Not every government school in NSW can boast an old students club as active and proud as that of Dubbo High School and College.

With roots going back 80 years to the establishment of the region’s first public high facility, the Bindyi Club — named after the school’s iconic student magazine — is having a get-together in coming weeks.

The event is also an opportunity to promote the good work of the club, which provides a number of scholarships for Dubbo students, and to also encourage new members, organiser Jill McCann revealed.

“It’s rare for a public school to have an ex-students group like this. It shows how much regard people have for the institution,” Jill said.

“This is our 39th annual lunch, you don’t need to be a member to attend, but we’re always looking for new recruits, as our membership is aging and it’s sometimes hard to get young people involved,” she added.

The club, she said, provides far more than just an opportunity to remember the days of the old schoolyard, she explained.

“We’re not just about the old times, we offer scholarships at Dubbo College, we’ve been doing that for a number of years through our foundation. They’re given out at the end of each year, two each for the junior campuses, and two at the senior campus for students going on to university for $2000 each,” Jill explained.

The event also traditionally includes a report from current school representatives about goings-on at their old alma mater, she added.

“There is always a Dubbo College presence at the lunch; we invite two of the captains and the principal or his representative.

“The students give a brief speech about what's happening at the college, as well as the obligatory Astley Cup results from the previous year,” Jill said.

The Bindyi Club, she revealed, traces its roots back to when a group of ex-students decided that an alumni organisation, for what was then the region’s only public high school, was a good idea.

“I was the Dubbo High school captain in 1965 and I joined in 1989, but it was actually started by a group of ex-students from the 1940s,” Jill said.

“Dubbo High was the only full high school in western NSW until the early 1970s, so it attracted students from an area which included Cobar, Bourke, Coonamble, and north to the Queensland border,” she concluded.

Famous alumni include World War II Victoria Cross winner, pilot Rawdon Middleton; Attorney General in the Whitlam Government (1972–75) and Judge of the Supreme Court (1982–92) Kep Enderby; Industrial chemist and government advisor Sir James Vernon AC; Australian children's writer Libby Gleeson AM; Australian rugby league footballers Don Parish and Ian Walsh; Professor of Education, the University of Sydney, Lynette Riley; the first Aboriginal dancer with the Australian Ballet, Ella Havelka; and Indigenous Australian news and documentary photographer Mervyn Bishop.

The 39th Annual Bindyi Club Lunch was held on Friday, March 13, at the Castlereagh Boutique Hotel, Castlereagh Street, Sydney. For more information about the old students club, contact: jillymccann@gmail.com