2005 inductees (H-Z)

Patricia Harris was educated at Stanley Primary School and Smithton High School. She married in 1952 and had five children, four sons and a daughter. For many years she assisted her husband in the running of their farm.

Over 20 years, Patricia generously gave her time and energy to a wide range of community activities in George Town. She served as the caretaker of the George Town Memorial Hall for 18 years and was a volunteer guide at the Watch-house Museum.

Patricia was actively involved with a range of health care groups. She was member of the George Town Hospital Auxiliary for 16 years, including serving as President from 1998. She was a member of the Northern Council of Hospital Auxiliaries, and the George Town Health and Welfare Committee. Patricia provided practical and emotional support to the elderly as a volunteer at the Ainslie Nursing Home, and was a regular hospital visitor four days a week. She acted as carer for an elderly friend for eight years.

Patricia was a Foundation Member of the Gordon Square Early Learning Centre, and a volunteer at the Wambana Respite Centre for Handicapped Children. She was a member of the local Probus Club for 10 years, including serving as President.

Patricia played a leading role in many sporting and fundraising activities in George Town, including as a member of the Football Club Committee (five years), volunteer for the Bass and Flinders Bowls Club (three years), and the Cycling Club (three years).

She was also President and a Founding Member of the World Championship Hospital Bed Race (four years) and the Girl Guide Association.

Pam Harvey was educated at the Claremont Primary and Claremont High Schools. She married in 1967 and had two daughters. Pam's involvement in civic life started when she was elected as a member of the Glenorchy Junior Council in 1964.

Pam joined the Glenorchy Meals on Wheels as a volunteer in 1990. She subsequently joined the committee, serving terms as Treasurer and President. She has been a member of the Meals on Wheels State Committee for 10 years and has attended six National Conferences.

Pam’s involvement with the Hobart Chapter of the American Field Scholarships (AFS) commenced in 1996, and she has undertaken a number of roles including Secretary, Newsletter Editor and Assistant Selection Coordinator. She has hosted many international students during this time and been an enthusiastic contributor to, and supporter of, AFS training and fundraising activities.

Pam was made a Life Member of the Child Health Association in 1987 in recognition of her contribution to the Glenorchy Branch. She was a dedicated member of the Parents and Friends Associations and School Councils of both Rosetta Primary School and Oglivie School between 1984 and 1998. She coached basketball and was the coordinator of the Wellington District Basketball Association from 1992 to 1995. Her contribution over many years assisting with gymnastics at the Glenorchy YMCA was recognised in 1984 when she received the Lionel Kable Award. She has also been involved with the Glenorchy Scouts, holding the position of Treasurer for two years and committee membership for four years. Since 2000, Pam has been part of the Rosetta/Montrose Precinct Committee set up by the Glenorchy City Council to act as a liaison between ratepayers and the Council.

Pam teaches the art of quilting at the Rosny Seventh Day Adventist Church and, as a former cancer sufferer, has donated several of her quilts for the annual Cancer Council raffle.

In 2006 she was awarded an Order of Australia Medal for service to the community of Glenorchy.

To all, to lovers, to friends
secure beyond the falling out of love,
time brings at last their last time on earth together.
Let memory lie like sunlight
On this desolation of weeds.

- ‘Sunset, Oyster Cove. To the memory of Edwin Tanner’ from Selected Poems

Gwen Harwood was educated at Toowong State School and Brisbane Girls Grammar School. She studied piano and composition privately. After finishing school, she completed a music teacher’s diploma and was an organist at All Saints’ in Brisbane. After a brief stint teaching, Gwen began work as a typist in the War Damage Commission in 1942.

Gwen married Bill Harwood in September 1945. Soon afterwards they moved to Hobart where Bill took up a position at the University of Tasmania. Although she had written poetry for many years and had her first poem published in 1944, it was not until her four children were at school that she began to regularly submit her work for publication. Gwen corresponded on a regular basis with a wide circle of friends, including fellow poets Vincent Buckley, AD Hope, Vivian Smith and Norman Talbot.

Gwen Harwood’s poetry and critical writing appeared regularly in Australian literary journals from the 1950s. She was an accomplished librettist who worked closely with contemporary composers. Two volumes of her correspondence have also been published, providing a valuable record of Australia’s literary culture.

In 1973, Gwen received a Literature Board Grant that enabled her to retire from her position as a medical secretary and devote more time to her writing. During this period, she embarked on a range of speaking and reading engagements across Australia and participated in seminars and workshops on a regular basis. Gwen also served as President of the Tasmanian Branch of the Fellowship of Australian Writers and of the Lady Hamilton Literary Society.

Gwen published more than 430 works during her life including 386 poems and 13 librettos. Her first volume, Poems, was published in 1963, Poems Volume II in 1968, The Lion’s Bride in 1981, the award winning Bone Scan in 1988 and The Present Tense in 1995.

Gwen was the recipient of many awards including the Grace Leven Prize (1975), Robert Frost Medallion (1977), the Patrick White Award (1978), Victorian Premiers Award (1989) and in 1990 the Age Book of the Year Award (for Blessed City). She received Honorary Doctorates from the University of Tasmania, the University of Queensland and La Trobe University.

In 1989, Gwen was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for her services to literature. The Gwen Harwood Memorial Poetry Prize was established in 1996.

Rennie Herbert attended Sheffield Area School and studied music privately at Devonport, qualifying for her AMus and ALCM. She then attended the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music where she received her LMusA in late 1950. She married in 1965.

Rennie’s passion for music has touched many lives and she has inspired many of her students to pursue a career in music. She has taught piano, music theory and singing on the North-West Coast for more than 50 years. She is a Life Member and past President of the Tasmanian Music Teacher's Association. Rennie is also an examiner with the Australian Music Examination Board and a member of the AMEB State Committee. Rennie has been the organist at the Wesley Uniting Church in Devonport since 1975.

Rennie is a Life Member and current Vice President of the Devonport Eisteddfod Society and has adjudicated at eisteddfods in Tasmania and interstate. She is a Life Member of the Devonport Choral Society and a former conductor of the Society’s Ladies Choir.

Rennie formed the Creadon Singers choir and the very successful youth choir, the Renae Singers, in the early 1970s. Under Rennie’s leadership, the Renae Singers have won more than 20 championships in eisteddfods in Devonport, Burnie, Launceston and Sydney. Rennie conducts the choir’s performances around the state in hospitals, nursing homes, rural schools and charitable events and during interstate tours. Rennie inaugurated the biennial Youth Choirfest in 2001.

Rennie has been a member of Soroptimists International since the early 1960s, serving two terms as President. She is currently the longest serving member. She was also responsible for organising the Soroptimist Carols by Candlelight from 1965 until 1999.

Rennie is well known as a canvasser for charitable organisations. She played a key role in raising $70,000 within two years for a replacement organ for the Wesley Church.

Rennie was awarded an Order of Australia Medal in 1991 for her services to music. She was named as Devonport Citizen of the Year in 1997. In 2001, Rennie was awarded a Centenary Medal and received a Recognition Award for the Senior Australian of the Year. Rennie was named as the Lions Club Devonport Citizen of the Year in 2004.

Kit was educated at The Friends' School. She studied at the Tasmanian School of Art from 1966-69. Kit taught at Burnie High School for three years. She married in 1971 and had three children, one daughter and two sons.

A painter and print maker, Kit began painting watercolour portraits and had her first exhibition at the Rialto restaurant in Burnie in 1982. For 12 years she provided art lessons at Burnie Primary School on a voluntary basis.

Kit’s portraits have been hung in exhibitions for the Archibald Prize and the Portia Geach Memorial Prize for Women Artists. Kit won the Portia Geach Memorial Prize in 1986 and 1987. Both winning entries were self-portraits and were added to the The Holmes à Court Collection. In 1987, Kit was named Tasmanian of the Year.

Kit has held more than 24 one-woman exhibitions in Tasmania. In 1996 she travelled to Canada, the United States and France, where she painted in the Rosamund McCulloch studio for two months.

A change of direction followed with a return to oil painting and landscapes. Her large oil Sunset Mt Hicks – Bushfires down the West Coast won the inaugural Island Art Prize in the first Ten Days on the Island Festival.

Over the years, Kit has completed more than 300 linocuts, many of Tasmanian wildflowers and birds; with most being individually hand coloured.

The town of Southport was the focus for a Ten Days on the Island 2005 project in which Kit decorated a caravan for the BIG hART’s Radio Holiday travelling exhibition.

Living at Lower Mount Hicks on the North-West Coast, Kit has provided artistic support to local productions, illustrated publications and supported coastal arts projects and exhibitions.

Edith Holmes’ father was a schoolteacher and her early years were spent in Hamilton, Devonport and Scottsdale, before the family settled at Dilkhoosha in Moonah, which remained Edith’s home until her death. She studied art at the Hobart Technical College under Lucien Dechaineux (1918-19 and 1922-24) and under Mildred Lovett in (1925-26, 1928-31 and 1935). From 1930-31, Edith attended Julian Ashton’s Sydney Art School.

During the 1930s, Edith shared a studio in Collins Street, in Hobart, with Mildred Lovett, Florence Rodway, Dorothy Stoner, Ethel Nicholls and Violet Vimpany. She travelled regularly to Melbourne, where she held seven exhibitions between 1938 and 1951. She loved painting portraits and her natural surroundings, including views from her Moonah home and from her shack at Carlton. She entered the Archibald Prize several times and her landscapes were hung in the Wynne Landscape Exhibition.

Edith’s work is characterised by highly expressive colours and her use of the Tasmanian landscape and urban environment as subject matter. From the beginning, she found that her work was favourably received by interstate critics. However, early in her career her ‘modern outlook’ was not well received in Hobart. In 1967, she observed that "Tasmanian women painters are not being recognised in the same way that women painters in other states are …we just don’t have the professional critics that Melbourne and Sydney have".

