “I never tired of listening to them. While the rich soaring voice of Robert Lucerne held audiences spellbound and moved them to tears, the vocal comedy of Paul Gleeson, Raymond Blewitt and Vincent Connors had them roaring with laughter. They were a remarkably talented group of boys, but they would, without exception, agree that the single factor that lifted them so far above the ordinary was Br Gallagher.”

It is no coincidence that 1967 was the first year of the St Edmund’s College annual magazine. Br Don’s photographic skills with his ability to capture the moment on top of the huge task of compiling a whole series of records and data ensured a brilliant magazine which would become a benchmark for other admiring colleges. The annual feature over a long period of “Ed Mundy’s Diary” provides an important chronicle of one aspect of Canberra’s social history.

Last year marked the end of Br Don’s time in Canberra as he retired to Charingfield Hostel in Waverley and completed the full circle of his life as a Christian Brother in Sydney where it began.

He has fond memories of his time in Canberra at St Edmund’s but also joining the Art Club in Canberra and making many good friends in the art world.

He remembers well his first exhibition at the Canberra Theatre Gallery and many subsequent ones in the St Edmund’s College Hall and, most fondly, those in his own gallery.

I have many recollections of people lining up on opening nights keen to get first pick of the beautiful paintings on offer. It should be noted that the proceeds of his paintings went to help less fortunate students have an education at St Edmund’s.

Br Don is grateful to his Provincial, Br McGlade, for allowing him at the end of 1974 to have some time in Italy and Spain, not only visiting some famous galleries but also doing some painting himself. Some of that was on display in the recent retrospective.

The cars people drive often say something about the owners. Many people will remember the little Austin A30 which Br Don drove for a long time. In fact, it had had a long life before his brother, Laurie, gave it to him.

It enabled him to travel to places like Goulburn, Tuross, Tumut and Young where he produced some beautiful paintings. When it could go on no longer, it was replaced by the old red van which was always a sign that Br Don was working inside the gallery.

There are no pretensions about Br Don Gallagher but his humility does not hide his wonderful gifts of which Canberra was the beneficiary for almost half of its history.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 273 February 2012, page 8.

Jean Reid

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Canberra in its first hundred years can be rightly proud of the educational opportunities offered to its students, the care for the strugglers in our community and the spirit of ecumenism among the Churches at times when elsewhere bigotry and secularism were the order of the day.

Jean Reid personifies the best of these “Canberra values”. Born into a Protestant family in Tenterfield NSW, Jean was inspired by her school-teacher father to follow in his profession but reacted to some aspects of her religious upbringing which she perceived as being too exclusive of lay-people in its decision making. Jean would later seek to right some of that same imbalance in the Catholic Church. She became a Catholic while she and her future husband, Jim, also a school-teacher, were courting. They were married in 1940 and would eventually have six (very talented) children.

Jean and Jim Reid moved to Canberra in 1954 after they had taught in a series of NSW schools. Jean recalls that there was a series of lucerne fields where Lake Burley Griffin adorns the city today. Jim was Science Master at Canberra High School while Jean taught at Turner Infants School. Although she was trained as a secondary teacher, Jean was asked to teach the infants because she could play the piano. Later she would be a very dedicated teacher of children with learning difficulties. She took five years off teaching after the birth of twins – her last born.

Joining the Catholic Women’s League, she admired the growth of the organisation under leadership displayed by strong women such as Mary Scholtens, Ursula Southwell and others. Jean was proud to note the contribution made to the CWL by vibrant country branches. Sheila Tilse’s history of the Catholic Women’s League in this Archdiocese describes Jean’s election as Archdiocesan President in 1958 in these terms: “Jean Reid was to prove herself one of the most capable women to head the CWL in Canberra and Goulburn. A convert, brought up in the Methodist faith, she was enthusiastic about the League and its work. Jean has been described as a ‘mover and shaker’ (borne out by the growth on the CWL in her time in office). Jean herself speaks of her hopes of finding a place for women in the Church beyond making cakes. She wanted her members to be interested in what was going on in the world, with Catholic women seeing their role in the wider society.” The American Catholic activist, Dorothy Day, was a source of inspiration to Jean. She also speaks of the great encouragement received from Archbishop Eris O’Brien.

Jean Reid became National President of the CWL in 1960 and the following year led an Australian delegation to Rome for a meeting of WUCWO (World Union of Catholic Women’s Organizations). She is pictured with fellow Canberra delegates, Joyce Purcell and Joan Street, after an audience with Pope John XXIII. All this happened on the eve of the Second Vatican Council which was to confirm so many of Jean Reid’s hopes for the Church and the world.

Around this time, a new Catholic college, Daramalan, was about to open in Canberra, staffed by the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart. Its headmaster, Fr John McMahon MSC, “headhunted” Jean Reid for its foundation staff in 1962 and when she completed her time there twenty years later she was the only remaining original member of staff.

Fellow pioneer teacher, Fr Fred Ross, writes “My memories of Jean during the early days of Daramalan are all pleasant ones. Jean was well respected by all students, particularly by those she called ‘slow learners’. She seems to have brought out the best in them, and, as a result, she saw a good number of them gain confidence in themselves and, later on, contribute positively to society.” Jean herself saw teaching children with learning disabilities as the most satisfying aspect of her life in education. People from around Australia and beyond came to observe her ground-breaking work in special education.

Originally published in Catholic Voice, 274 March 2012, page 8.

Giuseppe Cataldo

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No account of Canberra’s 100 year history would be complete without acknowledgement of the many post-World War II European migrants who began a new life in the developing national capital. Giuseppe Cataldo is an outstanding example of a “New Australian” whose hard work and decency helped shape his much-loved adopted city.

But it wasn’t always easy, especially in the beginning. There must have been times when Giuseppe Cataldo felt like the fictional Nino Culotta in They’re a Weird Mob. Part of the attraction to Canberra on Giuseppe’s part was that it was the capital of Australia. Giuseppe had served in the police force in Rome and while not expecting to find ‘La Bella Roma” in Canberra, he was shocked to find the Bush Capital more akin to a larger country town when he arrived in 1957.

Not the Giuseppe was averse to country life. He was born in Chiusano San Domenico in southern Italy and enjoyed living and working on the family farm. But his sense of adventure got him thinking about emigrating. No hasty decisions were made. After serving 2 ½ years in the police force, he returned to the farm, married his beloved Ida in 1952 and rejoiced in the birth of his two sons, Emilio and Angelo.

The time seemed right in 1957 when he set off for Australia to prepare for Ida and the boys to follow. By then he had begun to hone his skills as a hairdresser, but it was as a carpenter that he was allowed to migrate to Australia. He arrived with just a suitcase in hand. Son, Emilio, describes his beginnings in Canberra: “Dad spent his first night camped beneath a makeshift tent at the upper Cotter Dam. His first night fright was mistaking a wombat for some type of wild hairy pig. At smoko time his entrepreneurial skills came into play. The labourer would turn a dynamite box upside down to do haircuts. He also bought tobacco, chocolate and alcohol in Canberra and re-sold it at the camp for an extra shilling for additional income.”

