Harry Dudley (OM 2023) was the recipient of the Ross T Shelmerdine Scholarship during his time as a boarder at Melbourne Grammar School. Here, he reflects on his recent interaction with the Shelmerdine family and the impact the scholarship has had on his life.
It was the morning after my last Year 12 exam that I received a message saying that Lady Southey wanted to personally meet me. It seemed my letter thanking her for her support was greatly appreciated and sparked her curiosity.
Unfortunately, at the last minute, Lady Southey couldn’t make our lunch due to unforeseen circumstances. I did, however, have the great pleasure of meeting her sons, David and Stephen Shelmerdine.
I connected with David over our common interest in agriculture, and learnt he had a farm near Mathoura, only a relatively short distance from my family’s farming property at Deniliquin.
Stephen talked about his father after whom my scholarship was named. One story that I particularly enjoyed listening to was about how Ross thought deeply about the future sustainability of our environment and pastoral land use on a walk from Adelaide to Alice Springs. He was a such visionary thinker.
It will always be a memorable experience for me to have met David and Stephen Shelmerdine. It gave me an opportunity to thank them for their belief in the potential of students like me.
With the support of the Ross T Shelmerdine Scholarship, I have been able to establish strong connections with students who came to Melbourne Grammar from all over Australia, achieve strong academic and co-curricular outcomes, and develop my leadership skills.
As I commence studying a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Melbourne, I will work to honour the generosity of the family by making the most of the opportunities that follow on from my time at Melbourne Grammar School.
“We are privileged to be able to keep this scholarship going.”
Lady Marigold Southey
About the Ross T Shelmerdine Scholarship
In 1987, the family of the late Ross Shelmerdine, including his widow Lady Marigold Southey, generously established a scholarship in his memory. The Scholarship enables a country student to attend Melbourne Grammar School as a boarder who, for financial reasons, would otherwise not be able to do so.
Ross Shelmerdine OBE CMG (OM 1937) was a pupil at Melbourne Grammar during the 1930s and his two sons, Stephen Shelmerdine AM (OM 1968) and David Shelmerdine (OM 1970), also attended the School.
Ross was President of the Old Melburnians in 1970. During the 1960s and 70s he devoted much time and energy to fundraising activities at the School including the establishment of the Melbourne Grammar School Foundation.
Melbourne Grammar School is extremely grateful to Lady Southey and her family for the wonderful legacy they created and the continuous support of country students, enabling them to board here.
