Fellowship Dinners Australia
John was a great man who loved God sincerely, and enriched the lives of many people who had contact with him. The following text is the speech which Mr. Paul Donohoe gave at Social Action Australia's inagural John Mulholland Memorial Dinner on Friday the 9th of October 2026 at the Tiower Hotel, Melbourne, Halwthorn.
Social Action Australia
An Overview of the Life of John Mulholland (1944 - 2026)
1. Life in Scotland.
- Born in Glasgow, Scotland, in November 1944.
- Glasgow, SW of Scotland, was predominantly a working class city with shipbuilding the main industry.
- World War 2 was raging and had a further six months to run, with an end to hostilities in Europe reached in May 1945.
- First son and second child of James and Catherine Mulholland.
- Eleven more children were born to James and Catherine.
- Four of John's sisters predeceased him.
2. Migration to Australia.
- In June 1952, the Mulholland family migrated to Australia, aboard the ship 'Otrampo'.
- The ship arrived in Melbourne, Victoria in early August 1952.
- The family was sponsored by a Victorian farmer.
3. Family Life in Australia.
- On arrival, the family were provided with the use of a farmhouse in Kilmore.
- In 1954, the family moved to Gippsland where John's father secured employment with the SEC in Yallourn.
- The family lived in Newborough.
- John attended the local Catholic schools, primary and early secondary, in Moe.
- John completed his secondary education (Forms 3-6) at St. Paul's College, Traralgon.
- John joined the Boy Scouts and attained the standard medals that were available.
4. John, the Teacher.
-Upon completion of his secondary education, John moved to Melbourne and studied for three years at Toorak Teachers College. During this time, John boarded with Mrs. Pilkington, who lived in Burwood.
- Having qualified as a teacher, John's first posting was to Goongerah primary school. Goongerah was a small school, with John the only teacher of 12 pupils. John taught them the whole curriculum, i.e., English, Maths, History, Geography. John's mother coined the saying 'Teaching 12 students is akin to teaching a family'.
-John's next posting was to Broadmeadows, out west. John emphasised that his years at Broadmeadows were before that suburb gained the reputation of being 'ultra tough'.
- Having attained the rank of Principal, John's next move was to the parish school at Holy Family, Mount Waverley. Here, John had the unpleasant duty of removing several left-wing teachers, very anti-Catholic. With that out of the way, I recollect that John enjoyed his years of service at Holy Family.
5. John at Monash.
- Whilst working full time as a teacher, John studied at Monash University, part time, and gained a Bacelor of Arts degree.
6. John, the Psychologist.
- In his early fourties, John decided on a career change. He studied Psychology at Melbourne University and thereby became qualified in same.
- Having qualified as a psychologist, John gained employment at St. Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne.
- In this role, John helped many people facing serious psychological and emotional problems. His counselling and advice provided invaluable support and encouragement to these people, enabling them to make sound decisions about the future direction of their lives.
- John helped many priests and religious, facing difficulties in their vocations. In this role, John undoubtedly saved many vocations which would have lapsed. Feedback from several of these people over the years, testify to this.
7. John, the Political Activist.
- John began his career in politics at age 11, where he letter-boxed flyers for the then 'Australian Labor Party (Anti-Communist)' Party in the lead up to the 1955 Federal Election in November. This was eight months after the tragic split in the Labor Party at the March 1955 Federal Conference in Hobart.
- By way of background, the Party changed its name to the Democratic Labor Party (DLP) in 1957.
- As a young person, John joined the Young Democratic Labor Association (YDLA).
- In 1978, John was elected Assistant Secretary of the DLP.
- In 1984, John was elected Secretary of the DLP.
- John stood for election as a Senator at the 1987 Federal Election. John's preferences enabled the election of the moderate ALP candidate Robert Ray to the Senate, thereby blocking the extreme left ALP's John Halfpenny's quest for a Senate seat. A great blessing for Australia!
- At the 1988 State Election, John stood as a candidate for the Lower House Seat of Richmond. With the aid of preferences, John came close to winning the Seat. DLP preferences helped stop the Australian Democrats from gaining Upper House representation. A remarkable achievement, given the DLP's very limited resources.
- At the 2004 Federal Election, John came very close to gaining election as a Senator for Victoria. Indeed, he was proclaimed the provisional winner of the Seat. But after the counting of postal and absentee votes, Steve Fielding of Family First was elected Senator.
- At the 2006 State Election, John narrowly missed election to the Upper House, Northern Metropolitan seat.
