A teacher, priest, historian and storyteller of Gippsland once called the “conscience of Warragul”, Reverend Canon Dr James Connelly has received a more than deserved honour this King’s Birthday.
The longtime priest of the Anglican Church, local author and former teacher, has received a Medal of the Order of Australia in recognition of his unwavering dedication to the communities of Gippsland.
The nomination for Rev Canon Connelly, who is referred to outside of the Diocese as “Jim,” was submitted without his knowledge and his supporters are unknown to him..
He has his suspicions as to who they might be; he thanks them, but feels this honour is more for Gippsland than just himself.
“I don’t want to play down the worth of this award, I’m proud of having won it,” he said.
“But the fact is that there are so many people I know, all around me, who are equally worthy of an award like this.”
Raised in Garfield by an Irish father and English mother, Jim can’t help but mention how a DNA test of his brought back a precise ancestry of 50 percent from each island.
He spent the first 30 years of his adult life teaching, which took him far from home.
His first year was at his own Garfield State School, he would then complete training and teach in Wangaratta, then in Sydney, England for a few years, back to Sydney, then to Canberra and back to Melbourne.
He would finish his last five years as the founding principal of Bayview College, a Christian community college in Portland.
What would bring him back home was not teaching but the church.
“I’d always been very deeply involved in the Anglican Church, as a parish councillor and a warden.
“So a lot of people kept saying to me, all right, you’ve had your 30 years in education, you’d be a really good parish priest.
“So by the urging of other people, I looked into it and decided that was the way to go forward.”
He would lead the parishes of Traralgon, Neerim South, Maffra and Drouin over an almost two-decade span.
By 2001, he received the title of Honorary Canon dedicated to his years of service to the Diocese of Gippsland.
“I recognised that some of the gifts I had of dealing with people, organising things, promoting the faith, all these things fit with the role of being a parish priest.
“And so I began to look into myself and agree and accept that I did have many of those gifts and that I was qualified and fit to take on that role.”
Now living in Warragul, he continues to maintain a presence in service as he holds permission to officiate.
Jim stood out as a leading voice beyond the required liturgical duties.
His time in the church has seen a strong voice for refugees in the community and an advocate for Indigenous reconciliation.
He has stood against the spread of gambling in local communities, a leading organiser in appeals to Baw Baw Shire.
“Somebody once muttered to me that I was the ‘conscience of Warragul’.
“It’s going a bit far, but I think that recognises that I do stand up for certain elements in society that I see to be right and the right thing to do.”
During his teaching years, he taught students history and he is no less of a student of the past today than he was back then.
Jim has written a series of books from children’s fiction to history, all united by a common ground in Gippsland.
“Round and About in Gippsland” was his first book that profiles every major town of his home to paint a portrait of the diverse region with a shared beauty.
His dips into fiction created one of his most popular books, “Mountain Boy”, where the reader follows a boy with disability and his heroic struggle to climb the iconic Mount Cannibal, in defiance of his teachers.
“Growing up in Garfield” is another historical account among his 14 published books. There is soon to be a new addition regarding the life of the late trade unionist and community activist John Parker.
“I’ve always been involved in history research and I’ve got quite a big library about Gippsland history and people.
“So that’s why I contributed to the writing about Gippsland.”
Jim was also the founding president of the University of the Third Age Baw Baw (U3A) and remains an active member today.
“I think I’m seen as a Gippsland-phile and a lover of Gippsland.
“I’ve lived here a total of more than 55 years, I’m really proud to be a Gippslander.
“That’s the main thing that I see about myself, that’s worthy of saying.”
