MINISTER’S TRIBUTE

Dominion, Volume 30, Issue 68, 14 December 1936, Page 3

MINISTER’S TRIBUTE

A Teacher's Work for South Wellington School LATE MRS. E. V. PLAYER ‘■'My own personal recollection, that of my wife, and that of all those here to- day is that of a fine woman, a noble woman, who devoted her life to benefiting the children with whom she came into contact,” said the Minister of Education, Hon. I*. Fraser, in unveiling a sun-dial memorial to the late Mrs. E. V. Player, a former pupil and teacher at the South Wellington Primary School, in the school grounds on Saturday afternoon. The chairman of the school committee, Mr. J. S. Nicholson, presided. The memorial has been erected by. the pupilsand staff, expupils and former teachers, and the parents’ association. The headmaster. Mr. J. K. Edie, said that it was appropriate that one who knew Mrs. Player so well, Mr. Fraser, and who was now head of the State department which she served, should be present at the ceremony. The presence of ex-pupils and ex-teachers, as well as present pupils and teachers, also was gratifying. “I know that all are pleased to be able to join in this small tribute, and are pleased that to-day the memorial to Mrs. Player is to be unveiled,” Mr. Edie said. “She was a pupil, a pupilteacher. and later an assistant on the staff of this school for 13 years. She always maintained a high standard of work and the tone of her class was always an excellent one. With the passing of Mrs. Player each member of the staff felt it was\ a personal loss. I felt that I had lost an excellent teachr er, a good friend, a helpful adviser, and a good servant. Her works, I am sure, will follow her.”

_ The Minister said that lie was particularly pleased to see at the gathering so many old friends of Mrs. Player. Their presence there, like his presence, was proof that they retained the most pleasant memories of her as a friend. Mrs. Player was such a friend that she never had gone out of their minds and they always would retain most pleasant memories of having enjoyed for so many years the very great privilege of her friendship. ‘‘l had many opportunities of discussing education with her and learnt a great deal from her.” Air. Fraser continued. “She had a wide range of cultured friends, and among her friends were leading educationists of this Dominion, including Professor James Shelley, Professor J. B. Condliffe. and others who have played a great part in our national affairs and in international affairs, and who are, perhaps, destined to play an even greater part. “She lived for her profession, for her work,” Mr. Fraser went on, in re•ferring to Mrs. Player’s interest in the latest methods in educational science. “I never knew anyone of whom it could better be said that her whole heart and soul and life had been devoted to her work-. In the presence of Mrs. Player it would be almost sacrilege to mention a 40 or a 50-hour week, for that did not count. She was a cultured ladv in the highest sense of that word, and in the school in which she was a pupil and in which she taught for many years she has made an imperishable impression.” The Minister thee unveiled the memorial. Those present included the Hon. T. Brindle. M.L.C., and Mrs. Caine and Mrs. Williams, a sister and an aunt respectively o£ Mrs. Player.

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