Monthly Meeting - Exploring Antarctica with Aoife McKenna
Tuesday 13 October – Exploring Antarctica with Aoife McKenna, Curator Stirling Smith Art Gallery & Museum
Anne rang the traditional Ruskie School Bell to get the meeting started with almost 50 members and guests in a packed Thornhill Church Hall covering some brief business including apologies, the treasurers report plus an update on Ruskie Hall and the way forward with that. She reflected on our 100th birthday lunch and the members who attended (inviting us all to the 200th anniversary if we can manage!) The SWI is celebrating 110 years this year and this will be celebrated too. She also encouraged members to respond to the consultation on the Supreme Court ruling on the Equality Act implications for SWI.
The next event in our diary is the FADS (Fintry Amateur Dramatics) pantomime which is always a great show and sells out quickly so anyone who wants a ticket please give names to Liz. Anne also highlighted the next Ruskie adventure which is in the early stages of planning for 2027 to gauge interest as we progress this. One of our 100th anniversary initiative is the RHET Story Seed Sacks which are being embroidered and members can choose a book as their story and make (or buy) elements to illustrate the story. Anne also mentioned the Christmas collection for Start Up Stirling – donations should be brought to the November meeting so they can be organised in time. She also acknowledged birthdays for honorary members and new grandchildren! Anne closed the business portion of the meeting reading thank you cards for the 100th birthday celebration and best wishes for the future.
Anne then introduced Aoife McKenna who spoke to us about her experience in the Southern Continent of Antarctica. With a background of museums and heritage she discovered the South Georgia Antarctica Heritage Trust who operate from Antarctica and Dundee! When a position came up for a heritage role she was fortunate enough to be appointed in 2022 for 6 months and again in 2024 she went back again. Not all scientists are men with beards, and there are a lot of support staff including chefs, engineers, pilots, doctors, guides and heritage specialists! The geography of South Georgia and Port Lockroy is very different as is the scale of the location without a permanent population but only seasonal teams visiting. Aoife shared the history of both South Georgia and Port Lockroy, including the naming of ‘Cape Disappointment’(!), the decimation of the seal population (before turning to whaling for their blubber for oil), Shakleton and the Endurance, the Falklands conflict and the British Antarctic Survey; the establishment of a ‘sovereign’ post office (in spite of being non political!) and the development of island life and the thriving community spirit. Structures on the islands range from rusting whaling industrial sites to a (disused) church as the whalers did not have any need for it! The weather changes across the seasons, but is often like spring in Scotland. South Georgia is very different to Port Lockroy which has no running water, or any way off the island however 40,000 tourists visit each year (and the local team stamp postcards for them to send which can take a year to deliver!). The team also carry out the ongoing penguin study and provide information to the British Antarctic Survey. Living together in close quarters means the team bonds quickly! The wildlife is very special and fur seals are very grumpy and surprisingly can run and climb on land but generally back off if poked with a stick (handy hint for visitors!) – other seal types are elephant or crab eaters (who only eat krill) who are not a threat to humans but leopard seals are more aggressive to other seals & penguins and apex predators in the area. The penguins are much cuter! Other wildlife includes a range of other birds and orcas. The heritage work in Antarctica is a challenge – to look after old buildings in a difficult landscape and protect them for the future e.g. Damoy Hut to sleepover before airplanes could make the journey to the distant base in one journey; or the Stromness Manager’s Villa which has historical significance and was a significant restoration project and was digitally scanned for online visitors! To close, Aoife shared her favourite item – a telegram from a husband on the island to a wife in Edinburgh telling her he was staying for another winter!
After questions from the group, Anne thanked Aoife for her fascinating story of her experience and, even though we were still digesting our amazing 100th birthday lunch, members and guests were treated to a super Ruskie supper by hostesses Catriona, Sheena and Mary before another generous raffle.
COMPETITIONS :
Freestanding meringue snowman - 85th Birthday Cup – 1) Sharon McRobert
ACROSTIC poem – ADVENTURER – 1) Alison Smellie 2) Pamela Deans 3) Anne Artis
As the meeting came to a close and members headed off into the mild (not frozen!) evening, the committee packed up our new ‘toys’ which are helping make the most of our new home in Thornhill Church Hall – an exhibition board to share all the SWI news; a screen & projector to see presentations; and a speaker & microphones to hear our wonderful speakers! Join us in November for an evening with Susie Finlayson and her wonderful tapestries (and shoes!)