- In 2008, the DLP went through a traumatic time, where John and his supporters lost their positions within the DLP.
- This event and the aftermath are complex, and best not dicussed at this presentation of John's life.
8. John, the Family Man.
- John cared very much about his family. Whether as a son, brother, husband, father, grandfather, cousin, John did all that he could to help family members.
9. Recreation and Relaxation.
- John loved the outdoors and was a keen bushwalker.
- John loved music and took piano lessons. John became accomplished in the art of playing the piano, whereby he could hear tunes and play them without sheet music.
- John had a special love of jazz music.
10. A Golden Memory.
- In late March 2026, I visited John in Nazareth House, Camberwell.
- Over a period of about two hours, John and I discussed the state of the world, reminiscences of our lives, the Catholic Church, those looking after John and the fine standard of care he was receiving, the frequent visits of the Dominican priest from nearby St. Dominic's, our musical tastes, films we had seen and loved and other topics which I can't remember.
- It was a marvelous time and one which I will treasure always.
11. Overview.
- John was a compassionate man who did his best to help those in genuine need. In addition, John had a profound sense of justice, based on Bible teaching. Therefore a true sense of justice. Unlike a false sense of 'justice' proclaimed by many in public life today. In particular, George Soros, Bill Gates, Hillary Clinton, Oprah Winfrey to name but a few.
- Where did John get this from? In the first intance from parental guidance. Above this, John's reverence for God's unceasing Love and Mercy. Throughout his life, John was a faithful and devoted Catholic, who did his best to put these values into practice. They were the corner stones on which John's life was based.
- Reflecting on the above, I can think of no better way of summing up John's life, than the following words of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, delivered on a mountainside in Galilee, commonly known as The Beatitudes : -
'Happy those who hunger and thirst for what is right : they shall be satisfied'.
Prepared by : Paul Donohoe.
October 2026.
The Inaugural John Mulholland Memorial Dinner
Social Action Australia
You are cordially invited to the inaugural John Mulholland Memorial Dinner on Friday the 9th of October 2026, at 6:30 pm for commencement at 7 pm, in the upstairs Reception Room of The Tower Hotel, 686 Burwood Road, Hawthorn East.
The guest speakers for this auspicious occasion will be the Rt Hon Mr. Bernie Finn and Mr. Paul Donohoe.
Sadly, John Mulholland, the long-term Secretary of the Democratic Labor Party (DLP) passed away in early April of this year. However, his life and legacy are still relevant to Australia. These two speakers will honour the Mulholland Tradition by their respective presentations.
Bernie Finn is the former member for the Victorian seat of Tullamarine in the Legislative Assembly and from 2006 and 2022 he represented Western Melbourne in the Victorian Legislative Council. His talk is entitled "Where to now?" which promises to be insightful and controversial as he will not hold back! Bernie's views on the 'climate change' (which he considers to be scam), the so-called 'separation of Church and State', and the future of Canberra as a national capital are strong and bold!
When Bernie was a member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly, he was the youngest member of the Kennett Government and was known by many as "The Leader of the Opposition". Some (including the Premier of the Day) may have meant this as a derogatory term but Bernie always took it as a compliment.
Representing Western Melbourne in the Legislative Council, Bernie soon became widely acknowledged as one of the only true conservative voices in the Liberal Party. As chairman of the Australian Conservative Parliamentary Network, he spread that voice to every State in Australia, supporting fellow conservatives and promoting conservative values around the nation. He remains a 'loud and proud' advocate of policies to enhance traditional families, family farms, small businesses, choice in education and basic human rights we used to take for granted.
Bernie rejoined the DLP shortly after the left of the Liberal Party expelled him from the Parliamentary Party, supposedly for his pro-life stance but in reality, because his internal opponents knew that this was the only way to rid the party of the leader of the conservative cause in Victoria. As a DLP candidate and leader, Bernie narrowly missed out by 210 votes on being re-elected to parliament in May 2022 in a region of over half a million.
Following his talk, Bernie will leave because, on the following day he will lead thousands through Melbourne for the 18th time, demanding full protection and equal rights for Victorians before birth as he is the foundation president of the March for the Babies.
Bernie Finn's talk will be followed by a shorter address by Paul Donohoe who is a pro-life activist of thirty-five years standing and a stalwart DLP member since 2007. Paul will pay tribute to John Mullholland's life, career, political achievements and the principles which motivated him.
An excellent Two Course Dinner plus tea and coffee is included for $45.50.
Please book by 1pm Friday the 2nd of October 2026 on www.trybookIng.com/DPVFG.
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