Two of my brothers sadly passed away suddenly mid-year and within three weeks of one another. One of my other brothers, John, wrote tributes to both in the Rostrevor old scholars’ magazine, Red and Black.

Philip was born on January 22, 1964 and died on June 8, 2024. He was the youngest of six children born to Barry and Margaret Ahern. At a young age, Philip developed Epilepsy but in spite of a regimen of drugs to control this, he embraced life to the full. After starting school at Mercedes College, Philip commenced at Rostrevor in Grade three in 1972.

His areas of strength were in the fields of Public Speaking and Drama where he excelled. His best performance came in year ten, where he took a double role in the play “Becket”, where he was the Archbishop of Canterbury in the first half and the Queen Mother after interval.

He was appointed a Prefect in his final year. He enjoyed his school life and was able to imitate the voices of many of his teachers and recount stories from those times. Philip embarked on a career in Education after school teaching at CBC, Blackfriars, Rostrevor (helping as a Boarding Supervisor) and Tennyson Woods at Mount Gambier.

He was strong on relationships but struggled with organisational skills. He coached debating teams with a passion. He also joined the Passionists for a year to explore religious life.

Eventually his disability (Epilepsy) became too much, and he retired to Mount Barker. He enjoyed life there and immersed himself in the local Toastmasters group, winning several speaking awards.

He loved family and forged positive relationships with his nieces and nephews. His death from cancer in June came as no surprise as he had been struggling with it for over a year. He is greatly missed by his family and friends.

Michael was born on May 21 in 1953, the second son of Barry and Margaret Ahern. He attended Rostrevor College from 1961 to 1970. He commenced in Grade three in Mrs Kelly’s class. She said that he was her Rock of Gibraltar and hence thereafter he was known to his friends as Rocky.

He was strong academically while at school and won the Purton Oratory prize for five years in a row in secondary school. He was elected as a Prefect in his final year and was president of the debating club. He also had a role in the play “the Crucible” as well as being a Cadet Under Officer in the cadets.

Perhaps therefore it was no surprise after a period of discernment that he followed his father into a career in the Law. He was initially articled to the Crown Solicitor of South Australia before being admitted as a practitioner in the Supreme Court of SA in 1990.He worked for many years as a Senior Solicitor in the Crown Solicitors office focussed on child protection where he acted as counsel for the Minister in the Youth Court.

As well he was the Foundation Chairperson of the Privacy Committee of SA. From 2007, Michael was outposted to the Department for Families and Communities as the Managing Solicitor. Here he was instrumental in devising a systematic and practical framework to interpret the information sharing guidelines between agencies enabling the better safety of children. His final work was in the Office of the Legal Profession Conduct Commissioner where he provided advice on complex issues of statutory interpretation. His academic Studies culminated in a PHD on the use of personal knowledge and beliefs by jurors.

Michael married Eleanor Beard and was a proud Father of Katharine and Ben. He was a great contributor to family gatherings and possessed a wicked sense of humour. His sudden death on May 17, 2024, came as a shock to all. He will be greatly missed.

John Ahern cfc