Summary

Printed rectangular thin card certificate.

It was issued in 1926 to people who gave money to the `Florrie Hodges Testimonial Fund', which had been established by the Timber Worker's Union. The fund was to raise money for Florence (Florrie) Hodges, a 15-year-old girl from Powelltown, a small town east of Melbourne.

During the bushfires, which occurred on 14 February that year, she protected her two sisters from the advancing flames, by using her own body to shield them. She suffered serious burns and spent several months recovering in St Vincent's Hospital in Melbourne.

Physical Description

Rectangular certificate printed on thin off-white card. On the front is an oval black and white photograph of a group of people in a hospital surrounding a bandaged girl in a bed. One of the men is holding a framed certificate. Around the photo are words describing the event, and a drawn depiction, printed in red ink, of the events leading up to her hospitalisation. On the back is printed a certificate number/

Significance

This item is significant as an object documenting the aftermath of the brave actions of one young woman during the Powelltown Bush Fires, on Sunday 14th February, 1926. Trapped by the advancing flame, Florrie used her own body to shield two of her younger sisters from harm. Suffering horrific burns from the incident, she was taken to St Vincent's Hospital in Melbourne, where she spent many months recovering from her ordeal.

News of her bravery spread across Australia, through the press and on radio, and she was soon recognised as a local hero. This noteriety assisted in helping raise funds for her, through several charities set up for this purpose. This included the raising of 1,000 pounds by school children in Victoria and Western Australia, which was presented to her in the leather purse in the collection (HT 33731.)

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