Evelyn passed away on June 28 2009. I was invited to speak at a "Celebration of Her Life" event on July 12 2009 at the Dalton Gardens Retirement Village, Ryde, NSW (where she had spent her final years). The crowded event drew together both the three generations of her extensive family and her wider "family" of peace and social justice activists and members of the United Nations Association (where she was a Life Member).

Tragically she passed away only weeks before Fairfield Council is due to commemorate some of its local identities, including Evelyn and former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam (1972-5).

Evelyn led a colourful life. She was born into wealth and privilege at Ballarat, Victoria and she was initially trained for the legal profession. But she decided to become a painter and she mixed in communist circles. Her memoirs were called "Artist of the Left". She eventually became an art teacher in the NSW educational system. A number of Australian homes will have her portrait sketches because, under another name, she had earlier earned a living as an artist at the old Anthony Horden department store where she was the resident artist.

Another link between her and Gough Whitlam is the Eureka Flag, which Mr Whitlam had commemorated in 1973. The flag is now a major icon. It is the home-made flag that flew above the ill-fated Eureka Stockade, Ballarat in 1854. This flag disappeared from public view for some decades after the rebellion was put down.

For the 1938 May Day March in Melbourne it was decided to have an illustration of the flag but there was some confusion of what it looked like. Evelyn could remember seeing it in Ballarat and she contacted her mother. Her mother located it at a public building. The flag's keeper even clipped off a square of it as a souvenir! The letter and clipping later got lost by one of the communist comrades to whom Evelyn lent it. Decades later both reappeared at a major Melbourne auction house as an item for sale. Evelyn successfully led the campaign to stop the sale and have both put on display with the remnant of the flag at the Ballarat Fine Art Gallery.

Evelyn was a pioneer for peace - despite her privileged background. There was nothing in her early life that suggested that she would become so concerned with the underprivileged. Although born to wealth, she was not motivated by it. She had a passion for the poor.

An amusing incident at the Celebration event was the revelation from her secret files compiled by the Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO). ASIO - which actually caught very few if any spies - was not a complete waste of money during the Cold War. I am intrigued by the number of people who are now compiling their memoirs partly from the newly released personal ASIO files.

The ASIO agent who spied on Evelyn commented that thankfully she was not a Catholic nun because that would have made her an even more active person in the interests of peace and social justice! For once, I am happy to agree with an ASIO assessment!

Evelyn was also a pioneer in the aging process. Traditionally, a person went through three stages of life: young, middle aged and elderly. A century ago people lived on average to about the age of 50. During the past century, there have been improvements in health, sanitation, nutrition etc and so many Australians can expect to live well into their 80s.

Thus we now have four stages of life: young, middle, "third age" and then the "compression of morbidity" where the body declines quickly. In the new "third age", which kicks in around 55-60, a person can begin a whole new life that will run on for some decades.

That was certainly Evelyn's case. She had already retired from teaching when I got to know her through the United Nations Association, social justice concerns (such as aid to the developing world) and the anti-nuclear movement. She may have retired from teaching - but she had not retired from life. Indeed, some of her best work was done after she formally retired and she had even more time for changing the world.

Finally, Evelyn had a broad definition of "peace". Too often the "peace movement" is more just "anti-nuclear". Getting rid of nuclear weapons is certainly important. But there have also to be alternative ways of settling disputes and the search for the underlying causes of conflict. Evelyn had such a broad agenda.

The "Celebration" of Evelyn's life was a joyous occasion. But there was a hint of sadness - we no longer seem to producing the "Evelyn Healys" at the rate we need to be.

Keith Suter