How our fearless Saints responded to the recent flood crisis
Our new Junior School leadership team is on a mission
How our Saints heeded the calls to assist friends in need during the 2022 flood crisis.
Meet our new Junior School leadership team and discover their game-changing plans in literacy education.
We welcome Mr Owen Clarke as our new Director of Performing Arts. Find out what he has planned for music and drama at All Saints.
We always love hearing from members of the All Saints community. For updates and editorial enquiries please contact us on the details below.
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Our Giveathon theme for 2022 is revealed and an ambitious goal is set.
Thank you to other members of the All Saints community who supplied photos for this edition.
Kindness, Joy, Gratitude, Curiosity and now Compassion. Our chosen themes for the last five years speak into the heart of the unfolding story that is All Saints, the story of Us. It is important that we articulate this story clearly and often and the narrative needs to come from within. Too many organisations allow external 'experts' to design and then control the narrative with the result that it is never truly authentic. Embedded in our story is our vision: 'To be a world class Christian school where everyone joyfully reaches their potential.' Of course potential in this context means far more than achievement; it speaks to the people we are becoming, the people we strive to be - bringers of light into an increasingly dark world. These chosen themes help us in our development as individuals to fulfil our true potential.
Compassion in its original context literally means 'suffering with' another. In a world that is becoming ever more polarised with different groups refusing to entertain each others' perspective or experience, it is critical to be willing to be alongside another with differing views. The reason this is so challenging is that it often requires us to relinquish our strong attachment to particular beliefs. Yet for me, the important thing is to see the person beyond their ideological position. This requires being willing to really listen to the other person's story with a view to understanding them. Curiosity has a role to play here.
One of the key outcomes of compassion is a sense of connection. The world we live in is driven by technology with its extraordinary range of social media platforms. Hence, in one sense, the world is more connected than ever; and yet, paradoxically, we are witnessing a far greater sense of disconnection and loneliness. Compassion, it seems to me, is the bridge between isolation, misunderstanding, conflict and a sense of belonging, trust and connection. Sitting with another, listening to their story without judgement and surrendering one's own preoccupations in the process reinforces the value of each person's story and will lead to meaningful connection and a flourishing community. Compassion has the potential to create unity and harmony out of division and mistrust. For me, it is one of the most powerful forces available to humanity.
The Saints magazine is one of the many ways in which we seek to tell our story. I hope you enjoy the articles contained herein and that each one will play its part in enriching your understanding of our community.
Patrick Wallas
IT WAS A DELIGHTFUL FULL CIRCLE MOMENT WHEN ALUMNUS CHRIS HOLT (CLASS OF 2009) RETURNED TO THE NAIRN THEATRE TO ASSIST WITH REHEARSALS FOR THE UPCOMING JUNIOR SCHOOL MUSICAL SHREK
One of Chris’ final performances while at school was as the hilariously narcissistic character of Gaston in the acclaimed 2009 Middle/Senior School production of Beauty and the Beast.
After graduating, Chris explored a few paths in the performing arts and subsequently the Royal Australian Air Force before eventually pursuing a career in primary school teaching.
Chris is soon to complete his education degree, majoring in special needs, and is aiming to work as a mainstream classroom teacher (one day at his alma mater, fingers crossed).
For now, Chris is on hand with Shrek to assist the production in whatever way necessary. He says
being back on the Nairn stage is just like “riding a bike”.
“The second that I arrived back in the Nairn Theatre, it was so easy to just fall straight back into the routine – knowing what works and what doesn't,” he says.
“It’s actually quite a surreal experience because it feels almost like nothing has changed. Whether it's in a capacity of teaching or directing or performing, it's the exact same feeling I that I had all those years ago.”
Chris is excited to see how our young ones perform in Shrek and offers some words of
wisdom when it comes to studying the arts at All Saints.
“Knowing how to conduct yourself and hold yourself just gives you that little bit of extra confidence, which will never let you down in any way,” he says.
“Relationship building and communication is so important in all aspects of life. I think performing arts is a really good way to be able to practise those skills from a young age.”
Who is better to provide advice to our young performing stars than someone who has been in their shoes before?
TESTING,
IS
THING ON? YES? FABULOUS. LET’S TALK ABOUT ALL SAINTS RADIO.
Not many schools can boast having their very own radio station, streamed online 24/7, run by an industry professional, no less!
When former commercial radio star Mr Michael Walkley joined All Saints as a design and technology teacher, it was only a matter of time before he put his exceptional broadcasting talents to good use at the school.
Mr Walkley is now training the next generation of hosts and reporters for live shows on behalf of All Saints Radio.
Year 12 students Daniel McLaren-Kennedy and Jordan Lee have been hosting the popular breakfast show every Friday morning since Term 1.
“They sound like professionals already, with hardly any prompting from me,” says Mr Walkley.
“We’re doing an official launch in the first week of Term 3 where we are looking at live music performances as well as interviews with past students and members of the school community."
Dan and Jordan feel at home behind the desk and are excited to be living a reality that, until now, they’ve only really seen on screen.
“It’s just the coolest thing having a radio station at the school,” says Jordan. “I've always seen lots of movies where high schools in America have their own news network – and this feels like exactly that.”
“It is super fun to come in early on Friday mornings and entertain the school community,” adds Dan. While running the mixing desk and making sure to avoid repetition is sometimes a challenge, the duo says running the radio is also extremely rewarding.
“I want to pursue a career in musical theatre, which radio presenting really helps with,” says Jordan. “Because of this opportunity, I’m thinking about running radio as a side hustle while I’m at university,” adds Dan.
Catch Breakfast with Dan and Jordan on All Saints Radio via FIDO every Friday morning from 6am to 8am.
You can also read more on page 30 about All Saints’ brand-new line up of student journalists, and how they plan to help fuel the school’s media machine.
The Readers Cup has been an institution at All Saints since its nationwide inception in 2004, almost two decades ago.
Competitors read the chosen texts and compete in teams of up to five in a trivia-style event across three divisions from Years 5 to 10.
At the end of Term 1, four All Saints teams in Middle School competed against each other to see which would advance to the Readers Cup regional final in 2022.
The winning team comprised of Year 8 students Asher Ciobo, Madi Matthews, Aliyah Scott and Harper Tancred.
In 2021, Year 10 student Sam Butterworth competed as part of an All Saints team which also advanced to the regional finals of the Readers Cup.
Sam has congratulated this year’s winners and says her own experience with the competition was terrific for building teamwork, discovering new literature and forging bonds with other students from outside her immediate social circle.
FRONT ROW L-R: AARON SUN, BAILEE ROSE, BELLA VOSLOO, SKYE RATTRAY-WOOD, LIZZIE MCLAREN, LIAM FELSMAN.
BACK ROW L-R: AARON SHARMA, AMELIA MAHON, SARTAJ SINGH, QUAID ROGERS, BRANDON LOWNDES.
A fearless group of Year 6 students became the first ever primary school competitors to take part in the Gold Coast Debating (GCD) competition.
