Grammar Gazette- Issue 1, 2015

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LEGACY OF LOVE, FRIENDSHIP AND GOOD WORK

Clare Florence, Anna Blocksidge, Jane Carpenter (all 1978) and Kirsten Jack were, as Kirsten’s father described them, ‘a sparkling and vivacious quartet, and full of promise for the future’ (Jack, 2001, p. 119). Sadly, after Kirsten’s death from acute leukaemia in June 1977, the girls struggled to cope with the numbing loss of their beautiful friend. Adult Anna spoke to our 2009 Year 11s of how Kirsten ‘seemed to have a smile not just on her lips but on the inside, too’ (Blocksidge, 2009). How could they make any sense of such a tragic loss? In 1978, the Kirsten Jack Memorial Leukaemia Committee (KJMLC) was instituted, with Clare Florence as Founding President and Mrs Mary Hukins, Professional Staff as the group’s coordinator. So began Girls Grammar’s preservation of Kirsten’s memory and our service commitment to leukaemia research. To date, more than $65,000 has been raised, but the Committee has meant more to its student members, staff coordinators, generous friends, science researchers, and the wider community than money alone. Threads of love and friendship have bound a diverse network of young people and adults, the Girls Grammar community and friends of Girls Grammar, into a valued, long-serving community.

AUTHOR Dr Ann Farley

AUTHOR Dr Kay Kimber Director of Centre for Professional Practice

Director of Cross Faculty Initiatives

WHO COULD HAVE IMAGINED HOW THE LIVES OF FOUR STAUNCH GIRLS GRAMMAR FRIENDS AND THEIR CLOSE- KNIT FAMILIES COULD BE TURNED UPSIDE DOWN IN THE SPACE OF SIX SHORT MONTHS? Who could ever have imagined that their devastating loss would touch the lives of legions of Grammar girls to inspire sterling service and good works for years to come? Such was the genesis of the Kirsten Jack Memorial Leukaemia Committee, forged by love and the close bonds of friendship.

GRAMMAR GAZETTE