<< Back to Lion December 2020 homepage
Sapere Aude Bequest Society
Vale Graham Schmidt and Geoffrey Valentine Smith
Graham Schmidt (OW1951)
Members of our Sapere Aude Bequest Society were saddened at the passing of long-time member and Foundation donor, Graham Schmidt (OW1951), whose obituary is noted in the OWCA section of Lion.
Graham was the father of Jeremy (OW1983), twins, Nick (OW1985) and Rohan (OW1985), and current Wesley parent Lucinda Schmidt; and grandfather of Lucinda’s children Charlotte (OW2016) and Maggie (OW2019) Omond and Jeremey’s children and current Wesley students Annabel and Blake Schmidt.
Graham came to Wesley on a boarding scholarship and always maintained that it changed the course of his life. He made lifelong friends and went on to study medicine, becoming an eminent gastroenterologist. Graham was passionate about football. He was very involved with Collegians Football Club, as a player, committee member and father to past players Jeremy and Nick and grandfather to current player Charlotte Omond.
His love of the College was apparent when he joined mates and family members at Founders’ Day Lunches, boarders’ reunions, and Foundation donor events. His love of ‘all things purple’ shone through when he joined the Sapere Aude Bequest Society in 2012 with a bequest to the Foundation in his Will. He was an avid participant at many Christmas lunches and Adamson Theatre Company musicals.
Graham was also a generous donor to our Moubray Street Precinct development and very committed to the Yiramalay/Wesley Studio School. The Foundation and the Sapere Aude Bequest Society are most grateful for Graham’s kindness and support during his lifetime, and his bequest will ensure that students continue to enjoy a Wesley education in the future. A celebration of Graham’s life will be held at the College when we can all safely gather again, and we can pay tribute to his great contribution.
Geoffrey Valentine Smith (OW1948)
Geoff Smith (OW1948) was born in Canterbury, Melbourne, on the 26 March 1929, and died in Sydney on 18 February 2018. He was an outstanding long-distance runner at Wesley and part of the legendary 1947 Athletics Championship team. He was a pharmacist by profession and lived much of his life in Melbourne before moving to Sydney.
His school friend, Rev Peter Swain (OW1948), remembers him as a talented athlete and ‘a dignified and humble fellow of good character.’
Geoff attended reunions in Sydney and Founders’ Day Lunches in Melbourne and maintained an interest in his old school. He left funds for several charitable and religious groups and kindly remembered Wesley in his Will. The Sapere Aude Bequest Society acknowledges Geoff’s gift with gratitude.