Exceptional Epsom women honoured

Exceptional Epsom women honoured

Jill Mandeno with Head Girl Arizona Leger

On 16 October Epsom Girls Grammar School Old Girls Association (OGA) presented Founders Awards to recognise three former students who demonstrated exceptional individual achievement or contributed significantly globally or nationally. The award recipients were Lisa Harrow, Lauraine Jacobs and Jill Mandeno.

Launched in 1997, the Founders Awards are a prestigious School award that is presented to truly exceptional alumnae. There are only a small number of the awards given out annually. The award standard and criteria are high and the Rt Hon Helen Clark was one of the first recipients of the award. 

OGA President, Julie Goodyer says:  “The Old Girls Association is delighted to again be hosting this function with the School to recognise the achievements of this year’s Founders Award recipients. This year’s recipients Lisa Harrow – Dramatic Arts, Lauraine Jacobs – as a Culinary Professional and Jill Mandeno – Business and Community Service will be an inspiration to the current and future students of the School. The Awards help to strengthen the presence of the Old Girls Association in the School. Recently the School held an historic function for past Head Girls and Games Captains to name its new Sports Centre for another former student, Lady Joyce Fisher nee Paykel. In 1998 Lady Fisher was also the recipient of a Founders Award for her Community Service.”

Lisa Harrow, who has played the leading lady in more than 40 stage productions in Britain and the US, received the award for Dramatic Arts. During her theatrical career with the Royal Shakespeare Company, Lisa performed opposite actors such as Dame Judi Dench, Patrick Stewart and Peter O’Toole. She also had a successful film career starring in a dozen films. In 1991 in The Last Days of Chez Nous she earned Australia’s Oscar for Best Actress. Then in 1997 the film Sunday won the Grand Jury Award at Sundance and gained Lisa an Independent Spirit Award Nomination for Best Actress. In addition, she is the author of the environmental handbook, What Can I Do?

Lauraine Jacobs, well-known foodie expert, received the award in recognition of her achievement as a Culinary Professional. Having earned the Advanced Certificate in Cordon Bleu cookery, London, Lauraine cooked for the Ministere Plenipotentiare at the British Embassy in Paris during the mid-1970s. Returning to New Zealand, she was the principal of Austin’s Cookery School, Grey Lynn. In 1987 she became the food editor for Fashion Quarterly and wrote for Cuisine Magazine for the next 20 years. She has been a restaurant critic, a food editor and a major contributor to magazines and has written numerous cook books. In 2009 Lauraine was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to the Food Industry.

Jill Mandeno received the award for Business and Community Service. Jill began her career in the UK where she worked for Rolls Royce Aerospace as a programmer and systems planner before she joined ITT Europe HQ in the Technical Department where she stayed for 10 years. She moved to the US and worked for ITT HQ’s Technical Director in New York and then for the Telecommunications Group in North America. In 1968 Jill and three partners bought a temporary computer personnel company (Key Programmers Guild) one of the earliest temporary staffing agencies in the UK. They also set up a US subsidiary to design, manufacture and market, printer graphics controllers for bar coding and other industrial automatic identification systems. In 1992 with the help of now Dame Justice Judith Potter, Jill set up the Epsom Girls’ Grammar School Endowment Trust.

The Founders Awards are to both recognize former students as well as to inspire current students. It helps maintain a connection between the School and its alumnae and it works to broaden the School’s perspective on its major achievements over time. The event took place at Romfords, Tamaki Yacht Club.

ENDS

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