VN September 2020

Vetnuus | September 2020 40 9. IngridWolleschak Ingrid Wolleschak, the ninth female graduate was born in Johannesburg on 4 May 1936, the eldest of three daughters. Her schooling was at the German School in Johannesburg, where she matriculated in 1953 with a first class pass and a distinction in German. She started the then five-year Veterinary Science course at Pretoria University in 1954 and during the four years of study at Onderstepoort was the only lady in the first“big”class of 30 students. At the end of 1958 she qualified with distinctions in surgery, gynaecology and special hygiene of meat and milk and was awarded the ICI Prize for Surgery and Gynaecology. In 1959 she joined the practice of Drs Paine, Solomon, and Canham in Pietermaritzburg as assistant and on 31 October 1959 shemarried her classmate, Cornelis Johannes (Neels) Roos, who later became the first veterinarian to obtain masters’ degrees in both surgery and radiology. After the marriage Ingrid did various locums in Johannesburg and for a short timeworked at the SPCA, thenmoved to Pietermaritzburg where she worked at Allerton Laboratories as a state veterinarian until early 1962 when they moved back to Johannesburg where their first child was born. In the interests of the well-being of their children, Ingrid opted to become a housewife for the next 17 years. In January 1979, at the request of the then Dean of the Faculty, Prof CFB Hofmeyr, she started working again part-time at the Faculty of Veterinary Science, Onderstepoort and was entrusted with the overall administrationof the veterinary nursing course (DipCurAnim, later renamed DipVetNur), which had been started in 1977, and also lectured and supervised practicals in the subjects theatre practice, general nursing and partly in surgical nursing. Although the nursing students considered her to be too strict, they soon realised the value of high standards when they started working! Retirement followed 15 years later at the end of 1993. Ingrid looks back on this period of her professional life as the most fulfilling, and from the point of view of the veterinary and para-veterinary professions is certainly the most significant. Ingrid and Neels have three daughters who obtained degrees in limnology, applied mathematics and dentistry, and now have nine grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. Family life was characterised inter alia by much pleasure from classical music and nature. They have travelled very widely over the years and especially enjoyed spending time in the few remaining primary rain forests and in nature in general. In their 60 years together, Ingrid says she can truly look back on a fulfilled life which had fair and equal proportions of rewarding professional duty and a pleasurable and interesting family life! 10. Anne Lize de Villiers Pienaar The tenth woman to graduate was Anne Lize de Villiers Pienaar, born on 31 December 1937 in Johannesburg where her father was a professor at the University of Witwatersrand. She attended the Jan Cilliers Primary School and Helpmekaar Hoër Meisieskool, where she matriculated in 1954. After completing her first year of medicine at Wits University, she started her second year medicine at Stellenbosch University but after 6 months decided to switch to veterinary science. Anne Lize was selected for the second year BVSc course in 1957 together with another girl who dropped out after a year. Initial teasing by classmates of female students persisted, but Anne Lize took it in her stride and passed every year. Initially she lived in residence in the student’s hostel but moved to her parents’ home in Pretoria North when her father was appointed THE NINTH AND TENTHWOMEN TO GRADUATE AS VETERINARIANS FROM ONDERSTEPOORT DID YOU KNOW ? Rudolph Bigalke & Gareth Bath