From the Cotter Giuseppe Cataldo moved to Capital Hill Hostel which provided very basic accommodation for other men in a similar position to himself. Little did he or his mates imagine that their hostel would be the site of Parliament House from 1988.

There were lots of blood, sweat and tears for Giuseppe in those years – missing his family (to whom he wrote twice a week no matter how tired he was), working hard at his day job, doing house-calls after hours on his push bike all over Canberra cutting hair and attending night school learning English.

But from Emilio’s account it was all worthwhile. “In March 1961 when Dad felt he had saved enough and was certain of Australia as his home, he sent for his family and had a house in Yarralumla waiting for us. What a wonderful place to start for Mum with friendly Australian families around and a large community of Italians where they forged long and lasting friendships.”

Ida and Giuseppe were blessed with another son, Aldo, in 1963 and daughter, Anna, the joy of their life in 1966. In 1965 the Cataldo family hairdressing business, catering for both men and women, began in Marcus Clarke Street in Civic. Giuseppe was determined to give it a distinctive continental character and with his warm and engaging personality he built up a wonderful rapport with his clients.

As the children got older they grew into the business. Emilio and Angelo began by taking turns in sweeping-up the salon and going on to become national champions in their profession as hairdressers. Aldo used his accountancy skills supporting the business and Anna not only worked in the salon but taught hairdressing at a tertiary level. In 1984, another salon was opened in Northbourne Avenue, eventually subsuming the Marcus Clarke Street operation.

Giuseppe Cataldo’s eminent skills in his profession, his great love of his work, his personal interest in his clients, his goodness and fairness to his staff and his simple love of life guaranteed success. Among his clients were four of Canberra’s Archbishops – Eris O’Brien, Thomas Cahill, Edward Clancy and Francis Carroll. All of them had a great fondness for their trusted barber, enjoying his wit and wisdom and gaining some valuable practice in the Italian language. The same could be said of the politicians, lawyers, members of the police force and a whole cross-section of Canberra’s population who were among his appreciative clients.

In the late 1990s, Giuseppe Cataldo gradually eased into retirement, enjoying the family home in Forrest with Ida and the company of children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren until his death in December 2010. He left not only a thriving hairdressing salon but a proud legacy for Canberra to celebrate as part of its one hundredth birthday.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 275 April 2012, page 8.

Sister Clare Slattery

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No history of Catholic education in Canberra would be complete without reference to the key role played by the diminutive but formidable figure of Good Samaritan Sister Clare Slattery. Founding principal of Catholic Girls High School, Braddon, (now Merici College) from 1959 to 1964, she filled a similar task in the foundation of Catholic Girls High School, Griffith, (now St Clare’s College) from 1965 till her retirement in 1975. Her pioneering work in these capacities had a profound influence not only on the hundreds of students passing through her care but on the direction that Catholic secondary education would take in the national capital.

Good Samaritan historian, Margaret Walsh, gives the background to a great enterprise. “In July 1958, the Archbishop of Canberra and Goulburn, Dr Eris O’Brien, presided over a meeting with major superiors of six different congregations of religious women to finalise individual approaches he’d made to them for the staffing of a new central secondary school for girls in the city of Canberra. The building of the new school was already well under way and these superiors had agreed to staff it with religious from each of their congregations: Brigidines, Presentations, Sisters of St Joseph, Goulburn Sisters of Mercy, Ursulines and Sisters of the Good Samaritan. The meeting unanimously voted to have a Good Samaritan as the new school’s leader, since the Good Samaritan congregation had pioneered Catholic education in Canberra in 1927 and sustained it there , single-handedly, until 1954. The meeting was in July and in November 1958 the Good Samaritan superiors appointed Sr
Clare Slattery as Headmistress of the Canberra school.”

In 1927, the year before the designation of Canberra as a parish, St Christopher’s School was opened at Manuka with the first principal being Mother M. Dympna. Her name is recorded today below the altar in St Christopher’s Cathedral. Until the opening of St Edmund’s College in 1954, St Christopher’s School catered for girls and boys through to the Leaving Certificate. Prior to Archbishop O’Brien’s initiative, the Good Samaritan Sisters had been considering establishing a girls secondary college at Red Hill.

Sister Clare had been recognised in her congregation as an outstanding talent leading to her being made responsible for the formation of the young Good Samaritan Sisters. She was always considered to be ahead of her times. Margaret Walsh writes of the pivotal role Sister Clare played for twenty-five years in the Good Samaritan training college. She could well have been describing Sister Clare’s relationship with her students at Braddon and Griffith when she wrote about her impact on the trainee sisters. “She had an interest in the one who was different - the social misfit, the intellectual, the non-intellectual, the questioner, the sister who hated teaching, the one secretly grieving over a family crisis she could not share. Each of these found understanding, sound psychological and spiritual advice, and increased confidence from Clare’s practical wisdom and on-going support.”

As college chaplain at Catholic Girls High School Griffith from 1966 to 1971, I was privileged to have had some personal insights into this remarkable character. It would have to be said that Sister Clare put the fear of God into her students with her no-nonsense approach but she also had a heart for the strugglers. She would often take me aside suggesting how I might come to the aid of one of the students who was in some sort of strife. I remember on one occasion when one of the younger girls sought my intercession when she was in trouble with Sister Clare after a complaint from another teacher. When I told Sister Clare that I believed the student was being unfairly judged, she listened to what I had to say without comment. Later the teenager told me that her headmistress (then in her late sixties) had called her in and apologised to her. To me that was just another sign of Sister Clare’s greatness. But she was no push-over. I recall another occasion, in Manuka, when I was approached in the street after school by three likeable rascals who had been temporarily suspended by Sister Clare. (I think smoking may have been the crime.) Just as we were deep in conversation, Sister Clare and Sister Consilio drove by on their way home to the convent . Sister Consilio later told me Sister Clare had commented “There they are trying to get Father Power’s help. That won’t get them out of trouble!”

Sister Clare set very high standards for her students and for her staff but she never lost sight of their individuality. She challenged the brighter students to realise their potential but she was also aware that not everyone is similarly gifted. She helped her students to have pride in themselves and to make the best of their opportunities. She once wrote: “No plan of education can be judged by its results on a girl at the end of her school career.... The value of any particular education should be considered when its products have reached maturity. It is what girls are like in their thirties that matters much more than what they are like in their teens.”

Many of Sister Clare’s ex-students have made outstanding contributions to the life of Canberra in the fields of law, medicine, nursing, the public service and journalism, but it has been particularly in the leadership of Catholic education in the nation’s capital that Sister Clare’s protégés have blossomed. Among her ex-students are Moira Najdecki (nee Jeffrey), Archdiocesan Director of Catholic Education, and Rita Daniels and Catherine Rey (nee Meere), Principals of Daramalan and Merici Colleges. Professional and dedicated lay leadership in Catholic education had its beginnings in Canberra under Sister Clare as an outstanding model for women in authority. Many years after this great lady’s death in 1980 her influence lives on in those she inspired in a myriad of ways to develop their God-given talents.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 276 May 2012, page 8.