Edith exhibited annually from 1927 to 1972 with the Art Society of Tasmania. She was a member of the Art Society Council for 22 years and was subsequently made a Life Member. A founding member of the Tasmanian Group of Painters, she exhibited with them for 30 years. She travelled to England and France in 1958, 1960 and 1971, holding an exhibition in Tasmania House, in London, in 1958.

In 1954, she won a prize in an art competition to mark Hobart’s sesquicentenary. In 1972, the Contemporary Art Society awarded her a prize for her contribution to Tasmanian art.

Edith was active in the Victoria League, the English Speaking Union and the Women’s Non-Party League of Tasmania and was a Life Member of the United Nations Association. In 1973, Edith donated land at Bally Park, near Carlton, to the Moonah Rotary Club to build a holiday home for disadvantaged children.

Edith died in 1973 and was buried at Forcett. Her work is represented in collections at the Australian National Gallery, National Gallery of Victoria, the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, the Devonport Gallery and in many private collections. In 2003, the Moonah Arts Centre held an exhibition to celebrate Edith’s career using works loaned from the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, the Devonport Gallery and private collections.

She was a good cop. She was hard. She was straight. She was fair. - Justice Pierre Slicer, Australian Story, ABC TV, 1997

Heather Innes was educated at Smithton Primary and High Schools. She competed in javelin competitions, gaining selection in the Tasmanian junior and senior teams, which led to selection in the Australian team.

At age 17, Heather was selected to represent Australia in javelin events at the 1956 Olympics. This was an amazing feat for a young girl from a remote Tasmanian town with minimal sports facilities. Heather also competed in the Australian Women’s Track and Field Championships in 1957-58.

Heather joined Tasmania Police in 1961 and was stationed in Hobart. In 1976, she was awarded a Churchill Fellowship to travel overseas to undertake a contrasting study in England, Scotland and Scandinavia on enforcement of moral laws. On her return, Heather used the information to develop procedures for police personnel to deal with child abuse, rape and child pornography. In 1984, Detective Inspector Innes was the first woman to head a drug bureau in Australia. She rose rapidly through the ranks, becoming only the second woman to be appointed to the rank of Inspector in the Tasmania Police. Heather was the State’s only 'Police Pilot’, assisting in search and rescue missions. She received three commendations during her police career.

After retiring in 1989, Heather started an air charter business to service the North-West Coast and the remote communities on the islands of the area. She also provides mentoring and support to younger pilots as they develop their expertise.

At the 2001 Australia Day Awards, Heather received an Australian Sports Medal. She was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 1993 for her significant contribution to Australian life on the sporting field, in the police force and in the air. Heather was awarded the 2003 Nancy Bird Walton Trophy for the most noteworthy contribution by a woman in aviation.

Born in Launceston, Elizabeth Jack’s family moved to Melbourne when she was two and returned to Tasmania when she was 10. She attended East Launceston Primary School and Queechy High School. She married in 1990 and had two daughters.

Elizabeth’s interest in diving started at the age of eight. She represented Australia in international diving competitions from 1975 until 1979. She competed at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games at the age of 17 – the first Tasmanian woman and the youngest ever Australian diver to compete at this level. Elizabeth gained a Bachelor of Arts (Modern Languages) from McGill University (Montreal) in 1982.

After a spinal injury forced Elizabeth’s retirement from competition in 1986, she became involved in coaching and administration. She coached the Canadian Diving Team on 24 occasions including the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and the 1990 Auckland Commonwealth Games. During this period, she produced and coached more than 20 senior and junior Canadian national champions, including one Olympic Gold medallist and two other Olympic finalists, as well as coaching Tasmanian Olympic finalist Julie Kent in 1984.

Elizabeth returned to Tasmania in 1990 to take up the position of Director of the Tasmanian Institute of Sport (TIS). Under her leadership, the TIS became a state-of-the-art institute with world-class programs and coaching expertise. She was inducted into the Tasmanian Sporting Hall of Fame in 1997. In 2004, Elizabeth accepted the position of Director Sport and Recreation Tasmania in the Department of Economic Development.

Elizabeth has maintained her interest in sport as a member of the Australian Coaching Council. Elizabeth has also been a member of the Tasmanian Olympic Council Corporate Fundraising Committee. She is currently the Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Recreation and Sport, a national committee that aims to develop a coordinated and collaborative approach to sport and recreation. Elizabeth also made a key contribution to the success of the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games as the Competition Manager for Diving.

Elizabeth was a member of the State Advisory Committee on the Tasmanian Bicentenary.

Gill James was educated at St Helens Primary School and Launceston State High School. She married in 1961 and had one son. Gill was elected as a Member for Bass in the State Parliament in 1976, serving until 1989 and again from 1992-2002. She is the longest serving woman member of the House of Assembly since women won the right to stand for Parliament in 1921. Before entering Parliament she worked in the offices of former President of the Senate Justin O’Byrne and former Deputy Prime Minister Lance Barnard.

In 1979, Gill was the first woman to be appointed as a Presiding Officer (Deputy Speaker) in the Tasmanian Parliament. In 1980, she was appointed as Tasmania’s first ever woman Minister with responsibility for the Public and Mental Health, Consumer Affairs and Administrative Services portfolios. She also held a range of party and committee positions within the Parliament including that of Whip, Chairman of the PLP and Deputy Chairman of Committees.

Since the 1960s, Gill has regularly acted voluntarily as an advocate for ex-service personnel and their dependents before the Veteran’s Review Board (VRB). She has made an immeasurable difference in the lives of many veterans, appearing before the VRB and the Social Security Appeals Tribunal to secure income and entitlements for the people she has represented. She is highly regarded in the community for her advocacy skills and commitment to providing representation. She has been awarded the National RSL Certificate and Badge of Merit and was made a Life Member of the RSL in 2003.

Gill is past patron of many associations including the Tasmanian Chapter of the Vietnam Veterans’ Motor Cycle Club, Launceston Art Society, and Northern Tasmanian Netball Association. She is currently patron of the State Branch of the Huntington’s Disease Association. Gill also helped establish Launceston’s first shelter for homeless men during the 1980s. In 2004, she was appointed a legatee for Legacy. She is currently patron of the Vietnam Veterans’ Association, Launceston Branch.

Gill was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 1990 for her services to the community, particularly veterans.

Linda Johnson was educated at the Huonville District School. She married in 1970 and had two daughters. She completed a TAFE Diploma of Welfare Studies and in the late 1990s, she completed a postgraduate course in counselling with the Faculty of Education at the University of Tasmania.

Linda has been coordinator of Early Support for Parents (ESP) since its establishment in 1989. The philosophy of ESP is to strengthen Tasmanian communities by supporting families under stress. Trained volunteers achieve this objective through home visits to the families. Linda is responsible for the recruitment, training and supervision of volunteers, assessment of the needs of families and matching them with an appropriate volunteer. Linda’s position is funded for 25 hours a week, however, her dedication is such that she works many more unpaid hours to ensure the successful operation of the ESP program.

In 2000, Linda established a satellite ESP service in Cygnet, known as the Huon Valley Parent Support Network, training a core group of volunteers and providing ongoing supervision and mentoring. She also supervised the establishment of a second ESP satellite at Triabunna in 2003. Over the years, Linda has also conducted training sessions with other groups of volunteers in areas such as Burnie, Lauderdale and Bruny Island.

Linda was a foundation member of Volunteering Tasmania and the Tasmanian Association of Family Support Services. She was a member of the Relationships Australia Board for several years.

In recent years, Linda has been increasingly involved in supporting the growing group of grandparents who find themselves responsible for the full-time care of their grandchildren. In 1999, she set up a support group for custodial grandparents and became the volunteer coordinator. Linda has played a key role in publicising the social, emotional, legal and financial stresses placed on custodial grandparents.

In 2004, Linda received a Local Hero Award and was a finalist in the State section of the Australian of the Year award.

Philippa Johnstone was educated at the Fahan School and Launceston Teachers College, where she qualified as a primary school teacher. She married in 1971 and had three daughters.

Philippa taught at Glenora Primary School for two years, followed by Margate and Norfolk North Primary Schools. From 1977 until 2002, she assisted her husband, who was the owner of the Harley Johnstone Pharmacy at Penguin.

Philippa has dedicated the last 28 years to the Penguin community and has been involved in a wide range of community organisations. She was elected to the Central Coast Council in 1993 and served three terms.

Phillipa was a member of the Playschool Committee (1978-80) and the Penguin Primary School Mother’s Club (1979-88). In 1987, she was made a Life Member of the Mother’s Club. Philippa was a member of the local association of the Guides and Brownies from 1981-88, serving as Secretary and President and as an Assistant Brownie Leader for three years. She has delivered Meals on Wheels for the last 16 years.

Philippa has been on the management committee of the Warrawee Women’s Shelter for 11 years and has been President and is currently Secretary. Since 1996, she has been a member of the Coroneagh Park Auxiliary Home for the Aged, serving two years as Secretary and currently holding the role of Treasurer. Philippa was Vice President for six years of the Leven Training Centre and served as a board member for 10 years. In recent years, Philippa has played an active role on the local Online Access Centre Committee and as a volunteer at the Penguin Information Centre. She is currently President of the Penguin History Group.

In 2002, Philippa was presented with a Local Government Association Certificate of Outstanding Commitment. In 2003, as part of the Centenary of Federation of Australia celebrations, Philippa was awarded a Centenary Medal for her contribution to the community.

Noreen was educated at St Thomas Mores School, in Launceston. She trained as a nurse at the Launceston General Hospital from 1959 to 1962 and later completed midwifery training at St Vincents Maternity Hospital in Melbourne from 1964 to 1965. Noreen married in 1966 and had two children, a son and a daughter.

Throughout her formative years, Noreen developed a love for performance by competing in Eisteddfods and she won both the Tasmanian Highland Dancing Championship and the Tasmanian Speech and Drama Championship in 1960. She is an accomplished actor, singer, dancer and puppeteer and has performed in professional and amateur productions in theatre, musicals, opera, television, radio and film.