As there is no official Junior division of the GCD circuit, these two Year 6 All Saints teams went head-to-head with Year 7 teams from other schools for the duration of the season.
Lizzie McLaren and Sartaj Singh were proud to debate as part of these historymaking teams and argue topics including ‘Sweet is better than savoury’ and ‘Everyone should have to learn a foreign language.’
“I was excited to represent All Saints and build up my confidence in public speaking,” says Lizzie.
“In debating, I really like rebutting and bouncing ideas off one another.”
Sartaj adds that although debating can be nerve-wracking, having the chance to decode and argue fun topics makes the experience worth it.
“I’m happy that we can develop skills with our talking, and I usually really like the topics and rebutting,” he says.
“It felt good to be the first ‘sixes’ in this competition. I was a bit nervous at first but was fine once the debating days came around.”
“The Readers Cup builds teamwork skills and helps you to think more about the messages that are in books,” explains Sam.
“I was in a team last year with another student in the year above me, and now we’ve become really good friends.”
“The competition also sometimes makes you read books that you would never have chosen for yourself, but they turn out to be your favourites.”
THINGS ARE GETTING DEEP IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL WITH THE BRAND-NEW MARINE STUDIES SUBJECT IN YEAR 9.
The new Year 9 Marine Studies elective is both a theoretical and practical one, as students study the ocean and earn their Open Water 1 / Recreational Diver accreditation in the process.
Course founder and Year 9 Coordinator Mr David Terblanche says this accreditation is internationally recognised and allows students to dive recreationally,
They also gain knowledge about professional pathways in diving including salvage, rescue, military and tourism.
“This subject provides students with a practical outlet, and it also gives them something tangible they can walk away with,” says Mr Terblanche.
“Around the Gold Coast there are some spectacular dive sites. Once students from both
2022 semesters are qualified, we are looking at partnering with a dive company and, under their auspices, all diving together somewhere locally.”
Lexi Scholz and Max Hooker are two students among the first cohort to take Marine Studies as an elective.
Lexi is excited to learn more about the ocean and connect theory to practice during future dives.
“We learn all about marine life, and the things that we will actually looking at when we’re diving,” she says.
“I definitely have an interest in things like biology and marine science in Senior School.”
Max believes this subject is an important one, as it looks closely at the biggest habitat on our planet.
“Most of our world is covered by ocean, so I think it’s pretty important to know what goes on there, and how we can help it,” he says.
He also thinks learning how to dive leads to other important life lessons in self-control and emotional regulation that can be applied to other areas.
“It’s a pretty weird feeling, breathing under water, but we learn all these different skills about coping in the water, how to stay calm and stop any strong feelings of panic.”
Lexi, Max and Mr Terblanche strongly recommend Marine Studies to all future Year 9 students who are interested in undertaking a very practical subject that has many immediate and real-world applications.
While All Saints provides a diverse range of opportunities for service learning in all year levels, it’s always up to the students to meaningfully engage with them, and to build a greater capacities for kindness.
Around the School these opportunities are known by many names; the Pen Pals Program, Walk for Water, the Giving Garden, or the Leadership Camp.
For students in Year 7, these opportunities take the form of Compassion Projects.
As the name suggests, Compassion Projects aim to enhance student understanding and active compassion for identified social and environmental needs within the community.
Service Learning Coordinator Mrs Lyn Barker says they help students realise the importance of responding to human need through loving service.
“It’s important that our students are exposed to societal needs, whether or not they are within the same neighbourhood,” says Mrs Barker.
“It’s about looking after other people within our community and caring for them, as Christ cared for them, and sustaining and maintaining the environment of the earth that God has provided for us.”
While all Compassion Projects are equally meaningful and impactful in different ways, the project undertaken by 7D will be quite special as it involves close ties to a past All Saints student.
Students from 7D will work closely with the Baby Give Back charity run by alumna Carly Fradgley (née Mann) (Class of 2003).
Baby Give Back works with families in crisis to provide the essentials for childcare that they can’t afford themselves.
The charity donates items such as nappies and wipes, prams, cots, car seats and more to families in need.
“Carly will talk to the students about what Baby Give Back does, and what needs it meets in society, then the students will be shown through the warehouse and help out however needed,” says Mrs Barker.
Another project undertaken by both 7R and 7A involves waterways and koala habitat restoration in conjunction with the City of Gold Coast.
“We take the classes out to wherever the council deems necessary, and they help revegetate different areas at different times with a view to bringing back koalas and other native wildlife,” says Mrs Barker.
“The beauty of it is that students can go back to those places years later, like at Schuster Park for example, and see the massive differences their work has made.”
Like all things, developing compassion often takes some effort and involves personal growth over a person’s lifespan. Mrs Barker says that Year 7 is a time when students are blossoming into adulthood and their capacity for altruistic action grows.
“These young people are moving through a stage where they really begin to understand that they can help others, and moreover find out they enjoy helping others,” she says.
“We try to expose students to everything that might help them develop and mature with compassion, interest and motivation for their community.”
7W All Saints
7J All Saints
7K Hillview Aged Care
Partaking in environment care, recycling and food waste reclamation at school.
Running fundraising and preparation for Giveathon, including organising speakers for charities.
Creating and delivering care packs to the elderly, while paying special care to those who don’t have visitors.
7R / 7A City of Gold Coast Koala habitat and waterways restoration activities.
7D Baby Give Back
7L St. John’s Crisis Centre
It’s been 31 years since the official opening of the Yvonne Bain Library and Resource Centre, but many people don’t know the story behind the name. Mrs Yvonne Jean Bain was involved with All Saints when it was still but a twinkle in the eyes of people like John Day, Jennifer Reeves, Jim Stonier and Hugh Cowan.
With her knowledge and experience in schools and as a consultant for government, Yvonne became instrumental in steering these early visionaries through the complex application process for grant funding for new schools. She was also one of our school’s founding guarantors; that small band of believers without whom our school would not have succeeded.
Yvonne was one of life’s ‘givers.’ She recognised the many blessings associated with helping others and spent much of her life serving in a voluntary capacity for various educational and humanitarian causes. On 27 March 1991, the library was officially opened. Yvonne Bain passed away in May 2004.
Learning about the organisation and assisting in the warehouse to organise stock for distribution.
Preparing and promoting the All Saints Christmas Giving tree and delivering presents to the needy at St. John’s.
THROUGH HELL AND HIGH WATER, WITH INDOMINABLE SPIRITS AND OPEN HEARTS, OUR SAINTS HEEDED THE CALLS FOR COMPASSION THAT ECHOED FROM MANY OF THE WORST FLOOD-SOAKED AREAS OF QUEENSLAND AND NEW SOUTH WALES. WHETHER BY ACTIONS GREAT OR SMALL, THEY SELFLESSLY CAME TO THE AID OF THOSE IN THEIR DARKEST HOUR OF NEED.
Permit us to paint some difficult pictures.