Gerry Kilmartin

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Gerald Joseph Kilmartin hailed from Sydney where he was born at the beginning of the twentieth century, but he will be long remembered as a favourite son of Canberra. He had qualified as a fitter and turner when he arrived in Canberra in 1925. He returned to Sydney to marry Maud Elizabeth Kelly on 13 February 1926 after which Canberra was to become their family home-town.

Like so many newcomers to Canberra, Gerry Kilmartin was in for a shock. Son, John, describes those beginnings: “ My father told me that on his initial arrival, he was met at Queanbeyan by Matt Campbell (later of Bungendore) and then walked out to Molonglo Camp and single men’s quarters where he first experienced a Canberra winter, sleeping in a tin shed on a rough bed with one thin blanket. He reckoned it was the coldest night he had ever spent. The Molonglo Camp was sited where Bunnings hardware presently stands at Fyshwick.”

By the time Gerry brought his new bride back to the area, he had a flat for them to occupy in Queanbeyan. Shortly after, they moved to Causeway which was the starting point for many of the national capital’s pioneering families. Monsignor Alexander McGilvray’s history of early Canberra, The Hallowed High Adventure , names some such Catholic families: the Kilmartins, Bourkes, Gowings, Noonans, Kellys, Malones, Peads, Scotts, Dogans and McAppions.

Part of my 2010 Canberra Day Oration reads: “Gerry Kilmartin, a great family man, who went on to become an astute entrepreneur in Canberra, cut his teeth in Causeway. Significantly, from the outset he was a leading figure in the St Vincent de Paul Society whose members, along with the Salvation Army, cared for the poor in Causeway as well as in the rest of Canberra.”

Monsignor McGilvray elaborates on Gerry’s sterling qualities: “For over forty-five years, he was destined to play a leading part in Catholic affairs. Like so many of his time, he became one of Father Haydon’s band of dedicated parishioners resolved to work for the spiritual and material advancement of the Church. In the small Catholic community of those days, an infectious spirit of devotion to a cause seemed to inspire every individual. Soon after his arrival, Gerry Kilmartin became an active member of the St Vincent de Paul Society......There were many needy families at the Causeway in those days, and Father Haydon managed somehow to collect food and clothing at Queanbeyan for distribution in the Federal capital (remembering that Canberra was still part of Queanbeyan parish until 1928). In a quiet and unostentatious way, Gerry and his friend, Terry Simonds, did the rounds of Causeway, locating those in need and distributing what Father Haydon had gathered.”

John Kilmartin reports that his mother, Maud, attended as a guest the opening of the first Parliament House in 1927 and in 1988 at the invitation of Prime Minister, Bob Hawke, the current seat of Government. Gerry could not attend the 1927 ceremony because he was busy working that day helping to put in the place the domed roof, which he had helped to build, for the Mt Stromlo Observatory.

There was a long-standing interest in horse racing on both Gerry and Maud’s side of the family, so it is not surprising that Gerry was part of the formation of St Patrick’s Racing Club at Tuggeranong on the McCormack family property. Daughter, Anna Vincent, tells how her father was approached by Mr Sim Bennett to instigate what was to become the ACT Jockey Club. “Dad did the background work and paperwork, after visiting the AJC in Sydney to establish the Club and allow it to race under the auspices of the AJC. Our mother was the de facto secretary prior to the appointment of Mr George O’Neill who was the front man.” In typical fashion, Gerry then stepped back and assumed a simple membership role.

People who knew Gerry Kilmartin remember him as a man of great kindness. When he found out that the Good Samaritan Sisters were being subjected to the extremes of Canberra’s winter he took steps to provide heating for the convent with the help of his plumber brother-in-law Jack Kelly. Once the Kilmartins moved to their property at Mugga Mugga, they were providing produce for the Sisters. One of their daughters, Loretta, would become a Sister of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart after attending St Christopher’s School along with her five sisters and brother, John.

When the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary arrived in Canberra in the 1960s to establish Marymead, Gerry and Maud Kilmartin were on hand again to help the Sisters and the vulnerable children they were caring for. Anna Vincent speaks of her father sending a weekly sheep or lamb from the abattoirs to the butcher for delivery to Marymead as well as providing boxes of fruit and vegetables. After Gerry’s death in 1970, Maud continued to be involved with the Marymead auxiliary and for many years helped count the money raised from the walkathon.

During my seminary holidays in the 1960s, I did some work for Jim O’Malley, manager of Thomas W Green’s Wool and Skin buyers. Part of my work with Jim’s son, James, took us to the Canberra Abattoirs then owned by Gerry and John Kilmartin.

There could not be a better summary of a great life than that provided by John Kilmartin. “Gerry Kilmartin was a pioneer of the new city of Canberra, being involved in its early construction and in community and church activities. He was a lecturer and instructor at Canberra Technical College especially to servicemen in the war years. He prospered as a farmer, grazier and meat wholesaler. He was a great character, absorbing raconteur, generous to all, and in his commercial career, a mover and shaker despite being always short of resources. He is remembered with much affection.”

Originally published in Catholic Voice 277 June 2012, page 12.

Kath Scott

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SCOTTS CROSSING is the name given to the street which runs through the Canberra Centre from Cooyong Street to Bunda Street in Canberra city. The street is clearly named after the original SCOTTS CROSSING which before Lake Burley Griffin served as a secondary bridge across the Molonglo River a little downstream from today’s Kings Avenue Bridge. It led up to St John’s Church. It was named after the pioneering Scott family into which Kathleen Maher married in 1930. Kath’s husband, Frank Scott, was the youngest in a family of 13 children who farmed in the area around Scotts Crossing from the 1860s.

Kath herself belonged to a legendary Braidwood district family, born on 22 August 1900 to William and Elizabeth Maher (nee Lyons). Visitors to Reidsdale today can visit the site of the cheese factory where members of the Maher family and others delivered their dairy produce.

Son, Kevin, describes Kath’s growing years: “Kath was the third of ten children. She spent an idyllic childhood, although a hard-working one, helping both on the farm and in the home with her younger siblings. Kath’s early life, nurtured in her loving family, set up her life-long philosophy of ‘love of God, love of family and love of neighbour’. Kath’s 8km commute to Reidsdale Public School was often on foot or on horseback, the long-suffering horse often carrying two or three siblings at a time on an adventurous trek over creeks and paddocks.”

Frank and Kath’s courtship between Canberra and Reidsdale was made possible through Frank owning a motor vehicle.  (Contrary to Monsignor McGilvray’s suggestion in The Hallowed High Adventure that Frank Scott drove an unreliable T-model Ford, I have it on good authority that Frank drove some very admirable automobiles and that a Buick was among them!)After their marriage in the Reidsdale church, like so many of Canberra’s identities, Kath and Frank began their married life in Causeway. They only remained there a year before moving to nearby Wentworth Avenue in Kingston, but they never lost their affection for this close-knit community, regularly attending Mass in St Therese’s after its opening in 1948.

