Ena Noël

Phillipena (Ena) Noël, AOM (30 July 1910 to 7 December 2003) best known by the name Ena Noël, was an inspirational school teacher and advocate for children's literature and library services to children and young adults. Ena Noël's name is synonymous in Australia with children's literature and with IBBY, the International Board on Books for Young People. In Australia, she is still affectionately known as 'Mrs IBBY'.

Ena was born in Sydney on 30 July 1910 to Russian immigrant parents. From childhood Ena developed an interest in all forms of art and literature, especially music, theatre and dance. Inspired by the first Bodenwieser Ballet performed in Sydney in 1939, she trained in ballet under Gertrud Bodenwieser. After dancing with the Bodenwieser Group for some years, Ena conducted a dance studio at Rose Bay for some twenty years. In 1952–53 she toured Britain and Europe with a solo lecture-dance program entitled The life cycle of an Australian Aboriginal woman, dancing to John Antill's music for Corroboree. She performed, representing Australia, in the festivities for the Royal coronation in 1953.

In 1940 Ena married Arthur Charles Noël, a British sea captain. After her husband's death in 1966, Ena, although remaining passionate about dance, pursued an academic career. From the University of Sydney she obtained a Bachelor of Arts and Diploma of Education. At first she taught English and History at various high schools. While teaching at Dover Heights Girls High School she became convinced that her highest goal was to turn young people into enthusiastic and discriminating readers by working in school libraries. In 1958 Ena was appointed librarian at South Sydney Boys High.

Ena was invited to speak at many international conferences and from 1982 to 1986 served on the International Board on Books for Young People international executive committee. She believed literature to be a potent force in international understanding and goodwill. Ena's crowning moment in IBBY and in promoting Australian children's literature internationally was no doubt her achievement in 1986 of successfully nominating Patricia Wrightson for the IBBY Hans Christian Andersen Medal for the body of her writing for children, and Robert Ingpen the IBBY Hans Christian Andersen Medal for his illustrations of children's books. This is the only time that both of these awards have gone to the same country in the same year.

...
Wikipedia