DipPharm
At °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Êapp’s 1950-1953
Mary Peden (nee Grigg) left °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Êapp’s at the end of 1953 with a Senior Certificate and qualifications for Tertiary Education.
She chose to study pharmacy, and graduated from the Central Technical College in George Street Brisbane (now Queensland University of Technology) with a Diploma of Pharmacy in 1957, after completing a three year apprenticeship at Lutwyche Pharmacy concurrently with lectures and practical work at the College. She is one of more than 600 Golden Graduates who completed their studies in industrial chemistry, architecture, engineering, teacher training and pharmacy before 1959. In 1958 she travelled to Vancouver to work there.
After returning to Brisbane, she married Alec Peden in March 1959. They raised a family of three children in Kenmore and Pinjarra Hills. Mary and Alec opened their home and garden for many fundraising events for the Red Cross, Pony Riding for Disabled and the Equestrian Federation. Mary accompanied her husband on overseas business trips and took an active part in rural and local business ventures. When their children married and grandchildren arrived, travel included frequent visits to London, Hobart and Perth.
In 1987, Mary became a Volunteer Guide, first on the construction site of World Expo 88 and later as a Special Guest Guide during the event. Before Expo ended, Mary was invited by Curator Ross McKinnon to join the first intake of Volunteer Guides at the Brisbane Botanic Gardens Mt Coot-tha which gave her the chance to indulge her passion for people and plants. After more than thirty years, she is looking forward to again sharing her knowledge and enthusiasm with visitors from all over the world when COVID-19 restrictions are removed.
Mary was the recipient of a Red Cross Service Medal in 1982 and was made a Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow in 2014. In 2015 she was acknowledged as Order of Australia Queensland Branch Senior Volunteer of the Year and in 2017 was a recipient of an Order of Australia Medal for service to botanical organisations and to philanthropy.
Of her time as a Boarder at °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Êapp’s Mary said she enjoyed the close association with other country girls, sharing their lives and building on the Christian principles and mindfulness of others instilled in her early family life.
“The school provided an excellent education with a religious background and many extra-curricular activities in sport and drama. I learned leadership and communication skills in my roles as a Prefect and Tennis Captain,” Mary said.
View all notables