At the recent Australasian Convention of the Richard III Society in Perth it was announced that the recipient of this year’s Robert Hamblin award is one of us.  Not only from one of the Australasian branches but from our NSW branch.  It is none other than our secretary Julia Redlich!

The Robert Hamblin Award is each year awarded for exceptional service to the Richard III Society.   It was instituted in memory of former Chairman, Robert Hamblin, as means of recognising work done by members of the Society that is of particular merit and beyond the call of duty.   Julia more than deserves this award as her service to our branch and the Society as a whole is exceptional indeed.  Without her enthusiasm and energy our branch would simply not be the same.  Julia has served on the committee for nearly twenty years in a variety of functions, and has been secretary since 2004.  Her interest in Richard III was sparked in childhood and her tremendous knowledge on anything Ricardian make for fascinating discussions on the topic close to our hearts.

In his address the present chairman of the Richard III Society, Dr Phil Stone, stresses that in this year, which marks 50 years since the founding of the Society’s first branch in Melbourne, it is especially appropriate that the award should go to an Australian and even more appropriate that it should go to Julia for all her work in actively promoting the cause of King Richard in Australia.

Typically modest, Julia emphasises that the award does not show appreciation for her work only but for that of  all the Australasian branches.  She feels that the work the secretary for the NSW Branch does is nothing without the support of the rest of the committee and the Branch members and friends.

The NSW Branch wishes to congratulate Julia on this well-deserved award and thank her for all her work on our behalf.  She is truly the heart and soul of our branch.

Tags: Award, Conventions, NSW Branch