Derelict and looted buildings line the grey-brown streets of a once lush and buzzing rural community centre. Aggressive septic injuries, diabetes and asthma go untreated. Antibiotics, insulin, and inhalers are luxuries. Families live on bridges with livestock, all are unfed for the fourth, fifth, or sixth day in a row. Nearby, an animal is at final rest, cradled by the cleft arms of a weeping river gum.
These aren’t vignettes from some distant war or past catastrophe. These are all recent photos from Mrs Tarryn Durbidge’s camera roll.
They show the tragic reality of the flooded aftermath in the Lismore and Northern New South Wales regions.
Mrs Durbidge, a beloved All Saints Pre Prep Teacher Aide, couldn’t have imagined that when the rain first started to fall, she would soon be coordinating the largest community response to this crisis off the back of viral social media posts.
It began with a few sandwiches.
“My friend and I packed some little lunchboxes, and I put the call out to social media if anyone had some time to make a few more that we could deliver to people down south,” says Mrs Durbidge.
“Our husbands took those baskets out on their jet skis to make the drops, then we started receiving more requests for things like shoes, fuel and medicine. It just grew and grew from there.”
Before long, Mrs Durbidge and her team of mums were coordinating an army of volunteers from their Currumbin warehouse for missions including resource gathering, jet ski and boat rescues, and even aerial spotting using choppers that were either bought by her team or donated by the likes of Chris Hemsworth and Mick Fanning.
“People would arrive at our warehouse eager to help and businesses were donating thousands of dollars to us, so even though we were filling jerry cans, buying generators, pressure hoses and first aid kits, filling scripts for people and sending them out, it just kept getting bigger,” says Mrs Durbidge.
"Some of these people live in remote regional areas and were completely isolated. So, we ended up paying for choppers. We filled a hangar at Lismore.”
Mrs Durbidge's husband and All Saints dad Bede, along with other intrepid volunteers, made the difficult call to travel through waters which contained live electrical wires to reach people who had been stranded without food, clean water and medicine for more than five days.
“Energy workers told us we couldn’t go in the water, but meanwhile there was someone on the other side of the river
husbands again. But they made it back safely and the medicine was delivered.”
The immediate danger may have since abated, but the journey to square one is far from over.
Mrs Durbidge and her fellow aid organisers are currently forming a foundation in crisis and natural disaster management. They are aiming to host a fundraiser that will put money directly into the bank accounts of those afflicted.
“From leftover donations, we are currently allocating $5,000 donations to go directly into bank accounts of those who need it,” she explains.
“Everything from our hangar has been moved to Grafton, now we are just checking our hubs and keeping our resources together if something like these floods were to happen again.”
Let us pray that it won’t. But if it does, let
It was a normal school morning for Bella Vosloo until she made the call to popular Gold Coast radio station SeaFM from the Junior School office.
Was she going to be the one to win the secret sound competition by guessing the mystery noise?
‘Is it… someone opening a chocolate coin?’
Bella asked the presenters.
‘Bella, you’ve just won the secret sound!’ came the response. Bella’s reaction was almost outdone by Mrs Tracey Mayoh’s excited scream, heard in the background.
Bella had just won $4,800, a sum which any
Mrs Michelle Trainor first grasped the gravity of the floods when one of her dear friends from down south had marked herself ‘safe’ on Facebook.
“That moment opened my eyes,” she says. “It was not just our school that had flooded. It was not just us being inconvenienced by not being able to get to school. It was far worse down there.”
After recognising the plight of so many via social media, Mrs Trainor put her hand up to deliver the vast donations accumulated by the All Saints community to those in need.
“All Saints very generously donated about two carloads full of essential items that I took on two separate occasions,” she says.
“I delivered as far as Evans Head, just south of Ballina, and had to take a few detours as some of the roads were still completely underwater.”
While Mrs Trainor witnessed some heartbreaking scenes on those drives, including demolished homes and decimated streets, she says one of the most positive things to see was how social media became the ultimate vessel for action.
“The response that I saw on social media was a great example of how Facebook and platforms like that can actually help for the good in times like this.”
What do boys like Tavian King and Max Lang usually get up to during a sleepover? Maybe some games, a bit of backyard footy, watching movies and staying up late?
As it turns out, preparing food for the flood victims was also a sleepover activity for these selfless students early on during the crisis - with some help from dad and professional chef Shane.
“At about five in the morning we went down to my dad’s work with some other friends and family and made about 500 sandwiches,” says Tavian.
The group then delivered the sandwiches to flood affected areas, where they found people who were willing to sacrifice their own hunger for the needs of others.
“Most of the time we’d go to these people and asked if they wanted a sandwich, and they’d say ‘oh no, check on this person first.’”
“Once we told them we had made 500, enough for everyone, that’s when they’d agree to have one.”
The boys feel extremely grateful to have helped those who were struggling.
There are certain things that one can’t throw away. Nan’s antique cupboard. Dad’s guitar. A photo album of priceless memories.
Mrs Kathleen Stephenson and her husband Mr Brett Stephenson made it their mission to help others preserve treasures like these that had been damaged by floodwaters.
On the first Saturday of the floods and with gurney in hand, Kathleen and Brett travelled to Tumbulgum in search of someone they could help.
“My mum lives in Sydney on her own with no family, so I thought surely there’s someone in the flood affected area who could be in the same situation,” says Mrs Stephenson.
“We ended up helping a widow called Rosie who was in her eighties. The water had come up and almost covered the whole window in her house.”
Mr and Mrs Stephenson helped Rosie wash the silt from her antique furniture and took her albums filled with photos from her wedding day, as well as other special moments, to be restored and reprinted.
“Most of the other families down there were just throwing out their furniture because they could replace it easily, but Rosie didn't want to do that because a lot of it was old furniture which meant a lot to her,” says Mrs Stephenson.
“It was her entire life, and she didn't have any family to help her. It was really nice to be able to offer kindness, conversations and kinship to someone who was a little bit older than me, but who also perhaps really needed it at that time.”
Flood clean-up is messy business, arguably nowhere more so than at a farm. When Mrs Jen Ley arrived at a farm in Murwillumbah alongside members of the Siegmann family, it was hard to know where to begin.
Alone at the destroyed farm was a 19-year-old boy who was tasked with ‘holding the fort’ while his father and the rest of the farm’s workers were offsite helping others.
“He was just standing in the shed, and when we all turned up, he was confused as to what we were all doing there.”
“We were saying ‘we’ve come to help’, and this boy just didn’t know where to start. So, we just began by picking everything up and moving things outside of the shed.”
According to Mrs Ley, the crowded state of the shed made the challenge even greater.
“This shed was full of machinery, farm tools and farming equipment. We had a lot of work to do there!”
Oh, when darkness comes And pain is all around
Like a bridge over troubled water I will lay me down
Simon & Garfunkel
Di Eadeh is the President of St John’s Crisis Centre, a community association that is dedicated to supporting the homeless and less fortunate members of our community.
St John’s is closely connected to All Saints, with our School’s Service Learning Coordinator Mrs Lyn Barker currently sitting on the centre’s board alongside Di and others.
