Queen Victoria School Jubilee

Te Ao Hou, Spring 1953, Page 36

Old Girls' Conference at the Jubilee Reunion, June, 1953. Photo: Sparrow In the laboratory; Toi Te Rito (at microscope) and the head girl, Grace Henare, of Makatau. Both are Form VI students. Photo: J. Ashton Queen Victoria School Jubilee by Mel Taylor The Queen Victoria Maori Girls' School Golden Jubilee celebrations attracted the most interest, from a national point of view, of any Maori gathering held in Auckland so far this year. Guests and old girls from most parts of the North Island and some from the South came to honour the 50-year-old school. Though the week-end programme was mainly social, the old girls had got together primarily to revive their association. To them this was serious business, and they met twice to discuss it. The result is that the Old Girls' Association is functioning again. But, apart from the Old Girls' Association revival conferences, there was little conference-style business done during the celebrations, though there were many serious and thoughtful speeches and many informal discussions. More than 150 old girls gathered in Auckland to mark the Jubilee, celebrations of which carried through from Friday, June 12, to Sunday, June 14. The old girls present represented every decade in the history of the school, through which 1,156 pupils have passed. On Friday night the celebrations got under way with an informal reception for old girls. The following morning the Bishop of Aotearoa, the Rt. Rev. W. N. Panapa, was the preacher at a Service of Thanksgiving and Commemoration of Founders. After this there was an official welcome, at which the speakers were the Bishop of Auckland, the Rt. Rev. W. J. Simkin, the Mayor of Auckland, Sir John Allum, the Secretary for Maori Affairs, Mr T. T. Ropiha, the Chairman of the General Trust Board of the Diocese of Auckland, Mr A. N. Seaman, the Senior Inspector of Maori Schools, Mr W. Parsonage; the Headmistress, Miss A. R. Berridge: Mrs B. Taua, President of the Old Girls' Jubilee Reunion Organising Committee: the Rev. Mutu Kapa, who spoke for the tangata whenua: and

Mrs H. D. Bennett, who spoke on behalf of the old girls. Several of the speakers told of the good influence which the school had had on the Maori people. Mr Ropiha stated that schools such as Queen Victoria had an advantage over State schools in that they taught the 4th R—Religion. He said that in the dual society in which Maoris lived, religion was most important. He said, too, that schools like Queen Victoria, played a big part in helping Maori and pakeha to go together, hand in hand. The first Old Girls' Conference followed the welcome speeches. It was at this Conference, and at a later special one called for the same purpose, that the question of reviving the Old Girls' Association was thrashed out. This was the main business of the week-end. An Old Girls' Association Committee was elected to supersede the hard-working Committee which had organised the Jubilee. Prior to the Jubilee Committee the Association had not functioned since before the war. A happy photograph of Miss Brereton during the Jubilee celebrations. Photo: Sparrow The revived Association's aims include plans to help the School by raising funds for a permanent chapel and scholarships. Old girls made it plain at their conference that they wanted more reunions. On Saturday afternoon, the scheduled physical education display by present pupils, and the basketball match between present and past pupils, had to be abandoned because of heavy rain. The old girls, however, were not cowed by the weather. They gathered indoors at the school, and in light-hearted mood ‘let go’ in an afternoon of songs, haka and general good fun. In the evening, 200 guests attended the Jubilee dinner, afterwards making their way to the Jubilee concert and dance. For their singing at the concert and throughout the weekend, the pupils won high praise. They are trained by Mrs P. Raudon. As well as a selected group, the whole school sang some numbers at the concert. Hymns which the girls sang during the week-end included ‘Kei Riri Tonu Mai’ and the 23rd Psalm, to Brother James' air. The present pupils gave a folk-dancing display at the Saturday night concert as well as singing and poi items. The whole school's singing of ‘Kei Riri Tonu Mai’ at the Sunday morning service at St. Mary's Cathedral created a most hallowed atmosphere. The Bishop of Auckland was the preacher at this service, which was attended by old girls as well as present pupils. At the concluding event of the celebrations, Sunday luncheon, there occurred one of those spontaneous and rather moving episodes which, though unplanned, seem to develop at most huis. It concerned the school jubilee birthday cake. Every girl in the school had been invited to give a stir in the mixing of the cake. Its 50 candles had been lighted the previous evening at the dinner by early scholars, and had been blown out by the head girl, Grace Henare, and the senior prefect, Polly Hopa. But as most of the present pupils had not seen the ceremony it was repeated at Sunday lunch.

A class at Queen Victoria Girls' College. Photo: J. Ashton And it was then that the memorable incident occurred. Mrs Taua, as President of the organising committee, and Mrs Hoeft, one of the early scholars, took the platform and explained that they wished sections of the cake to be taken back to the various districts from which the old girls had come, so that other girls from those districts who had not attended the celebrations could gather round the cake and be told of the Jubilee weekend in Auckland. The bottom section of the cake was cut into four sections, one each for north, south, east and west, and four delegates accepted the sections to take them to those areas. Dorothy Flavell (Kaeo) at work in the dressmaking room. Photo: J. Ashton Four Third Formers of Queen Victoria Girls' College wearing the new summer uniforms designed, cut and sewn at the School by the senior students. Left to right: Judith Harawene (Bay of Islands), Beverly Everett (Devonport), Constance Herewini (Awanui), Tina Haig (Tokomaru Bay). Photo: J. Ashton On receiving the cake each delegate sang a pao appropriate to the occasion, and spoke enthusiastically in promising to gather other old girls from their home districts round the cake. The Headmistress, Miss Berridge, received a section of the cake on behalf of the Trustees, and called upon a group of ‘my old girls’ to sing a suitable action song. Then prefects received the top tier of the cake on behalf of the school, the school singing in return. One of the most popular people who attended the Jubilee was the veteran former Headmistress, Miss M. Brereton. The only living former headmistress, Miss Brereton was at the school from 1920 to 1934, and again for a year in 1942. Miss Brereton received a thunderous ovation from the old girls. During her two terms over 400 girls passed through the school. In nostalgic mood on the rainy Saturday afternoon during the Jubilee, Miss Brereton fondly recalled that Queen Victoria was always a very happy place. ‘It's still the same, I think,’ she said, ‘It's the Maori nature.’ (Continued on page 58)