In Melbourne, Noreen worked with The Box Hill Drama Group, the Therry Society at Monash University and appeared in Homicide for Crawford Productions. Since returning to Tasmania in 1969, she has performed in ABC productions including The Colonials, Problem Creek, The Story of Amy Sherwin and Hunter. She appeared in 13 Tasmanian Film Corporation projects including Fatty & George, Slippery Slide, Save The Lady and The Joe Blake Show. Noreen has worked with the Tasmanian University Conservatorium of Music and all the major theatre companies in the State – Launceston Players, Launceston Repertory Society, Tasmanian Ballet Company, Theatre Royal Light Opera Company, Tasmanian Opera Company, Hobart Repertory Theatre Society, Gilbert and Sullivan Society, Polygon Inc, Tasmanian Theatre Company, Zootango Theatre Company, Old Nick Company, Terrapin Puppet Theatre, Mainstage Theatre Company and Exit Left Productions.

Noreen has provided generous and dedicated support to local playwrights and filmmakers in transcribing manuscripts and films on a voluntary basis.

In 1987, Noreen and Don Gay established the Acting, Communication and Training Skills (ACTS) program for long-term unemployed youth. ACTS delivered six months of full-time drama training culminating in a production at the Theatre Royal. The participants received life skills and presentation training through the workshops, with the majority finding work after completing the program.

Noreen was a key volunteer with the Tasmanian Hear-A-Book Service and recorded 17 books and magazines. She was a phone counsellor with Lifeline Australia for three years, undertaking a monthly overnight shift.

From 1999 to 2001, Noreen worked as the Data Manager in the Oncology Unit at the Royal Hobart Hospital, where she co-ordinated national and international clinical trials on oncology. During that time, she took delight in organising occasional performances to entertain patients within the Oncology Unit.

Noreen continues to enjoy performing and finds great joy in working with young, talented artists.

Alma Leary attended Zeehan Primary School, Hobart High School (1915-18) and the Phillip Smith Teacher Training College. Alma graduated in 1920 and her first posting was as an infant teacher at the Burnie State School in 1921. She married in 1922 and had five children, two daughters and three sons.

Alma began playing hockey in 1915 while attending Hobart High School. She was an outstanding player and captained the team from 1915-18. She was selected in the Southern Representative Hockey Team in 1920. She founded the North West Hockey Association in Burnie in 1921 and was the inaugural secretary. In 1922, Alma gained State selection and played in the interstate competition in West Australia, where Tasmania was a convincing winner, having won every match. In 1925, Alma was a member of the State team that participated in the All Australian Carnival held in Launceston and she then gained selection in the Australian team.

Alma’s involvement with hockey was lifelong and included roles such as umpire, coach, administrator, fundraiser, patron and state selector. She assisted in the introduction of men’s hockey in Tasmania. In 1941, she became the first Life Member of the North Western Hockey Association. Following Alma’s, death her contribution to the sport was honoured by the naming of the ‘Alma Leary Memorial Field’ at the McKenna Park Hockey Centre in Burnie.

Alma was a founding member of the Ladies’ Legacy Guild (Burnie), the Burnie Primary Mother’s Club and the Umina Park Auxiliary. She was President of the South Burnie Red Cross, a major branch with 100 members, during World War II. Alma was active in the CWA and for many years presented its 7BU Radio program. Other community involvement included her work with St George’s Church in Burnie, Roland Boys Home and the RSL Women’s Auxiliary.

Helen Lindsay was educated at Snug Primary School, Taroona High School and Hobart Matriculation College. She married in 1975 and had two children, a son and a daughter. She was employed from 1971 until 1977 as a typist and clerical officer in the Commonwealth Public Service.

Helen has been an active member of, and exhibitor with, the Hobart Horticultural Society, the Alpine Club and the Margate Garden Club. For seven years, she initiated a series of four floral shows each year at the Hobart Town Hall and helped set up these events every year until 1994. Helen is a judge of floral art at local shows and enjoys the opportunity to teach floral art through Adult Education Tasmania. Since 1995, Helen has been a part owner of the Margate Florist and Crafts and Canary Cage Café, which provides an outlet for 150 local craftspeople. Helen used the café for community meetings and to run quiz nights, raising $10,000 for local charities over two years.

In the late 1990s, Helen was President of the Huon Kingborough Tourism Association during the development of the Huon Trail, which includes 24 picture boards highlighting locations of interest. Helen is now owner of the Brookfield Vineyard at Margate and has been instrumental in developing a local craft and produce market on site. She is also making the venue available for use by the community and non-profit organisations. Helen has used the vineyard as another opportunity to assist local non-profit organisations, donating funds in return for their assistance during the grape-picking season.

Helen was closely involved with the planning of the inaugural ‘2½ Days in Margate’, a community festival showcasing the culture, community and history of the region, in April 2005. The same year, a concert involving local musicians was held at the vineyard, with the funds raised donated to the Cancer Council of Tasmania. Helen, having personally battled cancer, enjoys writing and has published two light-hearted poems about her personal experience fighting the disease.

Helen also enjoys singing and is a member of the Kingston Singers, a local community choir that performs regularly in the area.

Marjorie Luck was educated at the Devonport Primary and Devonport High Schools. She gained a Bachelor of Arts and later completed a Masters of Humanities in Tasmanian history at the University of Tasmania. She is the mother of two children, a son and daughter.

Starting her working life as a teacher, Marjorie has also operated a bookshop and taught child care at TAFE. She was Community Arts Officer at the Clarence City Council from 1986 until 2003.

Through the 1970s and 1980s, Marjorie was an active member and office holder of the Women’s Electoral Lobby (WEL). She was instrumental in the establishment of the Hobart Women’s Shelter in 1974, securing funding and support for the refuge. Recognising the lack of health services for women in Tasmania, Marjorie assisted in the establishment of the Sexual Assault Service at the Royal Hobart Hospital, the Women’s Health Centre, the Women’s Phone Information Service and Annie Kenney Young Women’s Refuge. She provided ongoing support to all these services.

Marjorie contributed to the policy debate on anti-discrimination legislation and a review of the Family Law Act, and was an organiser and keynote speaker at the first National Conference on Rape Law Reform. She also participated in the drafting of the Australian Plan of Action to present to the United Nations to mark the halfway stage of the UN Decade for Women. As a member of National Shelter, the peak community forum for policy development in the field of public housing, Marjorie actively promoted the rights of women and their children to access appropriate public housing.

Marjorie has been heavily involved in community based arts in Tasmania since the 1980s. As the state representative for Regional Arts Australia, she has played a prominent role in promoting the arts throughout regional Tasmania.

As a representative of the Social Welfare Union on the Women’s Committee of the Tasmanian Trades and Labour Council, Marjorie worked to improve employment opportunities and conditions for welfare workers and women in particular. She has a continuing strong commitment to social justice and community development and has had an active leadership role in the establishment of numerous services. She has also made a prominent contribution to the arts, the development of public policy, public debate and legislative change. This has enhanced the lives of many and strengthened the community in which she lives.

Marjorie was awarded an Order of Australia Medal in 2005 for service to the arts and to the women’s and union movements in Tasmania.

This is the first occasion upon which a woman has addressed this House. For that reason, it is an occasion which, for every woman in the Commonwealth, marks in some degree a turning point in history. I am well aware that as I acquit myself in the work that I have undertaken for the next three years, so shall I either prejudice or enhance the prospects of those women who may wish to follow me in public service in the years to come. - Maiden Speech, House of Representatives 1943

Enid Lyons was born in a remote timber camp in the far North-West of Tasmania. In 1915, at the age of 17 and already working as a teacher, she married Joseph Lyons, then State Treasurer and Minister for Education and Railways. Enid had an active political role from the earliest days of their marriage, delivering her first political speech in 1920. Her intention was to attract the support of women to encourage them to take an active interest in public affairs.

Joe Lyons was Premier of Tasmania from 1923 until 1928. Both Enid, by then the mother of seven children, and her mother stood for the ALP in the 1925 State election. In 1929, Joe entered Federal Parliament becoming Prime Minister in 1932. Enid’s twelfth child was born in 1933. Enid took on a busy role as the Prime Minister’s wife with her family spread across three states – The Lodge, Home Hill in Devonport and at school in Melbourne.

In 1937, Enid accompanied Joe to England for the coronation of George VI and was made a Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire. Joe Lyons died in office in April 1939.

In 1943, Enid Lyons was elected as the Federal member for the Tasmanian seat of Darwin. Her policy interests included encouraging women’s participation in politics, improving maternity care, family welfare, and addressing employment discrimination.

Enid became the first woman in Cabinet when she was appointed Vice-President of the Executive Council in the Menzies Government in 1949. Her achievements in office included the extension of child endowment in 1950, increases to the allowances paid to returned servicewomen, and ensuring that women who married foreigners retained their nationality and citizenship. Increasing ill health forced her retirement from politics in 1951.

Enid continued to be active in public life working as a newspaper columnist, chairing the Jubilee Women’s Convention (1951) and as a Member of the Australian Broadcasting Commission (1951-62). She was a longstanding member of the Victoria League (1913-81), Liberal Party (1944-1981), the Housewives Association and the Country Women’s League.

Enid published two autobiographical volumes entitled So We Take Comfort (1965) and Among the Carrion Crows (1972). In 1980, she was awarded the Dame of the Order of Australia. Home Hill is managed by the National Trust and contains many mementos of Enid’s political life.

Aunty Molly worked endlessly for her community. She has been an inspiration to women of all ages and one of the biggest influences in my life. - Jennifer Houston

Aunty Molly Mallett was a Tasmanian Aboriginal Elder who lived in Launceston for much of her life. Born on Cape Barren Island, both of Molly’s parents were descendants of Manalargena, leader of the Cape Portland Tribe. Molly’s early years were spent at Porky Boat Harbour and she attended Cape Barren Island School until the age of 14. Molly’s family moved to Lady Barron on Flinders Island and she started work at the fish factory. A year later, the family moved again, this time to Launceston where Molly started working at the Coats Paton Woollen Mills. She married in 1942 and had three sons and one daughter.