Kath and Frank Scott were blessed with four children, Maureen, Kevin, Shirley and Frank, all of whom attended St Christopher’s School in Manuka. I had the good fortune to be a classmate at St Christopher’s of son, Frank, through whom I was introduced to the whole family, often coming from Queanbeyan to spend weekends with them. I recall us tending to Frank’s horses near Scotts Crossing and being involved in many adventures with my intrepid mate. I often tell the story of one occasion when Kath was unwell and I gathered with the family as we knelt around the bed to recite the rosary. When it came to young Frank’s turn to lead a decade, kneeling at the foot of the bed, he nonchalantly counted the ten Hail Marys on Kath’s toes!

Kevin recalls that Kath remained in her Wentworth Avenue home until two weeks before her death aged 96. Her devoted husband, Frank, had died in 1970. I can verify the description Kevin gives of his mother’s life: “Kath led a full and active life, involved with her family, extended family, friends and the church. In Father Haydon’s time as parish priest, he was a regular visitor to the Scott family home. Kath rode a bike well into her sixties and was a keen tennis player, playing regularly at the Kingston Tennis Club. Kath was an active and long-time member of the Catholic Women’s League.

“Kath became a catechist after Frank’s death and was devoted to the children she taught for a period in excess of 25 years. Her philosophy of love and service to others was evidenced by her opening her home to children in need. During holiday periods she would sometimes have young children from church homes or from families who were suffering hardship. On one occasion, Kath had a little fellow who was a bit of a terror. When heading off home at the end of the holidays, Kath pleaded with him to try to work hard at school and be well-behaved to which he replied in all seriousness ‘All right, I’ll be very trying’.

“In her late eighties, Kath was delighted by the birth of her two youngest grandchildren. Still being fit and healthy she enjoyed looking after them and delighted in the occasional ‘sleepover’. Being a daily communicant, Kath would often take these youngest grandchildren by bus to St Christopher’s for Mass. This was often followed by a walk through Telopea Park to play on the swings. Her youngest grand-daughter was known to remark that with her Nan, she had attended more funerals than all her peers put together.”

In her later years, it was a great joy for Kath to have not only her four children and their families in Canberra, but also to enjoy the company of the three remaining siblings, brother Harold, and sisters, Hannah and Ellen. Hannah, known as Sister Mark of the Little Company of Mary, was at one time Provincial and played a key part in the establishment of Calvary Hospital in Bruce. She died in 2007 aged 101. The remaining family member, Ellen Taylor, was beautifully portrayed in March 2011 as a one hundred year old representing inspirational women on the 100^th anniversary of International Women’s Day.

After her marriage and arrival in Canberra in 1930, Kath Scott and her family witnessed much of the early growth of the nation’s capital. Kath’s deep faith, her courage in times of hardship and her generosity of spirit are an inspiration to all Canberrans who love their city and strive for the betterment of its citizens. 

Originally published in Catholic Voice 278 July 2012, page 8.

Father Tommy Wright

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Ordained to the priesthood in St Christopher’s, Canberra, in July 1954, Fr Tommy Wright enjoyed his first six years of priestly ministry in Goulburn, Braidwood and Temora and is still remembered in those parishes as an enthusiastic young priest.

The people of Braidwood recall his prowess in the local rugby league team. But his return to his home-town of Canberra in 1961 as the first full-time chaplain to Canberra Community Hospital saw a blossoming of his many talents.

Born in Canberra in November 1931, Tom’s family lived in Leichhardt Street, Kingston, not far from his father Wally’s place of employment, the Government Printing Office, and a 15-minute walk to St Christopher’s School , Manuka, where Tom did all his primary schooling before winning a bursary to St Joseph’s College, Hunters Hill, in Sydney.

Among his classmates were future Governor-General William Deane and fellow priest Adrian Cork. While St Christopher’s went through to the Leaving Certificate in those days, the Good Samaritan Sisters often coached the brighter students for scholarships to go to boarding school.

Nurses, doctors, patients and cleaning staff at Canberra Hospital witnessed the young priest’s tireless dedication and Tom himself gained new insights into people especially in times of suffering and struggle.

It was around this time that he became a familiar figure around Capital Hill and Hillside hostels where he proved to be such a good friend to the “New Australians” battling to find their way in a new country and a new environment. He showed the same brotherly spirit to the migrant chaplains who “shared digs” with him at the Archbishop’s House.

As a chaplain to the Young Christian Workers, he was very much at home with their method of “See, Judge and Act”. He saw the need to stay close to people and to learn from them while ministering to them.

When I joined him as a newly ordained priest in 1966, he gave me example and advice which has stood me in good stead for my ministry as priest and bishop. Many other priests of my generation share that same debt of gratitude to him. Most of us found it hard to keep up with him and Tommy was the first to admit that patience was not his strong suit.

Fr Wright was administrator of St Patrick’s Parish, Braddon, from 1969 to 1979 in what was one of the most vibrant periods of the inner city parish’s history. Its previous parish priest, Mgr Edward Favier, had set up good structures and in those years following the Second Vatican Council, there was energetic involvement of lay people.

While being an effective pastor in Braddon, Fr Wright continued to have his finger on the pulse of what was happening in the wider community. His local knowledge meant that he had a wide range of contacts which enabled him to have the best help available for those in need.

It was during this time that he became more involved on a part-time basis with Catholic Social Services which had begun under the leadership of Fr Barney Lynch. Mrs Ethel McGuire of ACT Welfare and Tommy proved to be a formidable pair in confronting many of the social issues facing the Canberra community. Prof Pat Pentony was also a much valued colleague and advisor. When Archbishop Edward Clancy arrived in Canberra at the beginning of 1979, Fr Wright prevailed on him to raise the profile of Catholic Social Services by appointing him as the first full-time director.

In a 50-year history of Centacare, published in 2007, we read, “Fr Wright actively lobbied government and became a major driving force in expanding and increasing funding for the Catholic Social Services program. In the late 1970s, he was a pivotal figure in refugee resettlement, especially the Vietnamese resettlement movement... Fr Wright was a regular face at Old Parliament House during question time and made himself known to the more powerful figures in the ACT community.” I might add that many such people were keen to make themselves known to him because they recognised the experience and expertise he had in so many aspects of community life.

At the time of his death, his good friend, Graham Downie, listed in The Canberra Times some of the areas which benefited from this great champion of the vulnerable. “Organisations with which he served included the ACT Council of Social Service, the ACT Council of the Ageing, and the ACT Social Justice Taskforce. He was also spiritual director of St Vincent de Paul in Canberra for 25 years. At Braddon he was chairman of the City Health Centre. He was the first chairman of the Marymead board of management and a member of the ethics committee of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.” He confessed to Graham Downie that his time at Catholic Social Services was the most satisfying of his priestly life.

The Vietnamese community particularly hold him in great affection. He was often at the airport to welcome personally some of the refugees for whom he had inspired an impressive network of parish refugee resettlement programs.

This enabled personal friendships to be established for the new arrivals and practical help which allowed the newcomers to become well integrated into Canberra and the Australian way of life. He proudly told Graham Downie that within six weeks, 43 families had been settled in 22 of the Archdiocese’s country parishes and every Canberra parish had settled two or three families. Most of those people have gone on to become excellent Australian citizens.

Although not on the same grand scale, he reached out in similar fashion to newcomers from Poland, El Salvador, Croatia and other nations.