Di says the outpouring of support that came from the All Saints community via donations to flood relief and other altruistic avenues was beyond admirable.
“We were fortunate to have Mr Wallas, Mother Ann and Mrs Barker provide the first car load of food,” says Di.
“Once the message spread through the school community, and we had several car loads of not only food, but also sneakers and socks and that sort of thing - which was just awesome.”
Di encourages anyone who might be impacted by the floods to reach out for help, as the crisis centre is blessed to have a vast network of friends who can assist with various practicalities.
With floods ravaging our backyards, Di says it is sometimes also easy to overlook the persistent societal problems that have only been exacerbated by the disaster.
“There was one particular lady for whom we've been able to provide emergency accommodation relief, who was fleeing domestic violence with her son,” she explains.
“Without help, the only place she would have been able to get safe refuge was in northern New South Wales during the floods, meaning also her family would have been split up.”
“I received a text from her recently to say that she found safe transitional accommodation, and the fact that we were able to put her into accommodation immediately meant she could stay on the Gold Coast with her son.”
JUNIOR SCHOOL AT ALL SAINTS IS GOING THROUGH AN EXCITING PERIOD OF GROWTH AND INNOVATION.
Of the four members on our Junior School leadership team this year, three have stepped into newly created roles.
In doing so, they bring fresh perspectives to an already thriving community that is eager to benefit from new ideas and passions.
Mrs Shelley Travers continues to steer the ship as Head of Junior School. At her side is Assistant Head of Junior School (Student Engagement and Culture) Mrs Nicky Buckley, Assistant Head
of Junior School (Leading Learning) Mrs Bec Pearson, and Pedagogical Coach Mrs Joy Wikaire.
This team has already developed several exciting new curriculum projects and has started to roll out new literacy programs which have seen some incredible results.
On the next page, find out what each of our Junior School leaders bring to the table, what their passions and interests are, and why they love being leaders at All Saints.
“My role involves leading a team of educators to live a fulfilling life of purpose and to foster a community that values knowledge, lifelong learning, and care for others.”
“My role involves curriculum innovation in the Junior School. I explore and analyse current curriculum practices and work closely with teaching staff to ensure our teaching and learning continues to be of the highest quality and maximises student outcomes.”
With a Masters of Education in educational leadership, Mrs Travers loves exploring new initiatives from various educational schools of thought from around the world.
She is constantly looking for opportunities to improve All Saints’ teaching and learning programs.
Recently, Mrs Travers completed professional training to become a Highly Accomplished and Lead Teacher assessor for the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL), a role which requires a high degree of knowledge about the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers.
Sharing life at school with students and seeing wonderful teachers succeed are the most rewarding parts of Mrs Travers’ job.
“Watching, and being a part of, student development is at the core of our joy; I say 'our joy' because the other most rewarding part of my work is that my professional colleagues share this belief,” she says.
“Watching brilliant teachers make an incredible and significant impact upon a student’s life is one of the most interesting parts of my work. Seeing real and tangible connections between good teaching and student growth has always fascinated me.”
In 2022, Mrs Travers is eager to bid COVID farewell.
“I’m looking forward to a year of closer community, of professional growth with my new leadership team, of laughter with the children and my colleagues, and a year of successful learning.”
Having taught at other schools in the past, Mrs Pearson believes the All Saints community is a special one where every student, possessing their own unique talents, has the opportunity to excel.
Mrs Pearson is excited to maintain this standard through her new role, which largely involves curriculum evaluation and development to ensure All Saints is both aligned with best practice and delivering the Australian Curriculum in the most beneficial way possible.
“I truly believe that differentiation within the curriculum is vital and is the most powerful lever to ensure that each student achieves their best,” says Mrs Pearson.
“I am honoured to work alongside committed staff to implement the curriculum, assist in providing students and parents with relevant and consistent feedback to enhance learning and to help build classroom environments that are characterised by positive relationships and embracing diversity.”
One of Mrs Pearson’s favourite parts of being a teacher is seeing the big ‘ah-ha’ moments.
“I love seeing the penny drop for a student and how their face lights up when it happens,” she says. “There is nothing better than knowing that you have helped a young mind grow.”
“I firmly believe that if students feel connected and engaged in their learning, they will develop the social and emotional skills to grow into happy, well balanced, respectful members of the community who fulfil their potential.”
“My special area of interest is Language and Literacy – this spans from the early development of oral language through to learning to read and write effectively. They are such vital skills for all students to be successful in life.”
Mrs Buckley started teaching at All Saints in 1992 when sheep grazed on the oval, cows poked their heads in classroom doors and buildings were few. While the scenery may have changed since then, Mrs Buckley says all the essential things about the school have remained – including a broad spectrum of subjects and an incredible team of staff that help bring them to life.
“The thing that sets All Saints apart is that we offer such a broad range of speciality subjects. This allows students greater opportunities to experience success,” says Mrs Buckley. “I know it is said often, but our staff really are amazing. The sense of comradery, common purpose, humour and professionalism really bring us all together, and beyond all else is the real sense of care and concern for each and every student.”
Two of Mrs Buckley’s main areas of professional interest are in literacy development and student wellbeing. “Two years ago, Mrs Wikaire and I were inspired by the research around
best practise for teaching reading and spelling,” says Mrs Buckley. “We immersed ourselves in discovering more and implementing a new approach in our classrooms.”
“Student wellbeing has always been another of my passions. I love discovering new ways to approach social, emotional and learning needs, and implementing strategies to best meet these needs.”
Some of Mrs Buckley’s favourite Junior School moments stem from her daily interactions with students; a friendly smile as they walk past, seeing them learn from their mistakes, or watching them bravely wave goodbye to their parents before walking into school.
“This year I am looking forward to, and desperately hoping for, a return to routine and normality,” says Mrs Buckley.
“The return to having families attend special days and teachers being able to deliver their programs as intended will be wonderful.”
Mrs Wikaire is working to bridge the gap between cutting-edge research and classroom teaching.
One of Mrs Wikaire’s first responsibilities in her new role has been to spearhead development for the Junior School’s new literacy program, inspired by the Science of Reading studies.
“Instilling a passion for reading in all learners is a wonderful thing,” says Mrs Wikaire.
“I have been tasked with implementing the first stage in upskilling our literacy program. This involves implementing a systematic synthetic phonics program.”
“I hope to see higher spelling standards in our students and of course a love of words.”
Mrs Wikaire loves it when students find aspects of etymology fascinating and she finds joy in watching students develop their reading.
“I love seeing the enthusiasm that teachers and students alike have for words,” she says.
“The lightbulb moment when a child first realises they can work out what the letters mean in a word is priceless. They are so proud when they crack the code!”
Read further on the next page to see how Mrs Wikaire and Mrs Buckley’s hard work is bearing fruit in the literacy field at All Saints.
In the Junior School, an exciting new approach to literacy and reading has taken root.
For the past five years, Pedagogical Coach Joy Wikaire and Assistant Head of Junior School (Student Engagement and Culture) Nicky Buckley have been leading development of a new reading and spelling program which is backed by the Science of Reading research.
