Scotch College

OSCA Merit Awards for 2007

OSCA Merit Awards were presented by OSCA Immediate Past President Richard Beveridge (’62) to Gus Hawthorne (’54), Mrs Mary McCoy (Mornington Branch Secretary), Manson Russel (’48) and Don Werner (’62) for their dedication and continuous voluntary support of the Old Scotch Collegians’ Association.

Peter “Gus” Hawthorne

Peter, better known as “Gus” Hawthorne is one of our truly enthusiastic and active Old Boys. After leaving school in 1954 having captained the School, and Captain of Football (Champions in 1953 and 1954), Peter has been actively involved in Old Boy activities for over fifty years. From 1955 to 1957, Peter played 58 games for the Old Scotch Football Club and has been a financial supporter of the Club ever since. Peter ran middle distances for the Old Scotch Athletics Club for 3 years, at one time holding the club’s record of 1:57 for the 880 yards. Peter was instrumental in establishing the North West Branch of OSCA in Kerang, his home town, and helped organise and run the branch for 35 years.

Peter also served for many years on the OSCA Council, bringing a valuable boarder’s and country member’s perspective to OSCA deliberations. Recently, he helped organise the Boarding House Reunion Dinner Dance at Leonda. Peter is a regular OSCA Annual Dinner attendee, usually acting as “table captain”. He has been Annual Giving Year Group lead of 1954 leavers for many years. Currently, Peter is an active member and vice president of the Heritage Club and is involved in organising a reunion of past Scotch College footballers for the Melbourne Grammar School 150th year celebrations.

Mary McCoy

Mary McCoy is the wife of Jim McCoy who left Scotch College in 1943.

Mary has been the “heart and soul” of the Mornington Peninsula Branch of the Old Boys, organising and running the Mornington Branch Dinners for over 20 years. Very efficiently and effectively, Mary manages all aspects of this successful annual branch reunion dinner. Mary is also a regular attendee of the many East Melbourne Glen functions such as the lunches, the chapel services and the 60+ year reunions. Mary also attends the Veterans Day Luncheon with her husband, Jim. Mary embraces all the finer qualities of the wider Scotch Family.

Manson Russel

Manson Russel is one of the icons of the Old Boys. After leaving School in 1948 having Captained the football team, Manson has been actively involved in Old Boy activities for nearly 60 years. Manson played 217 games for the Old Scotch Football Club from 1948–1962, Captaining the Club in 1953 and 1954, and again from 1957–1960. He also coached the Club from 1958–1960, and again in 1963. He was club best and fairest in 1950 and leading goal kicker 1949–1954 and 1956–1959, kicking over 400 goals. He went on to be Club secretary in 1955 and 1956 and was made a Life member of the Club in 1970. Manson served as Club delegate to the VAFA from 1949–1971 before advancing to a distinguished career with the Association. Manson played cricket with the Old Scotch Cricket Club from season 1949/50–1971/72 as a batsman, bowler and wicket keeper. He is also a Life Member of the Old Scotch Cricket Club.

Currently in retirement from football and cricket, Manson is now President of the Old Scotch Bowls Club, a member of the Old Scotch Lodge and the Heritage Club. Manson is a regular attendee at the OSCA luncheons and the Annual Dinner, often acting as “Table Captain”. He is an Annual Giving Year Group Leader and is also involved in organising a reunion of past Scotch College footballers for the Melbourne Grammar School 150th year celebrations.

Don Werner

Since completing 11 years at the School in 1962 where he did very well indeed in all aspects of school life, Don has made an outstanding contribution to Scotch and the wider community. Don enjoyed a very successful career in business operations and finance and held many positions of responsibility in business and government organisations in Melbourne and Perth, including partner status in a share-broking firm. He completed a Commerce Degree at University of Western Australia and is a generous financial benefactor to the School, a life member of OSCA and member of Council in the 1980s, President of the Cardinal Club and Trustee of the Scotch College Foundation.

Don served as Secretary of the OSCA Perth Branch from 1969–78 and 2002–06 and as President since 2006, a remarkable 14-year period of leadership and service. The growth and development of the Branch during this time and the steady growth in numbers attending the annual dinner and other functions owes a huge debt to Don. Don has a brilliant capacity to keep an eye on Old Boys moving into Western Australia and to contact them whenever possible to encourage them to support the Branch. During the 70s Don’s hard work and energy were key in gradually building up numbers attending annual dinners, finding interesting locations for the dinners and making all the arrangements to ensure the evening would be a total success.

On his return to Melbourne in 1979, Don immediately immersed himself in Scotch rowing, coaching the 2nd VIII with Geoff Brooke. He was a foundation member of the Cardinal Club and served two terms as President as well as holding other offices over period of more than 10 years. Don was one of the instigators of Sunday rowing and he introduced many boys and their parents to the sport of rowing.

Don was the driving force behind the fund raising needed to rebuild the eights shed and to turn it into the Cardinal Pavilion, surely one of the finest rowing facilities in Australia. In 1993, Don led the group that identified people and organisations that would be prepared to contribute to this project. It was a proud moment on the afternoon of 6 October 1994 when the Hon. Andrew Peacock officially declared open the Cardinal Pavilion. In recognition of the outstanding service Don had given to the Cardinal Club and rowing at Scotch, the meeting room in the Cardinal Pavilion was named the ‘Werner Room’.

Since returning to Perth, Don has continued to take a keen interest in rowing at Scotch. He has continued his own rowing and has been coaching at Scotch College in Perth. In recent years, he has brought a number of groups of Scotch, Perth, students over to Melbourne to participate in our rowing camps. GS