Molly lived for several years in Derby, before moving back to Launceston. Molly became a foster carer for children who were wards of the State. In addition, Molly worked informally within the Aboriginal community, fostering so many children that she lost count and supporting Aboriginal people who moved from Cape Barren Island to mainland Tasmania.

Molly was a founding member and a former Chairperson for six years of the Tasmanian Aboriginal Education Council, which developed programs and pathways for Aboriginal children and played a key role in developing Aboriginal education policy. She was also on the National Aboriginal Education Council for six years. Molly established the Tasmanian Aboriginal Child Care Association in 1983. She was the coordinator of the child care centre during its first two years, often putting her pay back in to the centre to meet the running costs. She also enjoyed two years on the women’s committee of the RSL.

Molly returned to Cape Barren Island for the first time in 1988. She made another visit in 1998 as the Elder-in-Residence. She published a book about her early life on Cape Barren Island, My Past – Their Future: Stories from Cape Barren Island, which outlines the impact of 1939 Tindale scientific study on the close-knit community. In 2000, Molly received an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Tasmania. In 2002, she was made a Member of the Order of Australia for her service to the Aboriginal community.

Lynn Mason was educated at the Brisbane Girls Grammar School. She completed a Bachelor Degree at the University of Queensland in 1969. She married in 1974 and had three children, a son and two daughters. She and her husband began farming on Flinders Island in 1974, developing a sheep flock and harvesting abalone.

In 1978, Lyn chaired a committee that established the first playgroup on the island. She was a member of the Get A Gym Group from 1980-85, which undertook fundraising and lobbied government agencies to construct a community gymnasium on the island. Lynn has been involved in netball since 1976 and was a member of several teams, fundraised for facilities and continues to umpire games.

Lynn was elected to the Flinders Island Council in 1983 and served as Mayor from 1996-2002. She played a key role in securing community support for the 1996 agreement between the Council and the Flinders Island Aboriginal Association on the ownership and management of the Wybalenna Historic Site. As a result, Flinders Island received the Community Award at the 1997 Australian Reconciliation Convention. Lynn apologised on behalf of the Council to the Stolen Generations of Flinders and Cape Barren Islands.

Lynn has made a major contribution to protecting the environment of Flinders Island. She organised the annual Clean Up Australia Day for 10 years, is the founder of the TREE Group, which grows seedlings and plants trees on Flinders Island, and is the Chairperson of the Lice Eradication Committee of the Furneaux Natural Resource Management Association.

Lynn has been the President of the Local Government Association of Tasmania since 2000 and is a member of the Australian Local Government Association, serving as Vice President in 2001-02. Lynn was a member of the Australian delegation representing local government at the 2002 United Nations Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development. In 2004, Lynn was a delegate to the 12th Session of the Commission on Sustainable Development in New York. She addressed the plenary session of the United Nations on the role of local government in environmental management.

Lynn was the national winner of the 2000 Westpac Group Business Owner Award and the Tasmanian winner of the Telstra Business Woman of the Year Awards. At the Australia Day Awards in 2001, she was presented with a Centenary Medal.

As the world has been run by men for so long, and they do not appear to have made a very good job of it, isn’t it time we women tried to use more influence in national affairs? It is no use just sitting back and bewailing the state of the world and thinking how helpless each of us is to alter it. Everyone can do some little thing to help – mothers and teacher especially. - Margaret McIntyre speech to League of Remembrance Launceston 1948

Born in a tent in Maitland, in New South Wales, where her geologist father was surveying coalfields, Margaret McIntyre’s aspirations were fostered by her mother, Caroline David, who was the first woman principal of Hurlstone Teachers Training College. Margaret graduated from Sydney University with a Bachelor of Arts in 1907. She married in 1908 and had two sons and two daughters. After World War I, the family settled in Launceston.

Margaret became involved in many community activities and her interests included baby care, health, youth, education and women’s issues. She was a founding member, President and producer of the Launceston Players. She believed drama would help to foster team spirit in young people and actively supported the establishment of a youth drama group in Invermay. At the time of her death, Margaret was Acting Chief Commissioner of the Girl Guides and the State Commissioner for the Girl Guides. The Guides named their Northern headquarters Margaret McIntyre House in her memory.

Margaret was the first northern President of the Women Graduates’ Association, President of the National Council of Women and Vice-President of the YWCA and the Anzac Hostel Women’s League of Remembrance. She was a member of the Queen Victoria Hospital Board, the ABC Advisory Committee and the Ashley Boys Home.

Margaret was active in the Launceston Progressive Education Group that lobbied for the establishment of the G V Brooks and Newnham Community Schools in the late 1940s.

In 1947, she was awarded an Order of the British Empire for her community services. In 1948, Margaret was approached by local business leaders to stand as an independent for the seat of Cornwall in the Legislative Council. The first woman elected to the Tasmanian Parliament, Margaret defeated the sitting member with a clear majority. At that stage, voting for the Legislative Council was not universal and was subject to property qualifications. The only women who were entitled to vote were returned servicewomen and nurses who had served in World War I. Margaret was sworn in on 29 June 1948. She was elected at a tumultuous time in Tasmanian politics and during her first weeks of sitting, was one of three Legislative Councillors who voted against an attempt to block supply. Margaret died tragically less than six months after her election in a plane crash. She was returning from a conference of the National Council of Women in Brisbane.

Doreen McTye attended New Town Primary and Ogilvie High Schools. She married in 1948 and had two children, a daughter and a son.

Doreen joined the Hobart Repertory Society in 1959. She was elected to the management committee in 1964 and served nine years as a member, followed by terms as Vice President (nine years) and President (12 years). In 1966, Doreen directed a statewide drama festival.

Doreen has introduced a range of innovative programs in response to community needs. In 1972, she initiated a live theatre program for children, which has become an annual event that plays to between 6,000 and 10,000 preschool and primary school children. Following the collapse of the Tasman Bridge, Doreen organised a production of Cinderella at Clarence High School for an audience of 2,000 children from the Eastern Shore. This has also become an annual event.

Doreen has taken several productions to rural areas, including Queenstown, Franklin, Oatlands and Ouse. In all, Doreen has directed 12 children’s pantomimes and participated in more than 25 other productions as a director, stage manager or actor. For the past 25 years, Doreen has been the stage manager for the Country Women’s Association's choral and drama festivals.

Doreen became a Life Member of the Repertory Society in 1989 and received a Variety Club award in recognition of 30 years of voluntary service to amateur theatre in Hobart. Ill health forced Doreen’s retirement from repertory productions in 1993, however she continues to advise groups on theatre administration and management. For the past five years, Doreen has adjudicated the Hobart Legacy junior speaking competition.

Doreen has a range of interests. She is an active golfer and has been a member of the Elderslie Golf Club for 25 years, serving as women’s captain for several years. She is also Secretary of the North Hobart branch of Probus.

Doreen joined the Derwent Bowls Club in 1987. After serving as a committee member for several years, she was elected as Women’s President. She is the newly elected President of the Past Presidents Women Bowlers Association. Doreen was instrumental in the campaign to secure equal status for women bowlers in the national administration of the sport.

Robyn Moore spent her early years on sheep and cattle stations from Tasmania to outback Queensland, where her father was a stockman. On these isolated properties, her creative imagination began to develop and the wireless became her ‘friend’. Educated at Sorell Area School and Ogilvie High School (elected Head Prefect in 1966), she started primary school teaching in 1972 and then specialised in drama and movement. Robyn also devised, wrote and performed in countless ABC educational radio programs and became ABC Liaison Officer in 1975.

In 1976, Robyn and her husband moved to Sydney. She quickly established herself as one of Australia’s most versatile performers as an actress, singer, national TV presenter and voice-over artist. For 30 years, her voice has been heard in almost every home in Australia in well-known TV and radio commercials, documentaries, training videos and animation productions. She created all the female voices in Australia’s longest-running radio comedy How Green Was My Cactus and has enchanted children as the voice of Blinky Bill. Three Blinky Bill animated TV series have been seen in more than 70 countries, extended into CDs and award-winning educational CD ROMS.

In 1998, Robyn was awarded the National Communicator of the Year Award for excellence in oral communication.

Robyn’s charity work reflects her desire for all children to be cherished and nurtured. She is the National Patron of Make-A-Wish Foundation, an Ambassador for the Australian Childhood Foundation (committed to ending child abuse in Australia) and has supported the Cancer Council, ABC Giving Tree, Royal Hobart Hospital Research Foundation, Ronald Macdonald House and student leadership bodies including the ‘Step To The Future’ Foundation. She also works with students at risk in several Tasmanian schools. She is the first Tasmanian to be an Ambassador for the Australia Day Council and speaks at Australia Day celebrations around the country.

All this experience and skill is expressed in Robyn’s ‘vocation’. Australia’s most in-demand female speaker, she speaks to about 40,000 people each year about ‘the power of the word’. She has a unique relationship with words and the ability to open up greater access to ‘life-altering’ communication. Her corporate and community audiences report transformation in attitude, behaviour, productivity, satisfaction and relationships at work and at home. Her art form is communication. Robyn’s personal slogan is: ‘Be an irresistible invitation to participate in life.’ Robyn has been married to Hal for 33 years, has two sons, Toby and Daniel, and chooses to live in Tasmania.

She would always respond to the calls for help from women in crisis, often putting her own safety in danger to ensure she removed women and children from violent situations. - Julie Orr and Vivien Patterson

Lynne Morffew was born in Melbourne and returned to Stanley, Tasmania, with her family at the age of two. After her father was lost at sea in 1958, the family moved to Ulverstone to be with relatives. Lynne attended West Ulverstone Primary and Ulverstone High School. She married in 1973 and had three sons.