When after a year-long battle with cancer, Fr Tom Wright died on 5 December, 1994, aged 63, Canberra lost one of its favourite sons who had mightily enhanced the status of our city.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 279 August 2012, page 8.

Edith Dickinson

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A significant part of Canberra’s social history is the Kingston Guest House which was bounded by Kennedy, Eyre and Leichhardt Streets and was originally built in 1926 as the Printers’ Quarters and provided family accommodation. When it became the Kingston Guest House it catered for single men who in the main worked at the Government Printing Office or the Post Office.

When I came to St Christopher’s Parish as a newly ordained priest in 1966, Kingston was part of my “beat” and at that time Edith Dickinson was well established as manager of the Guest House which by then was open to male boarders irrespective of where they worked. I had an earlier indirect connection with Edith whose daughter, Dell, was a classmate at St Christopher’s School throughout our primary schooling. Dell was the youngest of thirteen children.

Edith Dickinson was a formidable lady, no stranger to hard work. She had come to Canberra with her husband Stan in the 1920s. Like so many of their contemporaries, they began their life in the national capital in Causeway. As their family grew, the Dickinsons moved to their own home in Dawes Street, Kingston opposite Kingston Oval, home of the Eastlake (Aussie Rules) Football Club. Several of the Dickinson boys played for Eastlake and Edith and Stan were strong supporters of the Club.

Frank Boyle has fond memories of his three year stint at the Kingston Guest House in the late 1940s. “Edith Dickinson helped at the Kingston Guest House from at least 1944 when it was managed by Neil Hussey and Les (Bluey) Lane until 1948 with Mr and Mrs Don Kennett managing 1948-49. Mrs Dickinson took over in her own right from 1949 until the late 1960s. Mrs Dickinson kept a motherly eye on the younger guests and tended to them when they were ill. She often packed them a special lunch, for example, ham, instead of basic sandwich fillings which was very much appreciated. Mrs Dickinson supervised the serving of meals, with guests lining up outside the kitchen. To my knowledge, she never missed a meal – breakfast, lunch or dinner. Shift workers were especially catered for with meals put aside for them. Mrs Dickinson was helped in serving meals and in servicing the rooms by two of her daughters, Betty and Dell, and youngest son, Don, who often took meals with the guests.”

Dell remembers her mother working long hours, commencing at 5am with the lighting of the wood stoves and ending about 8pm with the washing up. Dell, too, attests to her mother’s kindness to her boarders. One of her guests couldn’t pay his week’s board so she accepted his offer of a painting he had done of the historic St John’s Church in Reid. Dell still has it in her possession. Another guest on one occasion offered in lieu of board a tray he had made.

When I decided to include Edith Dickinson in this series of “Canberra’s Catholics”, I told Dell that her mother would be the only one in the series who was a non-practising Catholic. Dell corrected me “She was non-churchgoing Catholic, but she practised her faith in the charity which was so important in her life.”

Working long hours, seven days a week made it difficult for Edith to get to Mass and it was not helped by the fact that husband Stan was not well disposed to the Catholic Church. Dell is grateful to their next door neighbour in Dawes Street, Mrs Stella Somes, for enabling her mother and herself to maintain some tenuous links with the Catholic Church and for the fact that she was a mother figure to her in her own mother’s absence. Dell recalls Edith occasionally giving Stella money to put on the plate for her at St Christopher’s. Stella’s younger son, Michael, future Canberra magistrate, was also a classmate at St Christopher’s throughout primary school. Michael Somes remembers Edith Dickinson as a hard-working and extremely charitable woman. One of Michael’s vivid memories is that “she would deliver to us from time to time a large tin of pure white dripping, which I must say was very tasty spread on toast with salt and pepper.”

The Dickinsons never owned a car and were never flush with money. On a good week when all the bills were paid at the Guest House, Edith and Stan would celebrate with a meal at Happy’s Chinese restaurant in Queanbeyan, there being no Chinese restaurant in Canberra at the time. Without a car, they would need to organise a lift home after catching the bus into Queanbeyan.

Born in 1900, Edith was still living in her home in Dawes St, Kingston when she died in 1974. She was diagnosed with cancer in 1972 and given only three months to live. However, her twin grandchildren, Nadine and Scott, were born in that year and Edith announced her determination to live to see them walk.

As Canberra prepares to celebrate its centenary, Edith Dickinson’s strong work ethic, her great kindness and charity and her down-to-earth simple goodness are examples of some of the sterling qualities that have given our city its unique character.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 280 September 2012, page 8.

John Buckingham

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“Dr John Buckingham was one of the ACT’s most respected surgeons. Under his guidance, Calvary Hospital became a leader in breast-cancer surgery.

“John Buckingham has left a lasting clinical legacy in the way he treated his breast-cancer patients with dignity and compassion. He is also remembered as someone who supported his theatre staff in their professional development while regarding them warmly as people and friends.

“In the Australia Day 2012 Honours List, John Buckingham was posthumously appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in recognition of his services to medicine.”

Thus reads the inscription on the ACT Honour Walk into which John was inducted in May 2012. In 2010, the gentle self-effacing doctor was named ACT Senior Citizen of the Year in recognition of his outstanding service to medicine.

Just a month before John Buckingham’s death aged 63 on 29 March, 2011, Canberra Times journalist Sally Pryor wrote a major feature on Canberra’s much-loved surgeon.

“He pioneered the sentinel node mapping technique which enables diagnosis of lymph node involvement with breast cancer diagnosis.

“He was one of the first to show the value of CT scans in the early diagnosis of appendicitis both here and overseas.

“But he is best known in Canberra for the way he looks after his patients, involving himself in their care in the years after treatment.

“A life-long Catholic, he said he had always seen the way he practised medicine as integral to his faith.

“ ‘I think people wonder how I do what I do. I went into medicine because I felt that it’s not just being a doctor and diagnosing. It sounds corny, but I believed in it. I think it’s a way of life, it’s looking after people and part of that is my faith,’ he said.

“Born in Melbourne, he graduated in medicine and surgery from the University of Sydney in 1971 and went on to train in general surgery at the prestigious Mayo Clinic in America.

“He returned to Australia and joined the staff of Canberra’s newly opened Calvary Hospital in 1979 and later became a specialist breast surgeon for the ACT region.”

David Buckingham, delivering the eulogy at his brother’s funeral, spoke of the way John’s religious beliefs informed everything he did.

“An enduring feature of John’s life was his faith. It ran deep. It gave him a strength and a clarity of view that was both abiding and ever present.

“John regarded the Church as an extension of his family. It was his community and when those in the Church talk of the ‘ecclesia’ as being the community of the faithful, John embraced that in every dimension.

“In his practice as a doctor, John was not only a good and competent and extraordinarily careful surgeon, he was also one who empathised and engaged with his patients in a way that ultimately saw them come to regard him in almost saintly terms.

“There was never too much that John could do for a patient – including his now famous ‘bosom buddies’ – but it was his ability to listen and to communicate in the simplest, most sensitive and totally honest way that his patients so deeply appreciated. He was a great doctor!”

