Held at Glebe Town Hall on Sunday 28 August. the Society’s 47th AGM was well-attended with around 50 members in attendance.

Our special guest speaker this year was Kate Brennan, Facilitator of the Glebe TreeHouse, a community service at Glebe Primary School supporting families with small children (http://www.glebe-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/community/glebe-school-community-centre).

Kate spoke eloquently and with heartfelt passion about her experience of privilege and how it has driven her to be with people who lack such privilege. She said that she hoped that her talk to the gathering ‘may inspire us to extend dialogue about Glebe’s ‘Community Spirit’ and indeed to highlight how an extraordinary opportunity is sitting right here on our doorstep’. Kate’s words were accompanied by a beautiful set of photos from the ‘Glebe People Project’ (http://www.tompsomotragos.com/glebe/). Kate’s speech will be included in the next Bulletin.

Two Glebe Society Commendations were made at this year’s AGM. They were made to Janice Challinor and to Yours Truly.

Janice’s was honoured in her role as Convenor of the Community subcommittee since mid-2013. The commendation read:

During this time Janice has sought to strategically engage the Society within the community. She has built trust and relationships with social agencies and directly with the community so that the Society is seen as a natural partner to those in our community who celebrate Glebe’s diversity and respect its history. She is an active member of the Forest Lodge and Glebe (FLAG) network of social agencies and community which agrees priorities and sets alliances. She has continued work on the Elsie Mural and successfully gained a major grant for the proposed Tram Mural. She is known within the community for her voluntary work and her calm measured approach to social issues.

I also received a commendation in my role as Editor of The Glebe Society Bulletin since late 2012 and in my contribution to the work of the Communication subcommittee. The commendation reads:

Virginia is a relative newcomer to Glebe, migrating from Pennant Hills with her family in 2009 and joining the Society in 2010. Her professional background is in academia – she holds a PhD from the University of Sydney, and has been a researcher, tutor and has edited academic publications. Her decision to accept the role of Bulletin editor when Edwina Doe retired after 10 years represented a significant additional challenge in addition to relocation to the vibrant culture of the Inner West. As editor she has updated the appearance and publishing process of the Bulletin, and maintained the high editorial standards set by previous editors.

Virginia also participated in the work of the Website committee (redesignated the Communication subcommittee in 2013) and played a significant role expanding the Society’s community engagement through its new social media platforms (Facebook and Twitter), and other initiatives aimed at assisting subcommittees to exploit new media and helping Society members cope with the often perplexing new world of social media. Virginia now leads this subcommittee, a role she assumed in February 2016.

Virginia Simpson-Young and Janice Challinor receive their Commendations from Ted McKeown, outgoing Glebe Society President. (image:Bruce Davis)
Virginia Simpson-Young and Janice Challinor receive their Commendations from Ted McKeown, outgoing Glebe Society President. (image:Bruce Davis)