When Lynne left school in 1971, she moved to Brisbane and worked at the Weirrilda Children’s Home for Babies. The next year, she moved to Hobart and commenced work at the Bethany Children’s Home in Lindisfarne. From 1989 until 2004, she was self employed as a dressmaker and cake decorator in her small business at Bellerive.

In 1995, Lynne began volunteer work for Bethany Family Homes, assisting women with children coming out of domestic violence situations. She was employed as a field worker in 1996 at Bethany Family Ministry working with families in crisis. She was a passionate believer in the rights of others to live their lives free from violence. She made huge personal sacrifices, giving her time and energy to hundreds of women and children over the course of her life, often outside her normal working hours.

She completed many vocational courses to improve her skills and knowledge and better equip her for the work she undertook. In 1996, Lynne commenced part-time studies towards a Bachelor of Arts and intended to complete an Advanced Diploma in Social Work, but was unable to do so because she was diagnosed with cancer in 2001. After treatment, she returned to work but the cancer reappeared and she died in 2004.

Lynne was a respected and inspirational role model to many young women, and many former clients attended her funeral.

Anne O’Byrne was educated in Sydney. She trained and worked at the Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children at Camperdown from 1949 until 1961 and was Foundation Charge Sister responsible for the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit.

She came to Tasmania after marrying Senator Justin O’Byrne (later President of the Senate) in 1961 and had three children, two daughters and a son.

Anne has been at the forefront of women’s organisations in Launceston since the early 1960s. She has served as President of the Penguin Club (1964) and National Council of Women (1977-78), and President and Vice President of Zonta (1993-96 and 1996-98). She was the Foundation President of the Launceston Community Hostel (1977-85) and a member of the Hostel Management Committee until its closure.

Anne’s involvement in health administration has included being a member of the Launceston General Hospital Board (1968-71), Northern Regional Health Board (1987-94) and Queen Victoria Hospital Board (1976-87). As Chair of the Northern Regional Health Board, Anne played a major role in the establishment of the Clifford Craig Medical Research Foundation.

Anne’s interest in politics and women’s issues is also reflected in her membership of the Women’s Electoral Lobby since 1971, her contribution to the National Women’s Consultative Council as Deputy Convenor (1986-88) and Convenor (1988-89) and her time as a Board Member of the National Foundation of Women (1999-2001). Anne was secretary of the Labor Women’s Branch (1968), foundation secretary of the Australian Labor Party Sisterhood (1968-71) and Vice-President of the Tasmanian Branch of the ALP (1983-85). Anne helped to establish the Launceston Women’s Shelter in 1973.

Anne is President of the Friends of the ABC Tasmania, a member of the Launceston Refugee Support Group and the Australian Women’s Archives Project.

Anne’s service to her community and the State were recognised in 2001 when she received a Centenary Medal and was named a Member of the Order of Australia.

Lexie Paul was educated at Wivenhoe School. She married in 1955 and had two sons.

Lexie’s dedication to environmental protection, in particular the protection of the Little (Fairy) Penguin colonies, is well known along the North-West Coast. Lexie has been an active Coastcare volunteer since 1989. She has been instrumental in raising community awareness regarding the need to protect Little Penguins and their habitat on the edge of the Bass Highway. She has been a volunteer penguin guide at Lillico for more than 10 years and has supervised Green Corps projects that fenced sensitive habitat areas at Penguin and Wynyard.

As coordinator of the Cooee to Camdale Coastcare, Lexie has spent the past year propagating native coastal species, removing weeds at Cooee Point and revegetating the area with 2,200 native coastal species. She has supervised the Work for the Dole teams that operated two days a week on the coastal reserve. This project provided additional protection for the penguin colony through the establishment of synthetic nesting burrows and regular monitoring of the penguins. For five years, Lexie has used the glasshouses at Burnie Multicap day centre to propagate plants and to make penguin igloos, with assistance from the centre’s clients.

For the past 10 years, Lexie has conducted school holiday programs with children to teach them how to plant, make rock burrows and identify rock pool species. She also assists with the delivery of Somerset Primary School’s environmental science program, providing advice on weeding and planting.

Lexie has made a significant contribution as a volunteer in the tourism sector, acting as a guide at Cradle Mountain from 1997 until 2003. Lexie is a member of the Burnie Field Naturalists Club and represents the Club on the Carers of Cradle committee. She has been a member of the North West Walking Club for 15 years and received the Golden Boot Award in 1998 for her contribution to the club.

Lexie’s efforts have been recognised through the Tasmanian Award for Environmental Excellence and the Burnie City Council’s Unsung Heroes Award in 2002. In 2003, she was named as Best Work for the Dole Supervisor as part of the Prime Minister’s National Awards. This award recognised her contribution to protecting coastal regions and commended her personal involvement with each of the participants.

Fay Reeve attended Tewkesbury, Ridgley, Seabrook and Wynyard Schools. She married in 1947 and had three children, a son and two daughters. Fay was an active member of the Parent and Friends committees of the Boat Harbour Area School for 22 years, maintaining her involvement with the school for a further nine years after her last child had finished at the school.

In 1962, Fay formed the First Boat Harbour Girl Guide Company. In 1972, she was appointed for a five-year term as District Commissioner for Wynyard and Boat Harbour. In 1980, Fay was appointed as Divisional Commissioner with responsibility for the Penguin to Smithton region of the North West and the West Coasts. She served seven years in this role, attending monthly meetings in Hobart and Launceston.

Fay joined the St John Ambulance Brigade in 1965 and has held an Instructor’s Certificate since 1967. She has fulfilled many public duty requests, taken part in State and National competitions and undertaken an extensive range of administrative and fundraising roles. Fay was a member of the State Training Team from 1981-87. She was admitted to the Order as a Serving Sister in 1973. In 1976, she was the first Tasmanian woman to win an individual National title in the National Competitions.

Fay was appointed as the Brigade’s Divisional Secretary in 1980 and promoted to Divisional Superintendent in 1983. In 1983, she was part of a group that successfully lobbied the Waratah-Wynyard Council to secure a former school building for use as a community centre and to provide a permanent base for the division. She and her husband undertook the necessary restoration work and the centre opened in 1984. Fay was promoted to Officer Sister in 1985. She served as Divisional Treasurer from 1988 until 2004. Fay was promoted to Commander Sister in 1994 and to Dame of Grace in 1999.

Fay was a member of the North West Regional Hospital Board from 1981-84. After her retirement from the St John Ambulance Brigade, she served as Chair of the Wynyard Tulip Festival for five years.

Fay is currently a committee member of the National St John Ambulance Historical Society. She also volunteers at the Visitor Information Centre at Wynyard and recently joined the School for Seniors in Burnie.

I believe all human beings are equal in their humanity, and if every one just remembered this simple fact in every deal they have with another, there would be no need for the armament industry. That’s pie in the sky I know, but worth striving for. - Margot Roe

Margot was born in Amsterdam and during her childhood lived in Sri Lanka. She spent the war years in Australia and lived in Kalimantan in Indonesia, until her parents decided she needed to go to school. They then returned to Australia, where she completed her secondary education and went to the University of Melbourne to study History and English.

In 1951, she tried to join the Carlton Branch of the ALP with a number of other young people, however they were refused on the basis of being too left wing and likely to be communists. This was a false accusation, but one which made Margot aware of how easily individuals or groups could be unjustly vilified.

Margot studied anthropology at Cambridge and gained a PhD from the Australian National University. She became a foundation member of the Department of Sociology at the University of Tasmania. She was actively involved in the Department’s pioneering work in providing university programs on the North-West Coast and worked towards the establishment of Riawunna, the University’s Aboriginal Education Centre.

Following her retirement, she was active in social justice and human rights matters. Margot became the President of the Tasmanian branch of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) and Co-President of the Peace Trust. In these positions, she worked on human rights issues, such as refugees, treatment of asylum seekers, trafficking in women and anti-terrorism measures. As an active member of the United Nations Association, she was also involved in working towards the goals of the Beijing Platform for Action on Women and enhancing gender participation in all aspects of the work of the UN and national governments, including peace keeping.

Margot was a founding member of the Hobart City Council’s Networking for Harmony group, which aims to embrace diversity and promote inclusiveness within the community, and Women in Black which protests regularly in Franklin Square to show solidarity with others who want non-violent solutions to social and economic problems. She helped to organise Human Rights Week over several years, and was a longstanding member of Amnesty International.

As a lover of all animals, Margot was involved for many years training companion dogs and supporting the work of the Hobart Dogs Home.

Margot was one of Tasmania’s unsung volunteers, working full-time in a volunteer capacity, with a vitality and enthusiasm that is remarkable.

Maureen Rudge was born in Tamworth. She arrived in Tasmania in 1963 to begin a career as an occupational therapist at the Royal Hobart Hospital. She then spent time working in Canada, and ten years at the Launceston General Hospital as the chief occupational therapist. She has worked in acute health care, rehabilitation services and for the Mt Lyell Mining and Railway Company. She has been a Member of the Board of Management of the Queen Victoria Hospital Launceston and was appointed to the Medical and Rehabilitation Advisory Committee of the Tasmanian Worker’s Compensation Board in 1989.

Her contribution to occupational therapy in Tasmania has spanned many years and culminated in her being awarded the Jean Newton Memorial Award by her peers to recognise the outstanding contribution she has made to the State in this field.

Since the introduction of the Workers Compensation Act 1988 in Tasmania, Maureen has been one of the pioneers in the field of vocational rehabilitation in the State. She became inaugural President of the Tasmanian Association of Vocational Rehabilitation and has served on the executive for the past 16 years. In her capacity as the convenor of the Association’s conference committee, she worked to stage three National Conferences on Vocational Rehabilitation, which have been held in Tasmania and attracted significant numbers of interstate and international delegates to Hobart.

