Thora Oehlers (2 September 1913 – July 1990) was a Singaporean physician. she was the first woman student in Singapore of mixed European and Asian ancestry to win a Queen's Scholarship in 1933, and served in the

Royal Army Medical Corps The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. The RAMC, the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, the Royal Army Dental Corps a ...

during World War II.

Early life

Thora Augusta Maude Oehlers was born in

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

, one of the twelve children of contractor George Rae Oehlers and Frances Maude Clarke. Her grandparents came from Germany, Portugal, Britain, and Malaya. Her older brother, Sir

George Oehlers Sir George Edward Noel Oehlers (1 April 1908 – 27 October 1968) was a Singaporean politician and lawyer who served as Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Singapore between 1955 and 1963. Early life and education George Edward Noel Oehlers ...

, was Speaker of the

Legislative Assembly of Singapore The Legislative Assembly of the State of Singapore was the legislature of the Government of Singapore from 1955 to 1965 and is the predecessor of the Parliament of Singapore. The Rendel Constitution, proposed in 1953, sought to give the local ...

. Her younger sister Mae Noeline Oehlers was principal of the

Raffles Girls' School Raffles Girls' School (RGS) is an independent girls' secondary school located in Braddell, Singapore. Established in 1879, it is one of the oldest schools in Singapore. RGS, together with its affiliated school Raffles Institution, offers a six- ...

. Thora Oehlers was a student at the

Raffles Institution Raffles Institution (RI) is an independent educational institution in Singapore. Founded in 1823, it is the oldest school in the country. It provides secondary education for boys only from Year 1 to Year 4, and pre-university education for both ...

, a bright and athletic young woman, when she became "the first Eurasian girl scholar in Singapore" to win a Queen's Scholarship in 1933, for study in England. She was the second girl in Singapore to win the honor, after Maggie Tan in 1930.

Career

Oehlers trained as a physician at the

London School of Medicine for Women The London School of Medicine for Women (LSMW) established in 1874 was the first medical school in Britain to train women as doctors. The patrons, vice-presidents, and members of the committee that supported and helped found the London School of Me ...

, and stayed in London during World War II, serving as a lieutenant in the Royal Army Medical Corps. She went to Belgium with the

British Liberation Army The British Liberation Army (BLA) was the official name given to the British Army forces which fought on the Western Front of the Second World War, between the Invasion of Normandy and the end of the war. Almost all BLA units were assigned to the ...

in March 1945, and served at a military hospital in

Ostend Ostend ( nl, Oostende, ; french: link=no, Ostende ; german: link=no, Ostende ; vls, Ostende) is a coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerk ...

, and at medical stations in Egypt and Palestine. She returned to Singapore after demobilization, and became a Lady Medical Officer in Singapore in 1947. She resigned as a Lady Medical Officer in 1950.

Personal life

At age 45, Oehlers married British civil engineer William Peter Winston in 1959. Her husband served in the Indian Army during World War II. She died in 1990, in her seventies, in England.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oehlers, Thora 1913 births 1990 deaths Royal Army Medical Corps officers Singaporean military doctors Raffles Girls' Secondary School alumni Raffles Institution alumni Queen's Scholars (British Malaya and Singapore)