Lumen Summer 2015 - Flipbook - Page 30
story by Genevieve Sanchez
Class of ’64 looks back
on the halcyon days
Fifty years have passed since the graduating Class of 1964 walked triumphantly
through the doors of Bonython Hall, parchments in hand and the future at their feet.
F
or 110 of those graduates, the
opportunity to relive that moment at
their Golden Jubilee reunion was an
occasion not to be missed.
Dressed in academic gowns, graduates
posed proudly for family photographs
and made emotional reconnections with
friends from long ago, before taking part
in a commemoration ceremony and
celebration lunch.
Former Supreme Court judge Margaret
Nyland AM spoke of her own memories of
graduation day in her keynote address.
“I recall it as a day of mixed emotions –
the overwhelming emotion was relief that at
long last all my exams were over,” she said.
“There was also the anticipation and
excitement of moving onto the next phase
of my legal career. However this was
tempered with a degree of apprehension
about the challenges which might lie
ahead – and challenges there were many.”
Margaret has carved out a long and
distinguished career in law in the 50 years
since her 1964 graduation. She was the
second woman appointed to the Supreme
Court bench and this year was appointed
28 Lumen | Summer 2015
the Royal Commissioner to investigate the
safety and welfare of at risk children.
She reflected on how much the world
has changed since the ‘halcyon days’ of
the 1960s, when she and her classmates
embarked upon their careers at such an
interesting time in history.
“The challenging reality of today is that
there are so many financially disadvantaged
students who, without support, will not be
able to attend university and receive the
benefits we all enjoyed,” she said.
The Class of ’64 lived and studied
in times of great social change.
It was the year that Australia committed
troops to the war in Vietnam, Nelson Mandela
made his “I am prepared to die” speech
at the opening of the Rivonia Trial, a key
event for the anti-apartheid movement,
and President Lyndon Johnson signed the
Civil Rights Act of 1964, abolishing racial
segregation in the United States.
It was also the year the Beatles visited
Adelaide, making an appearance on the