Maureen’s contribution to the community spans many years and includes being a volunteer presenter on 7RPH Print Radio Tasmania. She has presented her own radio program on the station every Thursday evening since 1997. She has served as President of the 7RPH Committee and is the Tasmanian representative on the Australia Council of Radio for the Print Handicapped.

In 1996, Maureen was made a Justice of the Peace and since her appointment has undertaken various roles with the Tasmanian Society of Honorary Justices and the Tasmanian Council of Justices Association, at both a state and national level. In 2002 she was appointed as a Bench Justice in the Hobart Magistrates Court to deal with and hear out-of-hours bail applications. This is a voluntary role and involves sitting and being present at the Magistrates Court, for many hours at weekends and in the evenings.

Maureen has made a significant contribution to many facets of life in Tasmania through many years of professional work and community activities.

Margaret Scott was educated at Redland High School for Girls in Bristol, United Kingdom. In 1953, she went on to Newnham College at the University of Cambridge and gained a Bachelor of Arts. She later completed her Masters Degree at the University of Cambridge. She migrated to Tasmania in 1959 with her husband. She had four children, two sons and two daughters. She later enjoyed an extension to her family of three stepchildren, two girls and a boy.

Margaret joined the staff of the English Department at the University of Tasmania in 1966, where she was beloved of a generation of students. In 1978, Margaret completed a PhD at the University of Tasmania. She went on to become a senior lecturer and then head of the department in 1987. She retired in 1989 to pursue her writing career. Margaret received an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Tasmania in 1999. After the death of her partner, she moved to the Tasman Peninsula.

Her work, both serious and humorous, reflects unique aspects of the Tasmanian landscape, culture and experience. Through the late 1990s, she made a number of appearances on ABC-TV’s Good News Week, endearing herself to Australian audiences with her witty repartee. In addition to her work as a writer and teacher, Margaret maintained a strong community involvement to ensure the conservation and promotion of Tasmania’s culture and heritage, particularly that of the Tasman Peninsula.

In 2000, Margaret was appointed to the board of the Port Arthur Historic Site Management Authority. She was a founder and board member of the Tasman Institute of Conservation and Convict Studies and a member of the Tasman Trust, a body formed to raise funds and initiate projects designed to improve the quality of life in the Tasman municipality following the 1996 Port Arthur tragedy.

Her literary service included: Fiction Editor for Voices; (National Library Quarterly) 1995; Visiting Assessor assisting the Literature Board of Australia; Council Member and Chairperson of the Literature Panel of the Tasmanian Arts Advisory Board; State Representative for the Association of the Study of Australian Literature; Chief Examiner for English Studies (Tasmania); Chairperson of the Board of Island magazine (1980-1995); Patron of the Society of Women Writers Australia; and a Fellow of Anglicare.

Margaret was awarded numerous prizes and grants throughout her distinguished career. She received one of her highest accolades in 2005 when she was presented with the Australia Council Writers Emeritus Award for her lifelong contribution to Australian literature.

Frances Seen attended the Sheffield and Beaconsfield area schools. She married in 1958 and had four sons.

Frances has been a member of the Beaconsfield Uniting Church congregation for 54 years. She has undertaken many support roles within the church including Sunday School teacher and superintendent (35 years); presbytery representative (18 years); fair secretary; congregation secretary; church elder; convener of interdenominational services; Tamar Esk Presbytery Mission convenor; and cleaner. Frances has been a religious celebrant for eight years and is currently training to become a Community Minister.

Frances is a longstanding member of several local groups including the Beaconsfield Hospital Auxiliary (32 years), Women’s Aglow Fellowship (26 years) and the Tamar Social Slimmers (32 years).

Frances was active in the Parent and Friends Groups at Beaconsfield Primary and Riverside High Schools, State Emergency Service Women’s catering committee, Meals on Wheels, Beaconsfield Football Club Ladies Committee and the North Launceston Amateur Athletics Club. Frances was a long-serving member of the Beaconsfield Show Committee (25 years) and the War Memorial Community Centre Committee (27 years).

In 1988, Frances received a Bicentennial Award and in 1991 she was named Australia Day Citizen of the Year for the Beaconsfield municipality. In 2006 she was awarded an Order of Australia Medal for service to the community of Beaconsfield.

Amy made her professional debut in May 1878 at the Theatre Royal in Hobart in the Royal Italian Opera Company production of Don Pasquale. In June 1878, Amy appeared at the Opera House in Melbourne with the Royal Italian Opera. Her outstanding success saw her become known as 'The Tasmanian Nightingale'.

She married during her 1878 tour of New Zealand. In 1879, Amy left the Italian Opera Company and sailed for America with her husband. She joined the Strakosch Company making her American debut at the Grand Opera House in San Francisco. Amy spent several years in America combining performances with further professional study. She finished her musical education in Europe, studying oratorio, opera and deportment. Her son was born during the early 1880s. In 1883, Amy made her London debut at the Drury Lane Theatre.

Amy was one of the greatest sopranos of her era, and travelled more widely than any of her contemporaries. She visited Tasmania three times during her career, and travelled throughout the State including the Huon, West Coast, Midlands and Launceston.

Amy toured Northern America and Canada in 1887 to wide acclaim. Returning to Melbourne, she performed at the Queen's Jubilee Celebration Concert. Amy returned in triumph to Hobart in July 1887 and was given a civic reception followed by an enthusiastic welcome from the crowds who are said to have unharnessed her horses and pulled her carriage through the streets of Hobart.

In late 1888 Amy embarked on a tour that included India, Ceylon, Singapore, Hong Kong, China and Japan. She returned to Europe in 1889, performing regularly until the birth of her daughter in 1894.

In 1897, Amy again toured Australia and in January 1898 she gave a concert in Hobart’s Wesleyan Church in aid of the Fire Relief Fund for Tasmanian bushfire victims.

She returned to England in 1899 and now made it her home. During her last Australian tour in 1906-07, she conducted workshops to tutor promising singers. She retired from the stage in 1908, restricting herself to teaching.

In her later years, Amy experienced financial hardship caring for her invalid daughter. Becoming ill in 1934, Amy entered a charity ward in a London Hospital. An article in The Mercury detailed her impoverished circumstances and an appeal launched by the Lord Mayor raised 200 pounds towards the cost of her treatment. Amy's letter of thanks was printed in The Mercury in September 1934. Amy died on 20 September 1935 in London. A wreath was sent from the Tasmanian Government with the inscription ‘A tribute to the memory of a famous Tasmanian’.

June Smith was educated in Wombwell, Yorkshire in the United Kingdom. She married and had two sons.

In November 1969, June and her family emigrated from the United Kingdom, settling in George Town in Northern Tasmania. June was a founding member of the Play Centre in 1971 and was elected President, becoming heavily involved in fundraising. June was an active member of Parent and Friends Associations from 1972 until 1978 at the schools attended by her children. For five years, she volunteered as School Canteen Convener, organising rosters and introducing healthy eating programs. A member of the George Town Swimming Pool Association, June helped to fundraise for the development of the facility.

In 1975, June was elected to the George Town Council, serving for three years as Deputy Warden, the first woman to do so. She remained on Council until 1984 and was the Council’s representative on all child care, welfare, school, women’s and senior citizen committees.

In 1976, June was appointed to the YMCA Board of Management, a role she filled for five years. She organised school holiday activities, projects for the unemployed and camps for disadvantaged children.

June was the convenor of the annual John Batman Festival from 1977 until 1983. In 1980, June founded the Ladies Leisure Centre and was the centre’s coordinator for six years. June was made a Life Member of the Senior Citizens Club in 1984 in recognition of her role in securing government funding and business support for the centre.

In 1987, June was appointed the Community Officer for the George Town Council. She secured government funding for a community car service, family support worker, social worker, youth worker, food and nutrition worker, office traineeships and youth employment schemes. June also instigated the George Town Winter Appeal, which included all church and community groups.

Following her retirement in 1995 from Council, June established the George Town Choral Group, which performs at community events and also entertains the residents of the Ainslie House aged care facility. For six years, she volunteered every week at Ainslie House, organising games afternoons for the residents. During the past six years, she has been a volunteer for a diabetic study conducted by the Launceston General Hospital.

Medals and awards presented to June have included a Public Service Medal (1993), the RSL Australia Day Medal for her services to the George Town community (1993), a medal from the George Town Police in recognition of her services (1995) and the Medal of the Order of Australia (2003).

I believe if you have love and understanding there are no boundaries between human beings. The bond of common humanity is stronger than individual differences, and regardless of these differences we all have the need for around the same amount of human affection. We should also strive to have a society which values our ethnic diversity, for this makes us all better persons. - Sajini Sumar

Sajini Sumar chose a nursing career due to her interest in helping others. She worked as a registered nurse in many countries including India, Zambia, Iran, Dubai and England before coming to Australia with her husband and three children in 1985.

Due to injury, she could not continue her nursing career. For the past 10 years, she has been a full-time community volunteer. She is involved in many community activities, such as helping newly arrived migrants to settle in Tasmania by meeting them, letting them know about services, assisting with problems and developing friendship networks. Through the Multicultural Red Cross Group, she also visits sick and aged migrants in hospitals and nursing homes.

Sajini has been heavily involved in the Migrant Resource Centre of Southern Tasmania, the International Wall of Friendship and the Hobart and Kingston Networking for Harmony groups. She has also spoken at a number of schools over the years to promote cross-cultural understanding.

She has been a member of the Multicultural Council of Tasmania for many years. She has worked as a volunteer on many projects including the staging of health education forums for young and old focusing on health related topics such as diabetes management, quitting smoking, nursing home issues and incontinence. She is a founding member and participant in the Tasmanian Community Parliament, a non-partisan community forum that meets bi-annually and focuses on social and economic issues facing the Tasmanian community.

She is planning to involve more migrant and refugee women in the Multicultural Council by supporting and encouraging them to participate in the community as a means of helping immigrants to become part of a wider Australian community.

