Ascension Day, From Light Works 2004

The Ascension Day Tradition at SCEGGS

In 1989, Barbara Chisholm, Diana Bowman and 175 Old Girls, the oldest of whom left the School in 1915, gathered to celebrate the revival of SCEGGS’s Ascension Day celebrations. It has been marked with a Chapel Service, lunch and entertainment every year since.

The Ascension Day tradition dates back to the foundation years of the School. Only three years after the School opened, on Ascension Day in May 1897, former pupils gathered at SCEGGS at “Chatsworth” in Potts Point for the first ever Old Girls’ reunion.

Throughout Miss Badham’s time, Old Girls would meet in her parlour every Ascension Day for tea, games–such as 1908’s potato race, thread-the-needle and jumping competitions–songs, dancing and reminiscing. With no Chapel of its own, a Service of Thanksgiving was often held at St Andrew’s Cathedral in these early years with breakfast and celebrations at the School to follow.

When the Old Girls’ Union officially formed in 1909 it adopted Ascension Day for its annual meeting and gathering. As early as 1913, 100 Old Girls were said to have attended a particularly wet Ascension Day afternoon tea and party which also saw the first singing of the Ascension Day song, “Girls of the Grammar School”.

In 1923, Ascension Day was celebrated with a service at the Cathedral, followed by breakfast at the School, meetings, Old Girls vs current girls netball, School assembly, School songs, and then the Party—“soft drinks, cakes and sandwiches, ice creams—ad infinitum”. Celebrations continued past the last bell with afternoon tea, basketball and presentations. The Old Girls of 1923 certainly had stamina!

In 1926, the Ascension Day service was said to be “crowded” with Old Girls celebrating the opening of the new Edith Badham Memorial Chapel. However, with the change to a three term year, Ascension Day now frequently fell in the School holidays and attendances began to decline. During the 1940s an Annual Ball and Dinner Dances became popular and the Old Girls moved their annual meeting to SCEGGS’ Foundation Day, July 25.

Since its revival by Miss Bowman in 1989, Ascension Day celebrations have been restricted to “girls” who left SCEGGS 50 years ago or more. All Old Girls of the School continue to renew their links with their old school at Back to SCEGGS Day on or near July 17 and numerous other OGU events during the year

Ascension Day continues to grow in popularity, celebrating the longevity and resilience of SCEGGS and the traditions and values it stands for. As Diana Bowman commented in 1989,

It is a deep bond that joins all those who love the School, who are proud to say that they belong to SCEGGS, who join together in saying to each other and to us all LUCEAT LUX VESTRA.