101 Years of the MacLaren Legacy: Nessie Hall (Fairholme Old Girl 1941)

The MacLaren tartan has long been woven into the fabric of the Hall family, its threads connecting generations through time. For 101 year old Nessie Hall - Fairholme College’s oldest living Old Girl - the legacy began in 1938 when she started Fairholme as a Year 9 Boarder.

Nessie, born in 1923, arrived at Fairholme from Croydon, via Roma. With few educational opportunities in rural Australia, Nessie and her sister

Joyce, began Fairholme as fresh-faced teenagers with the chance to receive the all-girls’ education their parents had wanted for them. The sisters attended Fairholme at a time in history that was both pivotal and difficult - the Great Depression.

Under the leadership of Miss Daisy Culpin, Principal from 1922-1940, Fairholme not only survived the challenging economic climate but thrived, providing a school for young girls to receive a quality education.

While sitting under the Jacaranda trees in Daisy Culpin Courtyard recently, Nessie recalls one of her favourite memories - walking Miss Culpin’s dog through the College grounds.

‘Miss Culpin was my favourite teacher. I would walk her dog - his name was Tuppence! - around the gardens, in fact, around this very spot where I am sitting.’

Nessie was at Fairholme to witness the graduation of her great-granddaughter, Maggie, from Middle School to Senior School. She marvels at how much the school has changed, and yet how much is the same. ‘The buildings are, of course, very different, but the feeling is just the same,’ Nessie

says. ‘The things that made this place special when I was here - it’s still here. I can feel it.’

Nessie’s legacy has flourished over the years as her granddaughters, Tamie Devine (1992), Angela Hall (1991), Camilla Hall (2009) and

Mikala Reardon (1993), all attended Fairholme, and today her great granddaughters, Maggie Reardon (Year 10) and Pippi Reardon (Year 8)

- Mikala’s daughters - proudly attend Fairholme.

In a moment that connected the past and present, Nessie returned to the school with her grand-daughter, Mikala, to see Maggie graduate Year 9.

She says as they walked up Palm Drive to the Assembly Hall, it was clear that the traditions and community spirit of Fairholme had left a mark on them both.

‘I love that I was able to bring Nessie again to see Maggie graduate Middle School. I have grown up listening to stories about Fairholme, was lucky enough to attend myself, and now with two daughters here, I feel it has come full circle,’ Mikala said. ‘I think my grandmother’s time at

Fairholme helped shape her values and principles that she has carried throughout her life - values she passed down to her children, grandchildren, and now, her great grand-daughters.’

The graduation ceremony was a poignant reminder of the bonds that tie generations together, each standing on the shoulders of those who came before them. Mikala said for Nessie, it was a moment of immense pride - seeing the legacy of learning, strength, and resilience continue in her family.

Nessie’s visit is a reminder that the bonds of Fairholme extend far beyond the school’s walls. As a great-grandmother, Old Girl, and matriarch of a family deeply rooted in Fairholme’s history, she embodies the timeless values that continue to shape the school community.

Her return was a celebration of both the past and the future - as the tartan is woven into their lives, so too is a legacy that will last for years to come, that of a remarkable woman, who walked the same halls a century ago.