Sajini’s work continues on weekends as immigrants regularly seek support and help in their difficult situations. She provides transport to and from church and her door is always open to those in need.

Pym Trueman spent the first nine years of her life on her father’s sheep station in rural South Australia. She completed her education as a boarder at the Presbyterian Girls’ College in Adelaide. Leaving school at age 16, Pym returned home to work on her father’s farm because many of the station workers were absent on war service. Pym later went to live with her mother in Whyalla, studying secretarial skills at the Technical College.

Pym married and lived in Perth, Canberra and Melbourne. She has six children, four daughters and two sons.

Following a marriage breakdown Pym took her two year old son to India where she was a representative of For Those Who Have Less, an organisation which exported sheep and cattle to India to assist with herd improvement. She spent 12 months living with a colony of outcastes in Sri Lanka on a Community Aid Abroad development project.

On her return from India, Pym settled in Tasmania and enrolled at the University of Tasmania as a mature age student in Special Education. A full time student for seven years, she also worked as an aide with the Tasmanian Spastics Association and established a Non-Verbal Communication Committee with other speech therapists. After her graduation in 1981 Pym was posted to Queenstown where she was responsible for delivery of Special Education in four schools for the next two years.

Pym is active in the Baha’i Community, and was one of 19 Australians selected to attend the Baha’i 100 Year Commemoration in Haifa, Israel. She also spent 12 months in Western Samoa serving as secretary to a Samoa Mata’i village chief who was a leader of the Western Samoan Baha’i Community. She returned to Tasmania and was appointed as a Non-Government Liaison Officer for the Tasmanian Baha’i Community. In this role she provided support to a range of community organisations. In 1997 Pym received a Human Rights Week Award in recognition of her ‘dedicated and voluntary service in the areas of peace, Aboriginal reconciliation and inter-faith relations.’

Pym is also involved in the United Nations Association of Tasmania serving as Secretary and Vice President. She is currently the Information Officer for the National Association. In 2001, she received the United Nations Day Award, and was made a Life Member in the following year, in recognition of her outstanding service to the Association.

There are many people who have done far greater things than what I have done. I’ve always believed that your talents and gifts are meant to be used for the benefit of each other. - Bev 1996

Bev Twibell was educated at North Motton and Ulverstone Primary Schools. She married in 1940 and had three children, two daughters and a son.

Bev was involved in a number of campaigns to improve facilities in East Devonport. In the 1950s, she was secretary of the East Devonport Pre-School Committee, which successfully lobbied for a pre-school, and secretary of the East Devonport Mothers Club for five years, pushing for the establishment of a Baby Health Clinic for the area.

Bev was the Secretary/Treasurer of the Don Memorial Hall Committee and for many years organised regular dances, raising more than $70,000 in aid of charitable organisations and causes including Lifeline, Roland Children’s Home, St Paul’s Anglican Church, Wesley Church, Multiple Sclerosis and Cystic Fibrosis.

In 1991, Bev decided to dedicate her fundraising efforts to the Tasmanian Sudden Infant Death Society (SIDS) Tasmania. She won the Mrs Tasmania High Achiever Award for 1992, having raised more than $35,000. She went on to win the SIDS Fundraiser of the Year title in 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2002, raising more than $80,000 in eight years.

Bev was also  a publicity officer for the Devonport Organic Gardening and Farming Society, secretary of the Devonport Field Naturalist’s Club, a member and secretary for five years of the Lapidary Club and member of the North West Walking Club. She was a member of the Devonport Technical College Council for 20 years. In 1999, Bev was secretary of a committee that raised $22,000 in two years to restore the pipe organ at the Devonport Uniting Church.

Bev organised the Bride of the Year for over 10 years, with money raised at the event going to research into childhood diseases. She was the vice president of the Senior Citizens Club in Devonport, secretary of Meercroft Home Auxiliary and secretary of the Don Indoor Bowls Club.

In 1996, Bev was awarded Devonport’s Citizen of the Year Award. She received recognition during the International Year of the Volunteer (2001) and received a Tasmanian Day Award in 2002. In 2006 she was awarded an Order of Australia Medal for service to the community.

Kath Venn was educated at Campbell Street Primary and Ogilvie High Schools. She then found employment with the Australian Workers Union. She married in 1951 and has been a foster parent.

When Kath first became active in Labor politics as a young union delegate in the late 1940s, women party members tended to be consigned to the invisible work of politics, such as making tea, fundraising and manning the polling booths. Kath recalls it was very unusual for ‘a woman to get up and speak at a meeting in those days’. However, she did, setting a pattern for her future career as a highly visible politician and community activist.

She achieved national prominence in 1969 when she became the first female State Secretary of a major political party in Australia. Kath was also federal secretary of the Labor Women's Organisation, president of the RSL Women's Auxiliary (she was to serve on this auxiliary for 34 years), federal secretary of the Housewives Association and consumers' representative on the Tasmanian Milk Board.

In 1976, Kath became Tasmania's fourth female politician, elected to the seat of Hobart in the Legislative Council after the retirement of Phyllis Benjamin. She served as an MLC until 1982, including three years as Deputy Leader for the Government.

Kath remained active in the paid and volunteer workforce after her retirement from parliamentary politics. In addition to working as a marriage celebrant (a career she had begun in the mid-1970s) and Justice of the Peace, she was State President of the Housewives Association until 1991. Other roles include being a volunteer at the Repatriation Hospital for 37 years including the Alice Elliott Day Centre, member of the Prisoners' Aid Society, Past President of the Mount Stuart Progress Association, State Treasurer since 1970 of the Australian Forces Overseas Fund, and Chairwoman of the Ogilvie High School Hostel Board.

Venn House at Ogilvie High is named in Kath’s honour and she hosts regular meetings of the Old Scholars Association. For 25 years, Kath has been involved with Caroline House, a crisis accommodation centre for women, and is currently its President. She has been the President of the Masonic Widows Association since 2000. In 2004, she was appointed State President of the Catholic Women’s League. Kath is also a member of the State Committee of the Order of Australia Association and has been the Secretary/Treasurer for nine years.

Kath was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia in 1990. In 2002, she was made ANZAC of the year.

Marion Vincent grew up in Wynyard and Waratah, on Tasmania’s North-West Coast. She missed a lot of school, as she was often required to look after her five younger siblings while her parents were working and later because she was helping in their bakery at Waratah. She always remembered a next door neighbour who had kept a live Tasmanian Tiger in his backyard.

Marion married in 1927 and had three children, two sons and a daughter. In 1929, Marion and her husband purchased a funeral business in Burnie. After her husband died suddenly in 1948, Marion made the difficult decision to continue running the business with her 19 year-old-son, despite having two younger children and a substantial business debt. At this time, there were very few women in the funeral business. Marion was a pioneer, providing inspiration to other women, encouraging professional development and participation in industry associations. Marion succeeded in her goal of continuing the firm until her sons were able to take over completely. She developed a strong customer base and was widely respected for her sensitivity and care in assisting bereaved families.

Marion was a foundation member of Soroptimist International of Burnie and maintained her involvement for more than 50 years. She was a Past President of the Burnie group and a Life Member. Marion was a member of the Burnie Bowls Club for 40 years and also a Life Member, Patron and former President. She was also involved with the Probus Club of Burnie, Red Cross and the Spencer Hospital Fundraising Committee.

Marion died in June 2004, just one month after celebrating her 100th birthday. March 2004 marked the 75th anniversary of the Vincent family’s ownership of its funeral business. Marion was always immensely proud that the firm had produced three National Presidents of the Australian Funeral Directors Association.

Mary was a pillar of society in North East Tasmania. She took the place of a local doctor, she was on call 24 hours a day and never complained at 3am calls. The community delighted in presenting her with a car and a home, and even shared their farm produce with her, which in turn she shared with the needy. - Eulogy 1998

Mary Walsh and her twin brother were born in Strathalbyn, in South Australia. There were 10 children in the family. She completed her general nursing training at the Royal Adelaide Hospital and her midwifery training at the Queen Alexandra Hospital in Hobart.

Mary was Lilydale’s longest serving bush nurse, working there from 1940 until 1974. In the tradition of bush nursing, the Lilydale community was responsible for funding close to half of her annual salary. A nurse’s wages were dependent on the district’s commitment to fundraising. The people of Lilydale and the surrounding community sold eggs, jam and produce, as well as holding dances and an annual Bush Nursing Ball, to fund her wages. The Lilydale Council supplied her with a car and a home was found for her in the community. Her first surgery was in a former garage with no electricity. A Bush Nursing Centre was opened in 1948.

In 1953, it was reported that Mary travelled more than 800 miles a month to care for her patients. She delivered more than 40 babies during her career and there were no deaths, despite these deliveries taking place in cars, bush huts and private homes. She often drove mothers in labour to the hospital in Launceston.

Mary attended all local domestic sicknesses and injury, assisted men injured in sawmilling accidents or in the bush, and conducted a weekly child health clinic and regular medical checks at the local schools.

When Mary retired in 1974, her home was donated to the community and it became a base for the District Nursing Service. Mary returned to Adelaide and cared for her sister for a number of years. She was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 1966 in recognition of her dedicated service to her adopted community. In 2002, the Lilydale Community Day Care Centre was renamed the ‘Mary Walsh Centre’.

Just be who you are and be proud of whatever side you're on, whatever blood is in you and hold your head up high. Show some respect for all and hope that everyone respects you. That's the main thing. That's all any of us can do. - Aunty Ida 1997

Ida West (Aunty Ida) was born on the Reserve at Cape Barren Island. Her family moved to Killiecrankie, on Flinders Island, in the early 1920s and an account of her childhood is available in her book Pride Against Prejudice, which was published in 1984. She married in 1939 and had three children, two sons and a daughter.

Ida is well known in Tasmania as a strong social advocate for her people. In her lifetime, she achieved significant results in women's health, land rights and the recognition of the Aboriginal community in Tasmania.

