Ella Stack
| Ellen Mary Stack | |
|---|---|
Ella Stack
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| Lord Mayor of Darwin | |
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In office 1975–1980 |
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| Preceded by | Harold "Tiger" Brennan |
| Succeeded by | Cecil Black |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 4 May 1929 Sydney |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Spouse(s) | Thomas Lawler |
Ellen Mary Stack (born 1929) was a doctor and the first female Lord Mayor of an Australian capital city. She was the first Lord Mayor of Darwin, Northern Territory from 1975 to 1980. She is best known for her work following the destruction of Darwin due to Cyclone Tracy.
Stack was born in Sydney on 4 May 1929, the daughter of William and Elizabeth Stack. She attended Brigidine Convent in Randwick and went on to study piano at the Conservatorium of Music in Sydney
Stack married Thomas (Tom) Lawler, an agricultural scientist, in 1957. They have three sons.
Stack graduated with a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery from the University of Sydney in 1956. She then became a Fellow of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners and worked in obstetrics and gynecology. She worked in Wee Waa and Narrabri in the Namoi Valley before moving to Darwin in 1961. Working at a clinic in Parap, she was one of only two private practitioners in Darwin at the time.
After her time as Lord Mayor of Darwin, she completed a Masters of Public Health from the University of Sydney. She then returned to Darwin, becoming the first Assistant Secretary of the Division of Aboriginal Health at the Department of Health of the Northern Territory. She became the Chief Medical Officer of the Northern Territory in 1987. Stack was instrumental in the establishment of Menzies School of Health in 1985.
Stack wrote about and commented publicly on public health and community issues such as abortion and women rights.
After moving to Darwin in 1961, Stack became increasingly interested in politics. She was elected to the Darwin City Council in 1969 and became Deputy Mayor in 1974.
Stack and her family survived Cyclone Tracy, despite the destruction of their house. Stack decided not to evacuate Darwin, instead running an emergency clinic at Darwin High School, which became the main shelter and evacuation centre after the cyclone. She was responsible for the health care of 11,000 people who passed through the centre. "Not only did I look after the people that came in, but also people came and lived here," she said. "They brought their sodden old mattresses with them... I used to do a ward round every day and call them the sodden mattress lot."
Stack was pivotal in establishing the Darwin Disaster Welfare Council, that would later become the Northern Territory Women's Advisory Council. Stack became involved in reconstruction efforts. She was elected Mayor in May 1975 and automatically became a Member of the Darwin Reconstruction Commission.
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