His surgeon colleagues, Drs Michael Gillespie and Stephen Deane, wrote for the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons. “The development of a locally based graduate medical program, first as the Canberra Clinical School of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Sydney, and then later as the ANU Medical School allowed John to expand his interest in clinical teaching to students, and as the general surgical training program of RACS expanded, to registrar training as well.

“He excelled in his teaching role, and his elevation on retirement to Clinical Associate Professor pleased him greatly.

“John was a strong contributor to the Australian and New Zealand Chapter of the American College of Surgeons (ACS). He served as chapter secretary for many years and, at the time of his death, was president of the chapter and a member of the board of governors of the ACS, representing fellows in Australia and New Zealand. He made particular contributions in establishing the annual American College of Surgeons lecture at the RACS annual scientific congress, the ANZ side of an exchange travelling scholarship between the RACS and the ACS, a travelling scholarship for RACS trainees to visit the annual ACS clinical congress, and the continuing financial security of the chapter.”

When John became aware of his pancreatic cancer diagnosis, he asked me to walk the final journey with him and Sue.

Sue was not only his devoted wife and mother of their four children, James, Peter, Kate and Michael, but an integral part of John’s medical practice, sharing the same outstanding dedication to their patients.

It was an inspiration for me to witness the mutuality of their love through which John and his family supported each other as they prepared for John’s death.

A great number of Catholic doctors have made outstanding contributions to the Canberra community in its 100 years history. John Buckingham stands tall among them.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 281 October 2012, page 8.

Margaret Lyons and the Morrison Family

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When Margaret Lyons died aged 92 in 1998, she failed to reach the new millennium, but she and the other members of her Morrison family were an integral part of the history of Canberra, whose centenary we are about to celebrate.

Margaret’s husband, Les Lyons, writing in the Canberra Historical Journal in September 1974 details the Morrison family’s place in Canberra’s history. Margaret’s parents, John and Elizabeth, built up the well-known station property of “Tralee”.

Margaret was the third of 10 children, the eldest of whom, Isabel, was to become Sr Mary Stanislaus in the Sisters of Mercy. The oldest and the youngest sons, John and Vivian, were to become notable priests in the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn.

Three of Margaret’s brothers, Edmund, Francis and Patrick died in accidents on the land while twin brothers, Bernard and Leo, were prominent local identities. If Margaret’s younger sister Claire were still alive, her claim to fame would be in her being the grandmother of Michael Maguire, the successful coach of the South Sydney Rabbitohs. (A little irony, there, as Michael’s forebears spent a deal of time hunting rabbits!).

Frank Boyle gave the eulogy at the funeral of Margaret Lyons. He spoke of Margaret being born in 1905 at Bulga Creek when her parents were living in a slab hut at “The Angle” some distance from Tharwa.

Frank goes on to relate how her rich life unfolded: “Margaret’s earliest years were spent in the bush at ‘The Angle’. One story Margaret was fond of telling was how her little mother used to wrap all the young children tightly in one blanket to sleep in order to protect them from brown snakes which were abundant. Imagine the excitement of a trip to Queanbeyan by horse and buggy.

“When the growing family moved to ‘Old Tralee’, Margaret soon joined her sister and brother at Tuggeranong School. The teacher during the years 1902 to 1927 was Frank McGee whose wife, Mary, was Margaret’s aunty. As a teenager Margaret became an accomplished horsewoman, and had many ribbons to attest to this.

“She accompanied her father to sheepdog trials, learnt how to keep bees (her mother was an expert beekeeper), helped cook for the shearers, and, most importantly, helped to raise her twin brothers who were 16 years her junior. In later life, Margaret became a keen bowler. However, her greatest and abiding interest was her own family and garden.

“Leslie Dennis Lyons moved to Canberra with the location of the Federal Government in 1927. Les was a senior public servant in the Attorney General’s Department, the rare owner of a motor car, who, with other public servants at the time, were invited to ‘Tralee’ after Mass on Sunday for ‘tennis and music’. Les’ interests obviously went beyond tennis and music – he and Margaret were married on 15 August, 1929, at St Gregory’s Church, Queanbeyan by Fr P O’Riordan.”

Les and Margaret were blessed with five children, John, Basil, Edward (who died in infancy), Margaret and Leslie. I remember Les Jnr as one of the “big boys” when St Edmund’s College opened in 1954. He is pictured in the “First Fifteen” along with his cousin, Ted Maguire. He is also recorded as receiving the history and the economics prizes for his year.

Both Frank Boyle and Mgr Alexander McGilvray (writing in “The Hallowed High Adventure”) recount the active part which Les and Margaret Lyons played under the leadership of Mgr Patrick Haydon, in the burgeoning St Christopher’s Parish.

Frank writes of Margaret riding her horse to the building site of the Prime Minister’s Lodge, selling raffle tickets to the workmen to raise funds for the building of St Christopher’s Church which was opened in 1939 and would later be extended to become St Christopher’s Cathedral in 1973.

In the eulogy at Margaret’s funeral Mass in 1998, Frank Boyle noted that Les had died in 1979 after 50 years of marriage to Margaret. He pointed out how the Morrison-Lyons story was very much entwined with the early history of St Christopher’s parish.

“Margaret was an active member in the Catholic Women’s League, serving as president in the early years of the parish, and for some 11 years ran the piety stall after Mass every Sunday. The bell tower and the bells of St Christopher’s Cathedral are the result of a bequest from the Morrison family. The bells are named ‘John’ and ‘Mary’ after Margaret’s parents. Les was an active choir member and many a function and sing along were held at ‘Loretto’.”

As a young priest in the St Christopher’s parish in the1960s, I was often welcomed into the Lyons family home in Bougainville Street not far from St Christopher’s. I enjoyed Les’ wit and wisdom and was the grateful recipient of Margaret’s hospitality.

We didn’t use the word feisty in those days, but it would aptly describe Margaret today. I remember, too, the admiration I had for her caring for her brother, Fr Vivian Morrison, when he was going through a rough patch.

From Frank Boyle’s eulogy, it is clear that Margaret would have enjoyed the current build-up to Canberra’s centenary.

“Margaret had an encyclopaedic knowledge of early Canberra and a willingness to share that knowledge and her memorabilia with one and all. Recent historians were constantly on her doorstep and were always welcome. She had a great love of her garden through all the seasons and took great pleasure in growing things and sharing them with one and all.”

Margaret Lyons, is surely now standing tall among the valiant women described in the scriptures. Canberra’s history is the richer for her being a significant part of it.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 282 November 2012, page 8.

Doug Blake

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“Retired 1985 as Clerk of the House of Representatives. Joined the Attorney-General’s Department in 1949 and the Department of the House of Representatives in 1950. Became Serjeant-at-Arms 1956, Clerk Assistant 1970, Deputy Clerk 1977 and Clerk of the House in 1982. Honorary Secretary, Commonwealth Parliamentary Association since 1982. Life Member ACT Rugby Referees Association, President Navy League of Australia (ACT) since 1976, currently Vice-President of Canberra City Bowling Association. Over 20 years active involvement with the St Vincent de Paul Society.”

Thus read the citation when Doug Blake received his Order of Australia award from Queen Elizabeth at Government House, Canberra on 3 March, 1986.

