Hy praise indeed for class of 2005’s belief and hard work

1:36pm Wednesday 9th November 2005

The class of 2005 celebrated its achievements in front of family and friends at Croydon College's graduation ceremony.

More than 300 students gathered at Fairfield Halls last Friday to receive their awards the culmination of all their hard work.

Hy Money, former Crystal Palace photographer and the first female sports photographer, was guest of honour at the ceremony and said she was delighted to have been able to personally congratulate all of the students on their success.

She also gave an inspirational speech about her battle to be recognised as the first female sports photographer in Fleet Street which included taking on the National Union of Journalists and winning the right to be allowed on the touchline at football pitches.

Today she has photographed sports stars including footballers Ian Wright and George Best, stars of the stage and screen and says the highlight of her career was photographing Muhammed Ali.

She told the audience how she arrived at East Croydon station from India at the age of 19, with £15 in her pocket and all her worldly goods, including a box brownie camera given to her by her mother, in a black box.

She stumbled into photography by chance, taking snaps of her children as they grew up. But it was a trip to Selhurst Park, as a treat for her eight-year-old son, that sparked her passion for sports photography.

Her message to the graduates was for them to have belief and confidence in their abilities adding: "If I can do it, so can you."

College principal Marianne Cavalli opened the ceremony at Fairfield Halls last Friday saying that the majority of students were juggling work and family commitments, fitting in their studies on a part-time basis.

She said: "Your achievements should give you the confidence to raise your expectations and to know that you really can achieve what you might have felt at first was unachievable."

Among students collecting awards were Matthew Haines and mum-of-three Therese Gobind-Crooks, who gained a BA in business combining her studies with her commitments at home and her job as a senior manager in the London Fire Brigade.

Darren Wisdom, who graduated with a HNC in building services engineering, was the winner of his department's prize sponsored by the Croydon Guardian.

Entertainment was provided by Bianca Nichols, 16, who is studying for a BTEC in performing arts, sang a rendition of the anthem I Love Rock n' Roll and Something Inside So Strong.

And college graduate Sarah Latunji had the crowd up and dancing when she sang her own composition It's The Way That You Do Your Thing!

There were also performances by pianist Jennifer Haddow, dancer Sinthuja Indraneru wowed the audience with a traditional Sri Lankan dance and Sarah Gilbert sang I Dreamed a Dream from the musical Les Miserables.

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