From the Archives
Valē Greg Moloney 1926-2022
On Friday 9 September, our choir was asked to sing at a funeral Mass at OLA. The life being celebrated was that of 96-year-old Greg Moloney, an ardent worker for Kilbreda over 42 years. Greg’s son Brendan started here in Prep in 1954, followed by daughters Jennifer (class of 1967) and Bernadette (1971), second son Mark (1962), Gabrielle (1977), Meagan (1980) and Beata (1985).
It is only now that I have discovered what her real name was, Maisie Jean. We had always known that her name Greg had come from her maiden name Gregson, which may have been how her husband Frank first referred to her. The family lived not far from us on the corner of Silver and Wilson Streets in Cheltenham (between our place and OLA).
As far as I recall, all of the Moloney girls went from Prep to HSC at Kilbreda, and, from the time Brendan started, Greg’s involvement in the P&F began. Greg ran the uniform shop which was on Commercial Road in the very last house to be demolished there and was President of the P&F for a time. One would often see students making the trek across the oval to meet their mother there for a fitting. Greg’s involvement lasted long after her youngest daughter, Beata finished in 1985, with Greg finally retiring in 1996. She proudly launched the new look uniform in 1988, ‘being the first major change since the skirt replaced the tunic in 1975’. ‘Our first consideration’, Greg said at the time, ‘was for a warm and well styled skirt which was practical and attractive. However, tradition was important, as Kilbreda has a long association with the green of Ireland, and we wanted to incorporate this as well’. 1
On her retirement, the P&F recognised her contribution by establishing the annual ‘Greg Moloney Scholarship’ in her honour in 1996, which provided ‘aid for the final two years of schooling of a student chosen for her outstanding community service’.2 Greg returned from time to time to award the scholarship, but, like others I have mentioned this year, she was very much a no nonsense lady who was more interested in doing a job well rather than the accolades she might collect. Greg is pictured presenting the scholarship to Melinda Anderson in 1997.
Damian Smith
Archives
1 – Kilbreda Annual 1988 p1
2 – ‘A View from the Tower’ p 213