The new approach, called Promoting Literacy Development (PLD) at All Saints, is designed to be more accessible and helpful for young readers.
This PLD program is all about helping children understand the different building blocks that exist in language, rather than requiring them to commit thousands of words to memory.
“We want children to be enthusiastic about learning words by discovering them through spelling patterns and sounds,” explains Mrs Wikaire.
“It’s essentially cracking a code. If you can crack that code, then you can figure out a whole lot of different ways to spell unknown words.”
The approach has already seen some incredible results.
In 2021, Year 1 students sat a single word spelling test at both the beginning and end of the year.
After just one year in the PLD program, these students saw an incredible improvement that would have otherwise equated to a three-year growth.
“The staff were so enthusiastic and excited to see such great improvement in one year of systematic spelling, instruction, and vocabulary,” says Mrs Wikaire.
The Science of Reading is now being introduced across Years 3 to 6 due to the tremendous success it has seen in younger year levels.
Older students will add general etymology, deeper language studies, learning about prefixes and suffixes, and looking at the derivation of where words come from to their study repertoire.
“This program is tailored to each student's individual reading level," says Mrs Wikaire.
“The next step is to look at how we can enrich reading even further through core knowledge units in each year level.”
Alyssa and Claudia Bailey (Year 12) have come to love the fact they’re cut from the same cloth.
Respectively the twins are All Saints’ 2022 Swimming and Athletics Captains and, remarkably, both share Olympic aspirations in the aquatic sports of swimming, surf lifesaving and kayaking.
“Each of those sports is very unique in their own way, but we love all of them,” says Claudia.
“We’re like chalk and chalk,” Alyssa adds. While it’s normal for teenage siblings to squabble with their brothers and sisters, this duo has overcome those moments to turn their familial bond into a phenomenal strength – even though it took a bit of practice.
In fact, Claudia and Alyssa’s relationship through sport has now become so strong that they often compete in and win team races across several disciplines including K2 Kayaking and Surf Lifesaving Board Rescue.
“We’ve had to learn to be civil, because there’s no room for argy-bargy on the kayak,” Alyssa says.
“Initially, we were terrible together (as siblings often fight) and we took that onto the kayak, but we've put in a lot of practice and now we can work really well together,” adds Claudia. Nowadays the girls find it hard to imagine competing with anyone else.
Individually, Claudia recently secured a spot on the Australian Surf Lifesaving Youth Squad and the Kayaking Youth Squad.
Alyssa is hot on her sister’s heels after recovering from a significant injury. Both girls recently took home a collection of 1st, 2nd and 3rd place medals at Paddle Australia's Canoe Sprint and Spring Canoe Championship events, in both the individual and paired disciplines.
Outside of sport, the parallels continue as Claudia and Alyssa both share academic interests in STEM subjects and plan to study those through university while chasing the Olympic dream.
“If you have a sibling who is doing something similar to you, don’t compare yourself to them but use it as motivation – for example, if they go out training, you go with them,” says Alyssa.
“Hopefully we will both get to the Olympics together in 2028 or even Brisbane 2032,” says Claudia.
When Mohali Wyatt (Year 7) first discovered the sport of rock climbing he was instantly obsessed.
It was a match made in heaven for the young man who always enjoyed climbing trees, hiking in the mountains and being out in nature.
“I started climbing two years ago when I was 10,” says Mohali. “I thought I would try out a new centre that opened at the time… After the first session I was hooked! The gym has now become like a second home.”
One of Mohali’s favourite types of climbing is called Bouldering, a subset of the sport which involves scaling lower and more angular walls, around four metres in height, without a harness.
He also competes in the Lead and the Speed events, the former being more endurance based and the latter more explosive.
You’ll often also find him ascending a random stone or two at the beach. Mohali says the best thing about climbing is seeing the results from training and navigating through tricky moments.
“Frustration is probably the hardest thing to work through when climbing,” he says. “This seems to always happen when you reach the end of a difficult climb, and you just miss the last hold, it can be so tough to get back on the wall.”
“But knowing that hard work pays off and that every fail leads to success is very rewarding. Working on a climb for hours, or even days, and then ‘sending it’ is the best feeling.”
Mohali recently ranked first in Queensland in the Lead and Speed disciplines for his age division; a particularly incredible achievement considering he was recovering from a broken finger at the time.
While he doesn’t really consider himself to be a social media man, Mohali’s mum also keeps an ‘online journal’ of Mohali’s climbing progress via Tik Tok with an account that has quite amazingly garnered more than 17,500 followers.
“I actually don’t spend much time on social media, however it is really cool to see how many people support my climbing from all corners of the world and how many people it’s encouraged to start climbing,” he says.
While Mohali may not have fingerprints anymore due to the sport, he says it’s a small price to pay for chasing his goals.
“I would love to soon earn a spot on the Australian National team and eventually be part of the Queensland Olympic Campaign Youfor32 prior to the 2032 Olympics.”
He rides an unfamiliar horse, fights enemies armed with only a pistol and sword, swims through rivers and eventually runs back to his unit.
Inspired by these obstacles, the sport of Modern Pentathlon was invented over a century ago; a sport which consists of equestrian, fencing, swimming, running and shooting disciplines, and until the year 2000 was only contested by men. Now, Year 9’s Analiese Murphy is taking on the historic gauntlet.
Analiese is one of only a handful of Modern Pentathletes in Queensland and as such does not have access to any nearby trainers in the sport. However, she remains steadfastly undeterred.
“At first it was very hard to find out anything about the sport as there was no clubs, no website and no contact details,” she says.
“Eventually down the track we found a small training club interstate which is a three-hour drive, but then COVID hit - so realistically I’ve only had a handful of training sessions. I’ve had to be selfmotivated.”
Fighting this uphill battle hasn’t stopped Analiese from blitzing the competition.
Last year, in between lockdowns, Analiese competed in the Australian National Laser Run and National Triathle Championships (both sub-sports under the wider Pentathlon umbrella), taking home the gold in both.
Analiese is now gunning for selection in the Australian Modern Pentathlon team which travels to the World Championships in Portugal later this year. Despite the aches it can cause, Analiese says her favourite Pentathlon discipline is fencing.
“I travel to Brisbane to do my fencing training,” she explains.
“Fencing competitions are fierce and I end up with a few bruises and wounds each time, however, it’s probably the discipline I enjoy the most. Last year in December I competed in Sydney in the Fencing National Championships for the first time.”
Analiese is excited to see what her future in Modern Pentathlon brings, especially considering the sport is now phasing out the equestrian discipline following an incident at the 2020 Olympics where a trainer punched a horse after it refused to jump.
“Since then, for the first time in 100 years, horse riding has been taken out of the event,” says Analiese. “They are currently looking for a new discipline to replace it… they are thinking of maybe doing an obstacle course instead.”
No matter what comes next, Analiese is ready to take it on.
