Jeffery Elliott is giving Carrolup drawings to the John Curtin Gallery in his Will, returning artworks by children of the Stolen Generations to Western Australia after decades in the United States.

Jeff’s mother, Jean Thompson (pictured), was raised in Katanning near the Carrolup Native Settlement, where Aboriginal children removed from their families were detained. Jean would play the organ at Sunday service in town and would repeat it at Carrolup for the children.

In 1945 Jean met Jeff’s father, a United States sailor stationed in Fremantle, and they were soon engaged and would move to the US. On one of her last Sundays at Carrolup, Jean was offered some of the children’s drawings to remind her of where she grew up. In Iowa, Jean would use the artworks to illustrate her homeland on the other side of the world to service groups and school classes.

Jeff feels the artworks should now be sent home to be reunited with many others by the Carrolup children, held in custodianship by the John Curtin Gallery, to educate the community on truth-telling and reconciliation.

Ailsa West is leaving a gift in her Will to enable high achieving screen arts students in their final year or undertaking postgraduate studies to pursue their dreams.

When Ailsa applied to study a Bachelor of Arts in English and media at the WA Institute of Technology, little did she know how much it would change her life – she would go on to travel the globe working for leading universities and media organisations. However, her degree was hard fought for, as her family could not support her financially through university, forcing her to find time between studies to wash dishes and wait tables to pay her own way.

Ailsa decided to leave a bequest to future Curtin students similarly committed to their field, enabling highly motivated screen arts students to pursue important projects they might otherwise be precluded from.

“I hope my bequest will encourage and reward future generations. It is for those people who are highly motivated and passionate. I hope it might allow someone to travel overseas and make that important film or documentary.”

Curtin graduate Nelly Hodges wants to inspire future generations of medical scientists.

After returning to study as a part time mature aged student at Curtin, Nelly graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Medical Science in 2005. Since then, she has found immense success in her field, working in the laboratories of leading hospitals across the state, most notably as a senior scientist at Perth’s Mount Hospital.

Wishing to give back, Nelly established an annual encouragement award for first-year Curtin laboratory medicine students, and has also pledged a generous gift in her Will to ensure that her awards continue to support students for generations to come.

“My main motivation behind leaving the bequest was my passion for medical science. I wanted to ensure future generations were encouraged to pursue medical science. It is in some ways a silent profession, with the general public unaware of what we do, but it is incredibly rewarding, especially in the hospital setting as you are helping to save lives.”

In 2001 Paul Andrew Digby Robinson left a generous bequest in his Will to support research into Indigenous education at Curtin. With the help of his friends Walter and Sylvia Hyams, the innovative Noongar Language and Culture course was born.

Developed with Curtin’s Centre for Aboriginal Studies, the course creates an awareness and understanding of significant aspects of Noongar culture, with its strong connections to family, community and country. This wonderful educational gift has continued to give and develop over time – in mid-2018, the program was adapted into a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) that many thousands of people around the world have now accessed via the edX platform.

Curtin is truly grateful for the commitment of Paul, Walter and Sylvia to furthering understanding of Noongar culture and contributing so significantly to reconciliation.

Shelley Pike wants to enable an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person to commence or further their university studies.

Born and raised in Perth, Shelley is a local government professional with fifteen years’ experience as a Chief Executive Officer in regional Western Australia, specialising in organisational change and business development. She completed a degree in social science at Curtin’s predecessor institution, the Western Australian Institute of Technology (WAIT), prior to undertaking postgraduate studies at the University of Western Australia.

Shelley has spent a significant portion of her life in WA’s Kimberley and Great Southern regions working with and employing Aboriginal people. As a result, she is passionate about the positive role education can play in improving opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals and communities.

Shelley hopes her bequest will provide life changing opportunities for future generations.

Having benefitted from a free university education in the 1970s, Curtin graduate Helen Potter is committed to helping the next generation of students access the same life-changing opportunities.

Helen grew up in a low socioeconomic environment but thanks to the government policy of the day, she was able to complete her undergraduate degree in physiotherapy in Melbourne. After graduating, Helen moved to Perth and worked at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, and then as a rural locum physiotherapist for several years. She was awarded a scholarship to partially fund her postgraduate studies at Curtin.

Helen has become a leader in her field, involving herself with volunteer sports physiotherapy placements, and leading seminars, teleconferences and practical courses. She has supervised physiotherapy students in hospital clinics and taught undergraduate and postgraduate students at Curtin.

Helen’s bequest will support postgraduate physiotherapy students from remote and regional WA communities who are in need of financial assistance to undertake their studies at Curtin.

Margaret (Margot) Cox, a former librarian at the WA School of Mines, left a donation to Curtin in her Will. Margot forged a close connection with the University while working at the Kalgoorlie campus in the 1970s and was passionate about supporting students.

Mary Durack generously left two artworks by important Kimberley artists Roy Wiggan and Mervyn Street to the John Curtin Gallery in her Will.

Mary began her working life as a marine biologist, before later completing a degree in Aboriginal Education. She was passionate about diving, snorkelling, bushwalking, indigenous culture and art collecting

During her career, Mary spent much time working in regional and remote parts of Australia, including the Kimberley and the Northern Territory. She also spent a number of years in Paris, where she set up and ran a small Aboriginal art business.

Mary retired to Kununurra in 2019. In the short time she lived there she developed strong relationships with the local Miriwoong people and attended cultural awareness and language courses to increase her knowledge. Her love for the country intensified as she walked extensively in the bush enjoying the amazing landscapes at her doorstep.

Mary’s passion and knowledge of art, especially Aboriginal art, inspired her to acquire a substantial and important collection during her lifetime.

In 2020, Mary was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease and after brave battle passed away in Kununurra in October 2021.

These drawings by Curtin graduate Andrew Nicholls were especially commissioned for the Gifts in Wills Program. The black cockatoo is an Australian native bird and a familiar sight at Curtin’s Perth campus.