Young West Australians, Hayley Millen and Holly Harrison, have both been awarded a prestigious McIntosh Memorial Scholarship.
Awarded to descendants of air force personnel for tertiary education, the McIntosh scholarship is named after Lt John McIntosh who, together with Ray Parer, became the first pilot to fly a single-engine aircraft from England to Australia in 1919.
Tragically, McIntosh was killed in an aircraft crash in the wheatbelt town of Pithara in 1921, following which a trust fund was established to assist the tertiary education of veteran’s children, which was transferred to RAAFA to oversee in 1983, and is now valued at $5,000 per scholarship.
And as the first McIntosh scholarships to be awarded since 2019 (due to COVID), this year’s applications have been labelled as particularly outstanding, with 24 submissions received in total.
Hayley Millen, whose great grandfather served with the RAAF in WWII as an aircraft instrument repairer, said winning the scholarship meant a lot to her great grandmother and indeed her entire family.
“Having this support to assist me in my medical sonography degree at Edith Cowan University is incredibly helpful,” says Hayley, who graduated from Carine Senior High School.
“The course is close to my heart and I chose it when my dad had his heart valve affected by COVID. Before he was released from hospital, he underwent an echocardiograh and the scan detected the damaged valve and saved his life. It was this experience that led me into the field, so that I can also help to save lives.”
Having graduated from Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School, Holly Harrison qualified for the scholarship through her grandfather, who served with the RAAF in Western Australia during WWII.
A previous school captain, music captain, and the winner of many academic and music awards, Holly has displayed a deep passion for music since she was a small child and has recently commenced a four-year Bachelor of Music (Contemporary Performance) degree at Edith Cowan University.
“This scholarship has really given me a sense of stability,” says the Bunbury local who is an accomplished musician and can play the piano, flute, saxophone and oboe.
“Moving from Bunbury during this current housing crisis has been difficult and a big adjustment, however the scholarship has really made it easier for me to settle into Perth life and I am extremely grateful.”
Open to the descendants of those young West Australians who enlisted for service in any branch of the RAAF and Commonwealth Air Forces, the scholarship is awarded every year (apart from the short break during COVID). Further information can be gained on the McIntosh Memorial Scholarship by emailing: enquiries@raafawa.org.au.