WHEN SCOTT MASON RETIRED AS ALL SAINTS’ DIRECTOR OF PERFORMING ARTS AT THE END OF 2021, AFTER ALMOST 20 YEARS IN THE ROLE, THE SCHOOL KNEW THERE WERE SOME LARGE SHOES TO FILL. AS IT TURNED OUT, THE PERFECT CANDIDATE WAS ALREADY WAITING IN THE WINGS.
All Saints’ new Director of Performing Arts Mr Owen Clarke is the kind of man who practices what he preaches.
With an accomplished music career spanning the better part of three decades, Mr Clarke has personally experienced almost every side of the profession including as a multi-instrumentalist, conductor, and teacher.
Mr Clarke is a proud New Zealander who spent 16 years in service to the New Zealand Defence Force as Director of Music for both the Navy and Air Force Bands before making the move to Australia.
“During my time in the military I was always involved with schools and youth groups running things like workshops, mentorships or concerts where students would join us in performing,” says Mr Clarke.
Given this experience, it was a natural choice for Mr Clarke to pursue a role in education upon arriving in Australia with his wife Kellie and daughter Allegra.
Mr Clarke’s first education job in Australia was at a rural Aboriginal school in Cape York.
“It was quite an eye-opening experience which showed the both the rich culture and also the difficulties that Indigenous communities face,” he says.
Mr Clarke soon moved south to Brisbane, where he taught at some of the city’s top schools including Brisbane Girls Grammar.
Finally, he landed at All Saints.
After spending two years as one of our school’s leading specialist music teachers and Director of Bands, Mr Clarke was more than ready to graciously pick up the baton after Mr Mason decided the time was right to put it down.
“The Performing Arts department at All Saints is already very well established, and when you come into a role which is already so successful, in my mind it’s not about finding ‘the big fix,’” says Mr Clarke.
“Of course, there are always things we can improve on or different avenues we can take, and one thing we’re gradually looking at doing as a department is doing a bit more work outside of campus.”
Mr Clarke is excited to help facilitate learning opportunities that may eventually include workshops with
other student musicians from around Australia, authentic performance experiences and service learning touring.
“Eventually, for instance, some of our ensembles may go on a tour our west, and we are also aiming to have Senior ensembles undertake an international trip to a music festival or competition,” he says.
Mr Clarke believes it’s important for performing arts teachers to keep nurturing their professional experience outside of school, to inspire better teaching in the classroom.
Leading by example, Mr Clarke continues to work as a professional conductor and is soon to be conducting Starlight in Symphony in Rockhampton, featuring the Rockhampton Symphony Orchestra and renowned Australian pianist Simon Tedeschi.
“Doing concerts such as this helps me connect with other music teachers around Australia and keep my
“One thing we pride ourselves on at All Saints is that most of our music teachers are also working performers, like Andrew Lange for instance who performs with Opera Queensland, or Mr Bardsley and Mr Fletcher who are often playing gigs with some of the best musicians in Queensland.”
“It’s wonderful to lead a team of
Mr Clarke is humbled to take up the mantle of Director of Performing Arts and is proud to help facilitate the highest quality learning experiences possible.
“I’m proud to be leading a team that can create such amazing productions, concerts and performances,” he says.
“Learning drama or music is so good for students’ development and we’re all part of a team that is trying to provide as many exciting opportunities as we can to help with that development.”
For All Saints’ ANZAC day services this year, Mr Owen Clarke organised a special choir to lead singing of the New Zealand national anthem.
The choir, comprised mostly of All Saints students and staff who have ‘kiwi’ backgrounds or connections, sung
both the English and Maori versions of God Defend New Zealand. In Term 1, the choir met to practise the anthem which they sung proudly alongside Mr Clarke in remembrance of those New Zealanders who fought in the trenches beside Australians at Gallipoli.
A core element of our school’s Performing Arts program is our students’ involvement in ensembles. Students who take music lessons at school also contribute further to the rich cultural life of All Saints by being involved in at least one ensemble.
As seen at Twilight Concerts this past term, the strength of our ensembles is their depth, their commitment and the bond members share through music. The high-quality concerts were pulled together in few rehearsals, but it was obvious how much individual time had also been spent practising to meet the challenge of each performance.
Over 600 students ranging from Years 2 to 12 performed in our Choirs, Bands and String ensembles. The Nairn Theatre, in its glory, resonated to music ranging from Vivaldi’s Venice to the brilliance of The Beatles. Young musicians flourished in their first performances for the year and grew in confidence, beamed with pride, and performed their hearts out. Bravo!
While our start to the year was unfortunately dampened by COVID and unusually heavy rainfall, the Junior School Performing Arts team of Mr Lange, Ms Venter, and Mrs Tucker have done a brilliant job in raising Shrek from the swamps. More than 125 students are currently relishing the opportunity to dance, sing and act with joyous abandon as part of the production. The show is filled with lively characters, fun music and colourful costumes, and the fly tower of the theatre is starting to resemble a Duloc castle.
Tickets have gone on sale and, at time of printing, only a few tickets remain so get in quick if you still can! This musical will be popular, and the run (much like Lord Farquaad) will be short.
Year 10 Drama students had the opportunity to dissect Sally Makenzie’s Scattered Lives as part of their classroom learning in Term 1. The students felt studying a play about the complex realities of being a refugee was especially timely, given the current world climate.
“With the growing urgency to shine a light on the topic of refugees and war, being able to share the traumatic experiences of people seeking refuge helped us learn more than just drama and communication skills.” –Courtney
Sutherland and Grace Hawtree“It was an extremely important play that allowed us to partly understand what the Ukrainians are going through right now. It allowed us to just feel a little bit of what they must live through every day, fearing to stay in their own country.” –
Estelle Anderson
“The play tells the stories of several different refugees that had a difficult time adapting to life in Australia. It was a privilege performing in front of a crowd of over 200 people and the drama classes provided an experience we won’t forget.” – Yudian
HuangSIX PRODIGIOUSLY TALENTED CONTESTANTS. A 55-PIECE ALL SAINTS CHAMBER ORCHESTRA. TWO WORLD-RENOWNED SPECIAL GUEST PERFORMERS AND ADJUDICATORS. A CAPTIVATED AUDIENCE WATCHING THE PERFORMANCES OF A LIFETIME.
All Saints recently celebrated the 12th iteration of its its premier performing arts event, the biennial Concerto Competition Finals.
Six of the School’s most talented and hard-working musicians rose to the challenge of the ‘concerto’, whereby a soloist leads an orchestra or ensemble in performing a piece of classical music.
Pianist Crystal Chen (Year 9), violinist Saho Hiroe (Year 8) and pianist Eason You (Year 7) represented the Middle School while alto trombonist Alex Caban (Year 10), vocalist Georgia Ogge (Year 11) and pianist Zac Marcos (Year 11) performed on behalf of the Senior School.
Pianist Courtney Leeds (Year 9) and vocalist Maddy Cooke (Year 10) were also invited as special guest performers.