Ida became politically active after joining a union and seeing the benefit of joint action. Soon afterwards she joined the Labor Party and became involved in Aboriginal politics in the 1970s. She went on to become President of the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre. Ida had a strong commitment to the return of Aboriginal remains and was one of two custodians of the remains of Truganini. Her efforts, together with other Aboriginal activists, culminated in the handing over of the title deeds to Wybalenna on Flinders Island to the Aboriginal community in April 1999.

Ida was committed to passing on Tasmanian Aboriginal stories and culture to younger generations and the wider community. She visited many schools throughout the State and worked on many projects with students. Ida was a founding member of the Glenorchy Branch of Australians for Reconciliation.

Ida’s contribution to her community was recognised with a number of awards, including National Female Aboriginal Elder of the Year in 2002 and being named as a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) on 26 January 2002. In 2003, she was presented with a National Special Achievement Award at the NAIDOC ceremony in Hobart.

Aunty Ida died in 2003 after a long battle with cancer.

I can say now that equal pay has not come to what it should be. I think women are still losing out on equal pay. Unless someone stands up and is counted again I think the women will lose out on equal pay because there are no two ways about it. If the women let the males dominate they will dominate again. - Nell Williams

Nell Williams was born in Lorinna, in North-West Tasmania. After her family moved to Hobart, Nell started working at Cadbury’s but left after four years because the cocoa troubled her lungs.

Nell worked as a volunteer for the Red Cross and was presented with an award for good service from 1939-1964.

In 1948, Nell started work as a cook at the Royal Derwent Hospital where she worked for 27 years. She joined the Hospital Employee’s Federation in 1953 and became State President in 1966. She was the first woman in Australia to be elected to such a position, which she held until 1973. During that time, she campaigned for equal pay and better working conditions for women.

Nell was also the first person to be awarded an Order of Australia in 1987 for her work in unions, which included the Tasmanian Pensioners Union and the Hospital Employee’s Federation. She continued to take an active role in the Pensioners Union, of which she had been State President and Senior Vice President.

Nell was an active voluntary worker all her life. In 1968, she was an inaugural member of the Board of Management of the Royal Derwent Hospital. Nell served on this Board for 25 years, as an advocate for people with mental illness or intellectual disabilities and staff. Nell was actually one of the inaugural members of the board of management in 1968.

Nell was also an active member of the Australian Labor Party and in the 1970s was one of the only women to hold a position on the executive. She received the 1998 Australia Day Citizen Award.

Nell died on Christmas Eve 2006, aged 94.

Bev Wills was educated at the The Friends' School and Ogilvie High School. She married in 1958 and had three sons and one daughter. Bev enjoyed a 47-year career in retail and travel businesses in Moonah. She was actively involved in local, state and national industry sector bodies. She was a member of the Australian Federation of Travel Agents and served on the Australian board for 12 years. She was made a Life Member, the only woman to receive this honour.

Bev was elected to the Glenorchy City Council in 1975 and served for 16 years. She was the inaugural Tasmanian President of the Australian Local Government Women’s Association for six years and served as National President. She was made a Life Member.

Bev had an extraordinary record of generosity and commitment as a fundraiser for charity. Named as Miss Tasmania Charity and Miss Australia Charity in 1957, she devoted more than 25 years to the Miss Tasmania Quest and was responsible for raising in excess of $500,000. From 1996 until her death in 2005, Bev was the fundraising coordinator for the Giant Steps School and raised $285,000, including $70,000 in the last year of her life. For seven years, Bev was fighting cancer.

From 1964 until 1988, Bev was a member of the Moonah Rotariannes and in 1991 she was the first woman to be inducted as a Rotarian by the Rotary Club of Moonah. In 1994, Bev was the first woman to join the District Governor’s Committee. She served as President of the Rotary Club of Moonah in 2000-01.

From 1961 until 1982, Bev was a member of the Country Women’s Association (Moonah Branch) and served a term as State President. She represented the CWA on the United National Association State Executive and represented Tasmania at the 1974 World Conference in Perth. Bev was a Charter Vice President of the Zonta Club of Glenorchy/Derwent Valley and a member for four years. Bev was named as a Member of the Order of Australia Medal in 1992, and in 2001 was named as a Paul Harris Fellow by Rotary.

Christina Winter was born and educated in Launceston. She married in 1909 and had three sons. In 1909, Christina and her husband moved to Burnie to establish a photographic studio. She was a tireless worker for health, church and war-time endeavours.

Christina was President of the Burnie Branch of the Royal Tasmanian Society for the Blind and Deaf for many years and was made a Life Member in 1937. Christina was awarded the RSL Certificate of Merit for her work in support of returned servicemen and women during World War I and II. She was a foundation member and mainstay of the Red Cross, which was formed in 1914 and was one of the first women’s organisations in Burnie. During World War II, she was the Superintendent of the Red Cross workroom that undertook sewing, knitting and the distribution of food parcels.

Christina was a member of the Burnie Sick and Benevolent Committee for many years, providing much needed charitable assistance to her fellow citizens during the 1930s depression and at other times of hardship. Christina was a member of the Burnie Victoria League, which helped to purchase a vehicle to enable the Burnie bush nurse to visit country families. In 1958, she was a member of the inaugural Umina Park Home for the Aged Committee.

In 1950, Christina was appointed to the first Board of Management of the Burnie Public Hospital. She was a Life Member of the Hospital Auxiliary.

She was a lifelong worker for the Parish of St George's Church of England and held almost every office at some time. Christina was the Superintendent of the Sunday School for more than 50 years.

Christina was a dedicated fundraiser, selling badges for the Annual Wattle Day Appeal in support of the Tasmanian Sanatorium, and she was also an untiring supporter of the Annual Appeal in aid of the Spencer Hospital in Wynyard.

In 1944, Christina was made a Member of the British Empire in recognition of her service to the community.

Joan Woodberry was a major influence on the lives of young Australians through her writing, her teaching and the education of teachers. She made an important contribution to Tasmania through her advocacy of women’s rights, support for emerging writers, and involvement in a variety of community initiatives.

Joan travelled widely and lived in the Middle East, Greece and London. Joan graduated with an Honours degree in History from the University of Sydney in 1943, and completed a degree in education from the University of Melbourne in 1960. In 1959, she was appointed as a lecturer in English and Australian history at the Launceston Teacher’s College. In 1963, she was appointed Warden at the Hobart Teacher’s College and established its academic courses.

Joan became concerned about the plight of young women students who were living away from their home. There were few reputable hostels and many students were poorly housed and ill-fed. She formed a network to help university and nursing students in need of aid (Damsels in Distress). Contributions were sought from women graduates all over Tasmania and fundraising dances were held.

In the 1960s, Joan lobbied the Legislative Council for equal pay for women and, due to the combined efforts of many women, Tasmania became the second state to have equal pay for teachers. For many years, she was a counsellor at Jane Franklin Hall and on retirement was made an Honorary Life Fellow.

Joan was noted particularly for her numerous books and plays, many of which have been broadcast on the BBC. Joan published ten children’s books, annotated five historic sketchbooks, written six children’s plays for ABC radio, and published five textbooks on English for Australian schools. She also presented many papers at conferences and assisted other writers by editing their works.

She was closely involved with the Fellowship of Australian Writers, the Australian Book Council, the Copyright Board, the Libraries Promotion Council and the Tasmanian Arts Advisory Board. In 1981, Joan was named a Member of the Order of Australia in recognition of her services to education and literature.

Joan was admitted to the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters by the University of Tasmania, in 2000 and was appointed as a Governor of the University of Tasmania in 2002.

Myra Woolley was born in Cygnet and educated at the Cygnet Primary and District High Schools. Myra trained as a nurse at the St Johns Hospital in Hobart. She married in 1959 and has three children, twins (son and daughter) and another daughter. While working in the Royal Hobart Hospital Emergency Ward in 1966, Myra realised the devastating impact of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) on families and nursing staff. In 1978, she founded the Southern Branch of SIDS Tasmania.

Through the 1980s, Myra ran the Southern Branch and became involved with the State Board of Management, becoming State President. She continues as the State Vice President and manages the Southern Committee. In 1986, Myra became a Life Member and was nominated to the first National Board of SIDS Australia.

Myra has been involved with Red Nose Day since its inception in 1986, assisting with promotional and media events, annual launches and selling merchandise. She was awarded the Golden Nose Award in 1997 in recognition of her commitment. Myra was one of the instigators of the SIDS Memorial Garden at Glenorchy where a Memorial Service is held each year. She also undertakes educational work in the community, speaking to schools and service groups about the SIDS organisation.

After her retirement from nursing in 1994, Myra joined the Royal Hobart Hospital Northern Suburbs Auxiliary and was the Coordinator of the Red Cross Volunteer Service in the emergency department.

Myra is the Coordinator of the Cadbury Neighbourhood Watch program, which she started in 1996. She also initiated a Junior Neighbourhood Watch program at Claremont Primary School, which has been adopted by other schools. The Community Safety Committee, of which Myra is a member, was set up to assist the junior neighbourhood program. Rotary and the Glenorchy City Council support the committee’s work. Members visit schools in the Glenorchy area to encourage students to be more community conscious by reporting safety issues to their school. Issues are then reported to the committee and the students are presented with a certificate in appreciation of their action.

Myra joined the Glenorchy City Council Claremont Community Precinct in 1999, serving as secretary and is currently its convenor. The group has instigated several projects including the Claremont Community Library, an Eating with Friends group and Back to Claremont 2004. Under Myra’s leadership, the Claremont Precinct has established strong relationships with local schools and students are involved in the Eating with Friends program and tree planting days. She contributed to organising events to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the City of Glenorchy.

Myra was awarded a Glenorchy City Council Volunteer Award in 2002 and was honoured as Glenorchy Citizen of the Year in 2003. In 2006 she was awarded an Order of Australia Medal for service to the community.