Leading up to Doug’s retirement as Clerk of the House of Representatives in July 1985 a vote of appreciation was passed in the House. Among those who spoke in support of the motion were Prime Minister Bob Hawke, Leader of the Opposition Andrew Peacock, and Ian Sinclair, Leader of the National Party. The Speaker of the House also alluded to the contribution Doug had made on the international scene.

“The parliaments of the Australasian and Pacific regions with which he has had continuous involvement for over 20 years have learnt his value. The Parliament of Papua New Guinea recognised his role in the development of that Parliament by awarding him the Papua New Guinea Independence Medal in 1977. With regard to international parliamentary bodies, he has been Honorary Secretary of the Commonwealth of Australia Branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association since 1982.”

The Prime Minister drew attention “to the outstanding aspect of Doug Blake’s career. He has always given consistent, loyal and dedicated service to the institutions that he knows and loves – his church, the Navy and this Parliament and the parliamentary system. Doug Blake has given us 35 years service in this House, 26 of them at the table of the House. In that time he has earned and retained the trust and respect of all sides of the House. That has been no easy task. The position of Clerk requires unfailing discretion, judgement, thoroughness and honesty. Doug Blake has shown all those qualities in abundance.”

Ian Sinclair recalled a photo featuring Doug refereeing a rugby game between the Parliament and the Press. The photo showed the Parliament’s front row of hooker Bill Hayden being supported by props Doug Anthony and Ian Sinclair. Bill Hayden is supposed to have whimsically remarked that it was the best support he had had in Parliament.

Doug Blake’s refereeing career grew out of his playing days for ACT club Royals, and representative football for the ACT. He went on to referee 200 first-grade games in Canberra including nine first-grade grand-finals. He refereed a number of international teams including the All Blacks (four times), the Springboks, the British Lions and a number of Pacific Island teams.

Another leading ACT referee, Peter Richards, tells how his own career began and blossomed under the guidance of Doug Blake. Peter’s father and Doug had worked together on the construction of the O’Donnell Youth Centre at St Patrick’s in Braddon. Doug talked to Peter about his craft, got him “running the line” with him and became a mentor in Peter’s own distinguished career as a referee.

Peter saw Doug Blake as a disciplinarian who was always in control of the game and worked hard on his fitness even training in the Rose Gardens of the old Parliament House. It should be noted that another Canberra Catholic, Peter McPhillips, rose to great heights as a rugby referee.

Doug Blake attended De La Salle College in Ashfield, Sydney, before joining the Navy at 17, doing his officer training at HMAS Cerberus and graduating as a midshipman. He came out of the Navy at the end of the war as a sub-lieutenant but went back to the Navy Reserve when he came to Canberra in 1949 to serve with Attorney-General’s Department. VRD is the abbreviation for his Volunteer Reserve Officer Decoration. Like so many newcomers to Canberra, he began in the hostels. In Doug’s case it was Gorman House. Doug remembers it snowing for three days in July 1949.

On 6 May, 1950, Doug Blake and Pat Fox were married in St Christopher’s Pro-Cathedral with Fr Stan O’Donnell officiating. Pat was the youngest of five girls in a prominent Catholic family living in the Mount Stromlo area. Pat’s only living sister is Joan De Mamiel. Another sister was Kitty Duffy, mother of Sr Marie Duffy, who served two terms as the last congregational leader of the Goulburn Sisters of Mercy. Doug and Pat have celebrated 60 years of married life and have been blessed with seven children, 13 grandchildren and 8 great-grandchildren. Part of their Sunday ritual after attending Mass is to welcome any family members who drop in.

As I spoke with Doug in preparation for this article, he was concerned that I was not pursuing his Catholic life in sufficient depth. He reminded me that in 1976 he was in the first group of acolytes in the Archdiocese whom I helped to prepare after Archbishop Cahill expressed the desire to introduce this new lay ministry.

Part of the role of the acolyte is to be a companion and assistant to the priests. Doug had filled that role in many forms right from the time of his coming to Canberra. He had been part of the Holy Name Society and served for many years in the St Vincent de Paul Society.

He was the first chairman in the Archdiocese of a parish council following the Second Vatican Council when Mgr Favier established a council in the Parish of Braddon. He had been part of the leadership of the planned giving program, and, as previously mentioned, helped building the O’Donnell Centre. Later, he had a part in the building of St Brigid’s, Dickson.

Doug Blake has already claimed a very significant place in the history of Canberra.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 283 December 2012, page 8.

Ethel McGuire

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Life in comparatively affluent Canberra can be particularly difficult for those people “doing in tough”. Such battlers had a true champion in Ethel McGuire. A social worker by profession, Ethel reached into almost every aspect of the life of Canberra as she stood up for the rights and the human dignity of her clients.

In a brilliant piece in the Canberra Times just after her death in March 2011, Jack Waterford colourfully recorded Ethel McGuire’s approach to her profession. “Ethel once commented to me that it had yet to be demonstrated that the average social worker contributed more to the community than the average dry cleaner. She thought most modern social workers ineffably middle-class. That did not quite mean that they were beyond redemption – because Ethel, a fervent if tactless Catholic, did not believe anyone beyond redemption. But she thought many all too smug and comfortable. She did not necessarily trust their instincts, as she trusted her own. ...Ethel was of the Irish-Catholic working class and didn’t apologise for it.”

Well, not quite. Ethel’s niece, Sister of Mercy, Mary Wickham, giving the eulogy at her aunt’s funeral spoke of her as “the eldest surviving child of Jane and Thomas Cannon of Sunshine, Victoria. The genetic mix was a potent one of Irish Catholic and Scots Presbyterian....Ethel made regular visits to Melbourne during my childhood and beyond, and the ensuing conversations and heated arguments around the table about politics, religion, trade unions, the Public Service and family matters echo in all our heads. Ethel was a formidable debater, a scathing opponent and an intellectual virago.”

Archbishops, commissioners of police, magistrates, departmental heads and other senior bureaucrats in Canberra would recognise what Mary Wickham was talking about. Ethel was no respecter of persons when it came to standing up against any form of unfairness, especially toward those who found it hard to stand up for themselves. Losing her father when she was only eleven, Ethel as the oldest in the family helped her mother with the raising of the younger siblings. She took on part-time jobs to help out in the family and won a scholarship to secondary school and always had a great appreciation of education, especially of the gift of reading. A scholarship to the University of Melbourne enabled her to pursue an Arts degree and undertake studies in Social Science while caring for homeless women through the Legion of Mary.

Mary Wickham traces the continuing story. Out of this university experience “a formidable Social Worker was born. One of her first jobs as a Social Worker was in Perth, where she met her complement, the mild-mannered Kevin McGuire. If Ethel was fire, Kevin was surely as solid and reliable as the earth.”

Kevin and Ethel were married in Melbourne at Newman College Chapel in 1953 and moved to Canberra in 1955 with Kevin’s Public Service career. The McGuires spent a short period in Hotel Acton before moving to their Yarralumla home where they would spend the next fifty years.