In the heat rounds, Courtney received a Highly Commended and Maddy unfortunately was unable to compete due to contracting COVID on the day.
All students tackled extremely challenging 10-minute-long repertoire written by the likes of Mozart, Beethoven and Bach.
They led both the All Saints Chamber Orchestra and the All Saints Staff Ensemble with a mature command and musicianship well beyond their years.
Renowned Australian musicians and scholars
Mr Simon Hewett, Conductor of the Queensland Youth Symphony, and Dr Stephen Emmerson, pianist and Professor at the Queensland Conservatorium, attended the evening.
Not only did Dr Emmerson and Mr Hewett have the seemingly impossible task of adjudicating the contest, but, as a special treat for the audience, they also performed Mozart’s Concerto No.23 in A Major with the Chamber Orchestra.
Pianists triumph
While all finalists performed admirably, it was Eason You and Zac Marcos who edged ahead to win the coveted titles this year in the Middle and Senior School sections respectively.
Eason stunned the crowd with his rendition of Bach’s Concerto No.1 in D Minor and was lauded by the adjudicators for his mastery at leading an ensemble.
“A mature, disciplined and musical performance,” remarked Dr Emmerson. “But most impressive to me was his excellent awareness of the ensemble that he both led and responded to so well.”
Zac also delivered a sublime performance of Beethoven’s Concerto for Piano and Orchestra in Eb Major Op.73.
“This was a highly spirited performance with a great sense of energy and character,” said Mr Hewett.
Speaking to the general quality of All Saints’ music program, the adjudicators both agreed the showing of talent and commitment was extremely impressive.
“It’s a real pleasure to be invited to a school which has such a strong support and commitment to music, from students and parents through to staff and leadership,” they said. “From the moment we arrived on campus there was a positive vibe about the concert from all we encountered.”
Eason has been playing piano since he was four years old and is currently studying for his LMusA, an advanced diploma usually undertaken by older musicians in Year 12 and university.
“I love playing the piano because you can really express anything you want, you just have to play with your own passion,” he says.
He says the Concerto Competition experience was unforgettable, as it was his first time leading an orchestra as a soloist.
Eason hopes to one day play with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. He has some special advice for other musicians at All Saints who aspire to greatness.
“If you ever want to give up, don’t!” says Eason. “With enough practice, one day, you will become a really good musician and you will love it – it’s going to be so passionate for you.”
Zac recently experienced a meteoric rise in his skill as a pianist and has only been playing at a concerto level for the past two years.
He says the best part about the Concerto Competition (albeit the most challenging part) is finding the right chemistry with the orchestra.
“With an ensemble, you really have to listen to them while you’re playing, you really can’t just go off and do your own thing – which I struggle to do sometimes,” he says.
“But it’s always a joy to play a concerto and having that call and response with the orchestra was amazing; just having different types of instruments ‘speaking’ to each other is so fun.”
Zac also congratulated his fellow competitors in Senior School.
“Georgia sounded amazing, and Alex as well on the trombone – it’s not easy to get such a nice tone on the trombone,” he says.
“And Eason… I think he just really perfected the art of controlling the orchestra.”
The next Concerto Competition will take place in 2024.
L-R: HEAD OF STRINGS MR NIGEL BARDSLEY WITH ADJUDICATORS DR STEPHEN EMMERSON AND MR SIMON HEWETT
SEVERAL NEW STAFF COMMENCED THEIR JOURNEYS
AT ALL SAINTS THIS YEAR.
THEY ARRIVED FROM VARIOUS BACKGROUNDS TO ENRICH
THE LIFE OF OUR CAMPUS AND APPLY THEIR SKILLS TO VARIOUS POSITIONS ACROSS THE SCHOOL INCLUDING TEACHING, LEADERSHIP, ADMINISTRATION AND MAINTENANCE.
HERE WE SHINE THE SPOTLIGHT ON A FEW FROM THIS NEW GROUP, AND WE WISH ALL NEW STAFF MEMBERS A LONG AND FULFILLING CAREER AT ALL SAINTS.
Year 9 Core Teacher, Debating Coach
With a penchant for debating and love of literature, Ms Meg Beddows joins the school most recently from Matthew Flinders Anglican College and and, prior to that, Coomera Anglican College.
While the reputation of All Saints is what first attracted Ms Beddows to teach here, it’s the focus on pastoral care and developing students as young people that she has now come to admire.
“Here everyone is treated as a person, rather than as an academic result or a number on a page,” she says.
“My passion is for Middle School teaching, and I feel like I’ve really settled in. It’s been an easy transition as I’ve known quite a few of the staff members here for a while and culturally All Saints fits really well with who I am.”
Assistant Head of Middle SchoolStudent Welfare
STEPHEN CHIPPS
Mrs Lee Murphy may only be in her third year of classroom teaching, but she brings an enviable wealth of professional knowledge to the role from her previous background as an architect.
Mrs Murphy says teaching nurtures the best and most exciting parts of her profession.
“When you start practising architecture, it involves dealing with more restrictions like with local council, for example, which can become a bit tedious,” she explains.
“But when you’re studying or teaching design, it just feels as if you’ve got every resource and budget at your disposal to create some magical things.”
Mrs Murphy says the students at All Saints are a joy to teach and she hopes to remain at the school for a long time.
Grounds Team Member
Hudson walked the All Saints Tunnel of Love in 2021, but quickly returned to his old stomping ground to study the insand-outs of grounds maintenance and gardening through a professional landscaping apprenticeship.
“When I was growing up I loved being in the garden, doing landscaping, hedging or mowing; there’s something really satisfying about it,” he says.
Hudson admits it’s surreal to be working so closely at the place he’s only previously experienced as a student.
“It’s a bit weird seeing all the students from a different perspective, but it makes me really happy to come back here.”
Down the track, Hudson aims to eventually start his own residential landscaping and gardening business to apply everything he’s learned from the incredible All Saints groundskeeping team.
Mr Stephen Chipps joins All Saints from Prep to Year 12 school Emmaus College in Jimboomba where he previously worked as Assistant Principal (Student Wellbeing). He brings more than 15 years’ experience in school leadership and welfare to his new job at All Saints, which is also informed by classroom teaching experience primarily in the field of Physical Education.
Now Mr Chipps oversees the implementation of the pastoral care program for all Middle School students and is glad to work within a school where the ethos is very closely aligned with his views about education.
“I’m passionate about mental health and wellbeing,” says Mr Chipps. “At All Saints we think about ‘the whole child the whole time’ and I believe that encompasses everything from health, physical, social, emotional and spiritual wellbeingwhich all should play a role in education.”
