John was a great man who loved God sincerely, and enriched the lives of many people who he 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.