Ethel McGuire managed to live out her vocation as wife, mother, welfare officer, advocate, friend and much more without any loss of integrity. Indeed, her whole life was one of integrity. She pioneered social welfare in Canberra, was a Justice of the Peace and a life member of the ACT Council of Social Services. Appreciating her own hard-won educational opportunities, she impressed the importance of education on her own children and those she looked after in the community. That is not to say that life was without its tensions. Ethel’s daughter, Jane, recalls many occasions when the evening meal was interrupted by a knock on the door from the police, resulting in her mother going off to attend to an emergency. Yet, the positive side of all that was that all five children inherited from both their parents a strong sense of justice and a care for those less fortunate.

Neither Jack Waterford nor I would want to give the impression that Ethel was always at loggerheads with other professionals. She worked closely with magistrates, Clarrie Hermes and Ron Cahill and her good friend, psychiatrist, Maxine Tennant, and many others who wanted what was best for children and families at risk. Ethel seemed to know everyone in Canberra and those wide contacts were beneficial to all concerned.

In the homily at her funeral Mass I acknowledged the influence which this valiant woman had on the Catholic Church’s social apostolate in Canberra. “Ethel McGuire played a significant part in leading the Catholic Church in the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn in its response to supporting people in need. She guided the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary as they set up Marymead in Narrabundah and continued as a member of the Board to collaborate with those responsible for care and development after the Sisters were no longer able to be present. She had a key role in the formation of Catholic Social Services in Canberra with its early beginnings in marriage guidance and counselling. She was part of a formidable team with people like Professor Pat Pentony, Fathers Barney Lynch and Kevin Barry-Cotter, Kath Durie, Bryan Docherty and Father Tommy Wright. They were all strong characters and there were many robust discussions. Ethel was a great help to me as a young priest in the late 1960s. I was often in her office in Green Square in Kingston getting some advice on our clients of common concern in Causeway. Neil Harrigan, the current director of CatholicCare has the greatest admiration for Ethel, even though he says with a smile that Ethel was a bit suspicious of him because his background is as a psychologist, not as a social worker.”

As Canberra prepares to celebrate its 100^thbirthday, it can do so with pride, but Ethel McGuire would be warning us to make it a happy birthday for all our citizens, especially those in danger of missing out.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 284 February 2013, page 6.

Sir William Deane

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Sir William Deane, arguably Australia’s most loved and respected Governor-General (1996-2001), has called Canberra “home” for most of his life. Born in Melbourne, he moved with his family to Canberra as a two year old when his father was relocated with the Patents Office. All his primary schooling took place with the Good Samaritan Sisters at St Christopher’s, Manuka, not far from the family home in Griffith. Among his classmates were future priests, Adrian Cork, Tom Wright and Vincentian Xavier Barry and Marist Brother John Reilly. He fondly recalls among his fellow-students, David Cusack and Causeway residents, Colleen Noonan and Tom McAppion, whom the young William Deane regarded as the brightest lad in the class. The Barry family were the Deane family’s closest friends. In that family of six children, four of the five boys went on to become Vincentian priests and the only daughter joined the Daughters of Charity. William Deane’s father sang in St Christopher’s choir while William had a fond association with the larger-than-life parish priest, Fr Patrick Haydon, serving as his altar boy, often accompanying him to outlying Mass centres.

He recalls Ernie Cork taking his son, Adrian, John Reilly and himself to Sydney as they began their secondary education at St Joseph’s College, Hunters Hill. There he gained a sound academic grounding, honed his skills as a GPS debater and developed a love for Rugby Union. Because of his size, he only played in the weight teams as a half-back. Returning to Canberra to work in the Attorney General’s Department after his Sydney University studies, he played first grade as a winger for Easts. A serious eye injury in his last game against RMC Duntroon could have had life-changing consequences.

As it was, the Arts-Law graduate was able to continue with his plans for further study at Trinity College in Dublin and The Hague Academy of International Law. He was called to the Bar in Sydney in 1957. William Deane met his wife, Helen Russell, while they were at Law School together and the couple married in 1965. It was clear to the nation during Sir William’s tenure as Governor-General that he saw Lady Deane’s contribution as integral to Australia’s highest office.

In 1977, William Deane was appointed judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales and a judge of the Federal Court of Australia. Prior to his appointment as Governor- General , Sir William Deane served as a Judge of the High Court of Australia from 1982 to 1995. This represented another homecoming to Canberra for one of its favourite sons. On the High Court, he formed part of the majority which recognised native title in the famous Mabo case. Was this experience to help shape his convictions which were to become a hallmark of his term as Governor-General when he consistently gave support to the rights of Australia’s first peoples?

In May 1997, both Sir William and Lady Helen Deane made important speeches at the Australian Reconciliation Convention in Melbourne. Jesuit priest, Frank Brennan described the Deanes at the Convention as “the first couple of reconciliation”. Throughout their tenure at Government House the Vice-Regal couple spent much time visiting Aboriginal communities, invited indigenous people to their home and were articulate advocates for the historically dispossessed people. In later times, Sir William would support his Alma Mater, St Joseph’s College, Hunters Hill in granting scholarships to Aboriginal students from the country.

Following the Port Arthur massacre in 1996, the Governor-General took the initiative in encouraging church leaders to call a national ecumenical service of mourning in St Christopher’s Cathedral. He would take a similar role in the wake of the Thredbo tragedy where eighteen people lost their lives the following year. As I preached at that service, I saw Sir William give great comfort to those who mourned for the eighteen people each represented by a lighted candle.

The vision of Anglican Bishop George Browning with the support of Aboriginal leader Lowitja O’Donoghue, Archbishop Francis Carroll and other church leaders to set up in Barton what has become known as the Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture was blessed by the patronage of the then Governor-General. Sir William would say that experience and ongoing encounters with other Christian Churches has broadened his own life of faith, being mindful of the richness of the ecumenical movement. Jesus prayed at the Last Supper that “all may be one”. Sir William Deane will always be fondly remembered for his great capacity to bring people together often in a climate which would be otherwise divisive.

One of his favourite sayings is that a society is best judged by the way it treats its most vulnerable members. He was asked to be patron of countless organisations over the years, but in conversation about this article, he asked me to give particular prominence to Father Peter Day and HOME IN QUEANBEYAN which gives support to people suffering mental illness. This inspirational project, which enjoyed the support of Anglican Father Michael Cockayne and the wider community of Queanbeyan and its surrounds, was opened by Sir William in 2010 with the guest speaker, Australian of the Year, Professor Patrick McGorry. It was thus endorsed by its patron: “The provision of long-term, supported accommodation for the mentally ill who are presently unable to live with the dignity to which every human being is entitled is not simply a ‘good idea’ but an absolute must.”

Still living in Canberra, Sir William and Lady Deane continue to be active in their retirement but wisely limit what they undertake. They are conscious that even in comparatively affluent Canberra, there are many people who struggle to enjoy the basic necessities of life. In accepting to be Patron of the Canberra Centenary Committee, Sir William expressed the hope that the centenary program would take into account those citizens who are less fortunate and that their lives would be enhanced by Canberra’s 2013 celebrations.

Originally published in Catholic Voice 285 March 2013, page 8.