St George Girls High School opened in 1916. 100 years of inspiring principals, teachers, staff, students, achievements, challenges and life stories, all unique and precious. There was a year at St George still referred to as ‘the artistic year’ because they left behind some obvious and lasting signs they had been at the school.

This recording is an extract from their Farewell School Assembly in 1974. It is the whole assembly singing The School Song, conducted by Miss Joan Whittaker.

This was the school year group of 1969 -1974. They painted the canteen wall in 1973 (eight girls from Mrs Elva Hespe’s art class); they painted the dragon in the Assembly Hall (Tanya Nieminen and Karen Williams now Curran); along with the year above them they won the Freedom From Hunger Film Competition in 1973 with a film about poverty and excess; they did a soul touching performance of the play Everyman (Karen Eather, Lyn Jones and others); they kept an audio recording of their Farewell Assembly in 1974 with the School Song and Hymn sung beautifully by one thousand voices.

Whenever there was a chance the talented dancers in that year did dance performances at school events (Kerrie Coleman, Bronwyn Jennings, Helen Chrissis, Karen Williams, Elizabeth Tunbridge), the most memorable being to “Stairway to Heaven” and “Funeral for a Friend”. They produced a performance evening in their final school year called “Women Through the Ages” with vignettes challenging the perceptions of women and celebrating women. It finished with them dancing down the school catwalk to a moving rendition of Helen Reddy’s “I Am Woman” which they still call their theme song. It brought many in the full auditorium to tears, including fathers, brothers and boyfriends. They produced some great theatre like Paint Your Wagon with Sydney Tech High. They held the School’s only ever slightly tongue in cheek Miss Lovely Legs Competition in 1973 judged with only legs visible, which was won fair and square by Elizabeth Tunbridge.

They were an artistic year, a funny year, a year with many deep thinkers, many creative minds, many good hearts, possibly more than their share of free spirits who challenged authority and rules, but they were a year who believed in fairness, service, justice, equality, giving back and ‘making a mark’ or ‘making a difference’. Principal Miss Smith first told them in 1969 that they must make their mark on the world and Miss Rose told them similar, repeatedly. They had the benefit of some amazing teachers that changed St Georgians’ lives forever: Lynne Goodwin, Frances de Groen, Ian Lowe, Paul Hurlinger, Elva Hespe and so many others.

This recording:

This was recorded at the 1974 Farewell Assembly for 6th Form, by Sue Thompson, on a small tape recorder and digitized in December 2011. (The whole assembly recording is also available on CD or mp3).

The Hymn and Song were conducted by Miss Joan Whittaker who was our Languages Mistress and very talented musically. She went to the Sydney Conservatorium after St George.

(For historical accuracy – in 1974 the final verse was sung as “our girls will win the fight”, now sung as “St George will win the fight”)

This presentation by Sue Thompson (with all its flaws as a first attempt at music with images) 7 Nov 2016. There are two typos of "will hoist" and "will vaunt" which should read "we'll" instead of "will".

Thank you to image takers including Karen Curran (Williams) for her photos of the Dragon & Canteen Mural just after they were painted. Thank you to the school for use of our school logo & some magazine images.

Photos in order – The Assembly Hall Dragon; cast of Everyman, cast of Women Through The Ages; Canteen Mural, StGGHS Open Day 2016; Miss Lovely Legs 1973, some free spirits in 6th Form Study 1974; Dancers from Freedom From Hunger Film, Painting the Canteen Mural 1974.

Recording Location: St George Girls' High School Assembly Hall
Kogarah NSW Australia
Recorded by Sue Thompson 1974.
Copyright.