Vale Maggie Fitzgibbon 

 

Margaret 'Maggie' Fitzgibbon OAM

It was with great sadness that we learned of the death last week on 8 June of Maggie Fitzgibbon. Maggie was inducted in August last year as one of Kilbreda’s Past Pupils of Distinction. She turned 91 on January 29 and celebrated with residents at her nursing home in Corowa NSW, where she had lived since having a stroke about a year ago. I visited her there a few times, the last being in January with my dad, Jack, a fan of her brother, Smacka. That day, as always, Maggie remembered her beloved Kilbreda, saying “I have such wonderful memories of my time at Kilbreda. Such strong women!” (You might be interested to know that I wrote that down on a sausage roll bag as a memory aid, as, contrary to accepted mythology, I don’t remember everything!)

It was there too, that I visited Maggie to present her award in the September holidays last year. She cherished the award so much, she was worried that, if it were hanging in her room, someone might “knock it off”. Not only was she influenced by strong women, she was one! She would often be seen around the district, not driving a fancy car one might expect of a well-known performer, but in a dusty old ute, which I imagine is still parked outside The Barn, her home in Wahgunyah.

It had come with her from her farm Quondong, where she moved on returning to Australia in the late 70s. A beautiful sprawling white weatherboard homestead with red rooves which could be seen from a few miles away, as you approached the farm. My family and I were fortunate to have been invited there to lunch with Maggie in about 2005 or 6 following our meeting at Kilbreda’s centenary celebrations, where she made quite a stir and voices could be heard saying, “Maggie’s here! Maggie’s here!” 

Here is a beautiful photo of her at a reunion in the mid-40s, sitting smiling front and centre with a group of friends in front of the beloved Grotto. 

A wonderful hostess, her hospitality had once extended to troubled young people, who were given an opportunity at rehabilitation at Quondong. This community service, along with her election as the first female President of a branch of the Farmers’ Federation, resulted in Maggie being awarded an OAM in 2002. Coincidentally, when she arrived at the ceremony, another Kilbreda girl, and former friend of Maggie’s at Kilbreda, Joyce McGrath was also receiving the award. The two have remained in contact ever since. (Joyce, an acclaimed artist, is pictured with Maggie in the group reunion image).

Every time the famous Fitzgibbons were mentioned, Mum would say, “She went to Kilbreda with me!” and later when she appeared in the Surf Washing Detergent commercial, she was in our loungeroom every week. Her strong speaking voice, evident in that commercial (below).

I have a voice message from her on my phone in the archives, which I will listen to every now and then to remind me of her. (Until such a time as I figure out how to record it!) “Damian, it’s Maggie, how are you?”

You can read more about Maggie's incredible life at https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2020/jun/19/maggie-fitzgibbon-obituary

Damian Smith

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