Somerville House Old Girls' Association

A celebration of Miss Valmai Pidgeon AM's life for family and friends will be held at the Somerville House Chapel on Sunday, 21 June, 2026 at 2:00pm. Once the Chapel is filled, fittingly the service will be streamed to the Valmai Pidgeon Performing Arts Complex for those wishing to attend.

The Old Girls' Association has published a Tribute Notice for Miss Pidgeon here in the Courier Mail here - https://www.mytributes.com.au/notice/condolences/pidgeon-valmai/6363115/

VALE - Valmai Pidgeon AM (1944) - 28 September 1924 – 5 June 2026

On Friday 5 June 2026, Miss Valmai Pidgeon AM, a leading figure in the arts and the construction industry in Queensland, passed away at 101 years of age, having lived a remarkable life.

Miss Valmai Pidgeon AM was a true stateswoman of Somerville House. The Old Girls’ Association acknowledges the passing of one of our greatest Old Girls, and the decades of her service and devotion to the Association and the School. As a benefactor and patron, her legacy of financial generosity to the School to this
day, has no parallel.

A more detailed tribute to Miss Pidgeon will be published shortly in the next edition of Connections.

Photographs -
Valmai Pidgeon AM
Cutting the OGA birthday cake at 97 years old
Opening of the Valmai Pidgeon Performng Arts Complex in 2000

Have you ever seen posts regarding the Isabel Bauer OGA Bursary and wondered what it is and what is involved?

The Bursary is open to all Somerville Old Girls seeking to make career changes or advancements, re-entering the workforce, undertaking further study, innovation or research.

In essence, this bursary empowers an Old Girl to advance her career, embodying the very principles that defined Isabel Bauer: independence, self-determination, and opportunity through choice.

To apply, please visit:
https://www.somervillehouseoga.com.au/page/application-information-2026

To show your support, donate or enquire about sponsorship opportunities for this year and the future, please visit:

www.somervillehouseoga.com.au/donations/isobel-bauer-bursary

For generations, Somerville House has been a place of learning, friendship, courage and opportunity. The stories and memories carried by our Old Girls remind us that every student who has walked through our gates has helped shape the spirit of our school. Built on the vision of pioneers including Misses Fewings, Harker and Jarrett, Somerville House has always looked forward, creating opportunities for girlsto grow, lead and thrive across every generation.

This Giving Day, we invite Somerville House Old Girls to come together and help shape the future for the next generation of Somerville House students.

From 7.00am to 7.00pm on Thursday 11 June, the Somerville community will unite for 12 hours of giving to support the future of our school community. Funds raised on Giving Day will help shape what’s next for Somerville House, supporting future buildings, innovative learning spaces, student opportunities and Somerville House Foundation scholarships.

Every gift, large or small, helps continue the legacy built by those who came before us. Whether you are giving in honour of your time at Somerville House, your friendships, your family connection or your belief in the power of education of girls, your support matters.

The Old Girls' Association has always supported the School and will continue to do so - in the past, in the present, and into the future.

Visit shgivingday.com to support the Somerville House Foundation’s Giving Day.

Captions for images:

1. Unknown student c1949
2. Valya Pynor, 1949
3. Janne Anderson, 1948 with Alice Cullen Cup
4. Cumbooquepa, c. 1946-1949
5. Library (now Chapel) c. 1946-1949
6. Swimming Pool c. 1946-1949
7. Town Hall (now Chambers) c. 1946-1949
8. Gay Griffiths and Jean Yabsley, 1949 wearing uniforms c1900

Congratulations to Amy Sheppard (2008) for being named in the Courier Mail's "The 61 most influential people in Queensland arts and entertainment" today.

Now pursuing a solo career in addition to being one third of the band Sheppard, Amy was a finalist in the highly competitive Country category at the 2026 Queensland Music Awards for her powerful track “Country Country”. Her new album, Born To Be Country is out now.

Read the entire list here - https://www.couriermail.com.au/entertainment/revealed-the-61-most-influential-people-in-queensland-arts-and-entertainment/news-story/b13efb75ed9d281318310a0702b26d93?campaignType=external&campaignChannel=syndication&campaignName=ncacont&campaignContent&campaignSource=the_courier_mail&campaignPlacement=edm&net_sub_id=285697566&type=free_text_block&position=3

Image - Courtesy of the Courier Mail

Amy Sheppard

Looking for contact details for the Class of 1981! We recently found a list of the girls who joined as OGA members in 1981 in the Archives - a lot of you were missing from our database and have just been added.

If you were a member of the Class of 1981, please check your profile at www.somervillehouseoga.com.au and add your email address and other important information so you can keep up to date with upcoming OGA events.

Looking for the listed Old Girls from the Class of 1988 as their email addresses are out of date on our database. If that is you, or you know them, could you please message us using the button below or email [email protected] with their contact details so we can update their email addresses.

The 2026 Somerville House Ball Committee are seeking photographs of Old Girls over the years when they attended the Ball. They will be used for a montage on the big screen at the Ball. If you have photographs you would like to share, please email them to Frances C (Year 12) at [email protected] or Ms. Hartley at [email protected].

Photographs and the year they were taken need to be submitted by Friday, 5 June to be included for the Ball on 13 June.

A huge thank you to all Old Girls who have volunteered countless hours over the last year to assist the Old Girls' Association in the past year with our many events and representation on committees throughout Somerville House and the PSMA.

We are a team of volunteers, and we absolutely could not do what we do for the Somerville House community without your support.

A huge congratulations to Old Girl and Churchie Head of French, Sarah Washington (1997) who produced the incredible Churchie & Somerville House musical, 'Newsies' last weekend. The Pit Band for the show also included another Old Girl, Carmen Oxenford (2023) playing clarinet, alto sax and tenor sax. Hundreds of hours of rehearsal over about six months paid off, culminating in a show that had the audience clapping, squealing and generally cheering the cast on.

Sarah, or 'Madame' as she is fondly known to the cast, is pictured in the centre behind the desk with some of the staff and cast of the 2021 production of 'Treasure Island'. The cast of Newsies featured a number of second generation thespians, their parents having been involved in musicals while students themselves at Somerville and Churchie.

Hands up if you were in a musical at Somerville?