In memory of two remarkable women...

Patricia 'Pat' Dugdale

She was the first field officer for NZAD in Wellington and had also been a Councillor for New Zealand Association of the Deaf (NZAD).

Pat had done the feasibility study to prove the need for interpreters and their training.  As a result of her recommendations, we have the AUT sign language interpreting course that has been running since 1992.

Pat was also the person on behalf of Deaf Association of New Zealand (DANZ) to negotiate a memorandum of understanding between DANZ and Victoria University of Wellington around the development of the NZSL dictionary.  From there she went on the staff as the compilation editor to start the process of collecting signs for the book.  The Dictionary of New Zealand Sign Language was printed in 1997 and consisted of over 4,000 signs.

Pat was very involved with Wellington Deaf Society.  She worked with Tony Walton to assist in fundraising to purchase the building that is jointly owned by DANZ and Wellington Deaf Society.

Later Pat went on to do her thesis "Being Deaf in New Zealand: a Case Study of the Wellington Deaf Community" at Victoria University of Wellington and was awarded a PhD in 2000.  During that time Pat wrote the history book "Talking Hands, Listening Eyes", covering the first twenty-five years of Deaf Association.

NZSLTA will sorely miss her, but is grateful for the influence of her important work for the Deaf community.

I will be grateful if some of you may add your contributions.

Lynette Pivac

Penny was born deaf and had a hearing mother and a Deaf father, who went to the Sumner School for the Deaf.  Penny also attended the same school as her father, and later went to Hayley High School in Christchurch, which had a Deaf unit.  After a few years of office work in Christchurch, she decided to move to Auckland for a change and pursued her sporting passion, badminton, for both a hearing club and the Auckland Deaf Society Badminton Club.  She was a representative of the NZ Deaf Badminton Team which competed in the World Deaf Games in Los Angeles in 1985 where she won a silver medal in the women's doubles.  Penny again won a silver medal in the women's doubles in the next World Deaf Games in Christchurch in 1989.  She also played in the Deaf netball team, both local and national, and was a representative netball player against Australia in the Trans-Tasman Games.  This was where she fell in love with Jeff, an Australian and got married in 1985.

Penny will be remembered as a wonderful tutor of New Zealand Sign Language to the many students she has taught since 1994.  Penny will always be remembered as a great NZSL lecturer of the Auckland University of Techology (AUT) to students of both interpreting and NZSL classes, where she was always well-liked by her former and current students.  She will be sorely missed by her work colleagues at AUT because of her unique personality.

She was also an excellent trainer of NZSL tutors and always believed the quality of NZSL teaching to be important.  Her loss will leave a large gap in the tutor training programme which will be very difficult to replace.  Penny was devoted in her contribution to the development and marketing of NZSL resources.

Penny had made many special friends in the Deaf community.  Her unexpected death at her young age has shocked the New Zealand Deaf Community and Deaf organisations which will miss her tenacious, tireless and positive support.  We loved her for her wicked sense of humour, huge patience and time for everyone.

Penny was a wonderful wife and mother to Jeff, James and Sophie.  In her free time Penny had a great, active life in every aspect of the Deaf community and loved travelling with her family.

Penny is survived by her husband Jeff, son James and daughter Sophie.