Memories of a Junior Postie in Yallourn in mid-1960s…Neil Crawley (great grandson of Yallourn’s Dad/Pop Brewer)
I finished Grade 4 at Yallourn Primary (although the first year was held at the High School in a room near Strzelecki Road) and then shifted to Morwell, but came back a few years later and worked at Yallourn Post Office in my first ever job, soon after decimal currency came in.

Judith Jerome (Andrew ) YHS 1938 - was born in 1926, the oldest daughter of Dr James Moore Andrew and nurse Catherine Dorothy Mawson. She was raised in the town of Yallourn with her sister Margaret Noel and brother David Bradbury. Judith attended Yallourn Primary School and then Yallourn High School until she went to school in Melbourne as a boarder for forms four and five. After her schooling, Judith entered her nurse training at The Royal Melbourne Hospital. She completed her general nursing in 1948 and continued her studies to become a midwife and infant welfare sister.

Helen Fischer (Hender) YHS 1967 (equiv): Jenny Foster and I first met at Kindergarten in 1960. We both have vivid memories of being put on the "Kinder Bus" by ourselves and waving nervously back to our mothers through the bus window!!! Jenny still remembers clinging to her mother’s leg, not wanting to get on the bus. I witnessed nearly everyone going through this as I got on at Railway Avenue and the bus travelled all around Yallourn picking up the kids. I loved the bus trip after a while. We were friends at Yallourn State School up until the end of grade 5 (1965).

PATRIOTISM, SQUARE PEGS AND ROUND HOLES - Yallourn High School in the 1950s and 1960s by Stefan Tomasz YHS 1957
(Photo attached)

Sonja Bates (Ostlund), YHS 1943, an original member, life member and committee member of Yallourn Old Girls’ Association.
Sonja grew up in Yallourn, attending Yallourn Primary and then High School, and later became a librarian working at Yallourn Library.
She was a very active sports woman, playing netball, was an umpire, tennis, table tennis, golf, then moved to Morwell where their family grew up. Sonja & George enjoyed social activities, also travelling which took them to many parts of the world.

YALLOURN HIGH SCHOOL SEX SCANDAL by Reg Penkethman YHS 1951
Now that I’ve got your attention – have you ever had that sinking feeling? Yes; me too. My latest stomach lurch was brought about by an oh-so-friendly reminder from our hard-working Secretary that my oft-promised contribution about early Newborough days had never quite seen the light of day. In desperation (and no little guilt), I dusted off a “draft” and tarted it up a tad. Better late than never, they say : things can only improve.

Lance White YTS 1956 wrote with this small, but significant question which appeared in Albury/Wodonga local paper “The Border Mail” in August 2012:
Q: Who said, “Knowledge is Power”? Of course this was our motto under the YTS / YTC’s blazer badge which many of us proudly wore.
A: Sir Francis Bacon ( 1561-1626).
“We all knew the motto very well, but I wonder how many students knew who this was attributed to or from where it originated. An interesting enough item which many OB’s might appreciate.

Take a Walk on the Wild Side - Julie George (Francis) YHS 1966
“In November 2011, Frank Wild completed his final journey from Johannesburg, South Africa to the Whalers’ Cemetery in Grytviken, South Georgia, when his ashes were placed by me in a grave next to that of his long-time friend and ‘Boss’, Sir Ernest Shackleton.

On a cold and blustery day in Morwell recently, we gratefully accepted a State Government grant to help further fund our historical project - Virtual Yallourn...I’m sure you have noticed the data being inputted from the Electoral Rolls of the 1960s in an endeavor to get every house in Yallourn connected to at least one family and soon you will see some major visual improvements...so please continue to support the website, dig out the old photos and add generously - help solve some of the queries and read what our newly appointed “Mayor Brogan” (Kevin Brogan) has to say - if he doesn’t know the

My brother Ray died of lung cancer aged 62. Far too young to die but he managed to live a full life for the years he had.
After leaving school he spent the obligatory few years trying out various jobs and generally having a good time until he grew up (a bit) and ended up in the public service.
He spent the early years in Melbourne then a few years in Darwin where he met Julie (also a public servant) and had a son Michael, then they moved to Canberra where he spent the last twenty years or so. Ray and Julie split up about ten years ago.