children awards party name honorific_suffix birth_date spouse article_title birth_name alma_mater
4 centenary of australia -lrb- 2002 -rrb- medal -lrb- 2001 -rrb- medal of the order national party of australia shirley mckerrow oam 18 september 1933 john -rrb- alexander mckerrow -lrb- 1955 & ndash ; present shirley mckerrow
 shirley margaret gandini university of melbourne
shirley mckerrow

shirley margaret mckerrow oam , `` née '' gardini -lrb- born 18 september 1933 -rrb- was the first woman to serve as federal president of an australian political party as president of the national party from 1981 to 1987 .
mckerrow was born to dante gardini and margaret -lrb- peggy -rrb- , `` née '' kelly .
she attended genazzano convent in kew and ingergowrie homecrafts hostel in hawthorn before studying at the university of melbourne .
in 1955 she married john alexander mckerrow , with whom she would have four children .
she served on the central council of the country party from 1972 and was a junior vice-president from 1975 to 1976 .
in 1976 she became the first woman to serve as state president of an australian party , becoming president of the victorian branch of the renamed national party and serving until 1980 .
in 1981 she became federal president of the national party , again the first woman to hold this position for an australian party ; she held this position until her retirement in 1987 .
in 2001 she received the centenary medal for services to australian politics , and in 2002 she was awarded the medal of the order of australia .