Rachel de Blank
Senior School Secretary
Nadia Durrant Pre Prep Teacher
Scott Fitzsimmons
Senior School Economics Teacher
Lisa Gisik
Senior School Business Economics Teacher
Marayka Gulin Year 9 Teacher
Rebecca Iles (née Halpin)
Senior School Receptionist
Katie Hobbins
Senior School Mathematics and Year 10 McIntosh Tutor
Pierre Hubert Teacher Aide
Liliana Mailli
Senior School Teacher Aide
Charro Moore
VET Trainer – Hospitality
Jack O'Connor Groundsman
Colleen O'Dea
Senior School Biology Teacher
Michael Potts
Senior School Chemistry Teacher
Aimee Rosvall Pre Prep Teacher Aide
LEEOur first group of official student journalists are excited to meet the challenge of preparing content for a variety of channels on behalf of the school, including All Saints Radio run by broadcasting veteran Mr Michael Walkley (more on page 5) and the new-look Saints Alive.
Starting in Term 3, student journalists will be tasked with interviewing members of the All Saints community on various topics including academics, sport and performing arts.
They will also create news bulletins about current events and the weather, record soundbites from campus events and generally stay 'in the know' about the latest at school.
If you see these students around, feel free to give them your best story tip. Who knows, you might even be featured in this very magazine.
Noah Walkley (Year 4) and Zara Sulzberger (Year 5)
The youngest among us always have a penchant for telling the most unique stories. Taking after his broadcaster dad, Mr Walkley, Noah is most excited about reporting on technology and sports.
“I’ve always loved hearing stories from others. I grew up watching dad interview different people all the time,” he says.
Zara is most excited about the idea of field reporting; heading out to those main events on campus and finding reports live from the scene.
“I can’t wait to tell people about all the achievements people have made,” says Zara. “I think it’s also pretty cool that people will hear my voice on the radio.”
One of Yasmine’s main aspirations is to become a professional reporter. Working as a student journalist is her first major step toward that career goal.
“I hope this experience will also give me insight into what it will be like, if I choose the journalism path down the track at university,” she says.
Stories about exciting achievements are Yasmine’s main interest and she would like to take her storytelling ‘on the road’ one day.
“I can’t wait to hear about interesting student achievements, because I think those kinds of things are important and should be celebrated within our school,” she says.
“I have travelled quite a bit because my parents do so for work, so I love that journalism often involves travel.”
Charlotte Sulzberger (Year 7), Jett Morrish (Year 9), Allison Au (Year 9), Arliya Smith (Year 7) and Bank Hill (Year 9)
Our Middle School news team is a veritable melting pot of media roles and areas of interest.
For example, Charlotte is most looking forward to writing stories, while Arliya is most excited to read them on air.
“The best thing will be letting people know what’s going on –maybe sometimes making people laugh or congratulating them about something,” says Arliya.
“I want to tell interesting stories that people will be excited to know about,” adds Charlotte.
Allison and Jett both agree that being on the news beat is something that will help them succeed later in life.
“I thought it would be interesting to learn those sorts of skills, and if I want to extend that during my career when I'm older, I can do it,” says Jett.
“My favourite station is SeaFM… and being on the radio is something I’d love to learn to do because I listened to it lots when I was younger,” Allison adds.
We'd love to hear from you!
To submit a story, email saints@asas.qld.edu.au with all the details.
It’s been a very long time since the Easter Bunny last bounced its way to All Saints for the Easter Hat Parade.
For the last two years, the event was unfortunately cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Thankfully, and to the delight of students and parents alike, the iconic celebration went ahead this year at the end of Term 1, with most participants enjoying it for the very first time.
Pre Prep and Prep sang a wonderful rendition of Little Peter Rabbit, and our Year 1 and 2 choir wowed the audience with Never Smile at a Crocodile and My Family’s Cat
Parents also had a chance to shine by showing everyone how a proper Chicken Dance is done!
But, as always, the star of the show was creativity. We saw some truly artistic Easter Hats on the day, lovingly crafted by students and worn with pride.
For the annual Giveathon charity event, which ties into the 2022 school theme of Compassion, the Saints Outreach Service (SOS) Committee and Chaplaincy team knew it was high time to celebrate one of the key ingredients that makes this school a wonderous place.
The Magic of Compassion is the chosen theme for Giveathon this year. Hold on to your wands; we’re in for one spellbinding celebration.
The SOS Committee was particularly excited to unveil this special theme which is so closely aligned with the school ethos.
“Compassion can create a lot of magic,” explains SOS member and Year 12 student Eva Cargill. “It can just bring so much joy and happiness, which can be quite magical for certain people in hard situations.”
“We want people to explore what their own compassion can bring about in other people's lives,” adds fellow Committee member and Year 12 student Kiandra Loch.
All Giveathon charities this year were chosen from a wide range of fields including humanitarian aid, medicine, environment conservation and education.
Giveathon is an expression of Christianity at the school, and a time-honoured tradition that all members of our community enjoy participating in.
School Chaplain Mother Ann McGuinness says each subschool is now supporting three charities that are quite closely matched to their age groups and areas of interest.
The ambitious fundraising goal between all sub-schools this year is $100,000.
“The charities we choose each year are gleaned from the requests that we receive from our community,” explains Mother Ann.
“The committee then decides which are most appropriate to Junior, Middle and Senior School students – which is quite a big undertaking.”
Eva and Kiandra are both honoured to be part of such a wonderful committee and add their own touch of magic to Giveathon this year.
“I love the idea of giving back because as a school we have so much, and we are so fortunate to go here,” says Kiandra.
“There's so much that can be done for the world, and to able to do something at school which helps so many people is just such an amazing experience,” Eva adds.
To find out more about Giveathon 2022, please visit the official FIDO page.
GIVEATHON CHARITIES 2022
Junior School
Australian Conservation Foundation
Radio Lollipop
One Girl
Middle School
Rural Aid Australia
Anglican Board of Missions, ABM Tonga Emergency Appeal
Braver Stronger Smarter
Senior School
Breast Cancer Network
Cathy Freeman Foundation
Drug Arm
SOS COMMITTEE 2022
Emily Bowler
Eva Cargill
Steph Choi
Katura Halleday
Tia Hinze
Sophie Humbert
Kiandra Loch
Evelyn Mulcahy
Maisie Smith
THE OFFICIAL GIVEATHON LOGO FOR 2022, DESIGNED BY YEAR 12 STUDENT TIA HINZE.
THERE ARE MANY IMPORTANT OR SPECIAL PLACES AROUND ALL SAINTS THAT STUDENTS WALK PAST EVERY DAY.
Most are unaware of the rich history many sites around All Saints have. There are incredible stories about places like the Year 7 block, the Yvonne Bain Library (more on page 9), the Senior Art Room and even the oval.
These stories include the one of All Saints’ Lone Pine tree, located adjacent to the Senior School’s outdoor stage.
To properly tell this story, we need to go back more than a century.
Every Australian soldier who served in Gallipoli knew Plateau 400 or ‘Lone Pine’, for it was the scene of the fiercest hand-to-hand combat by Australians in World War I.
Its plateau was distinguished by a solitary lone pine tree which bore silent witness to the heroism and tenacity of those who fought there.
In 1915, Sergeant Thomas Keith McDowell of the 23rd Battalion picked up a pinecone from this tree, placed it in his haversack as a souvenir and carried the cone with him for the remainder of the war.
When he returned to Australia, he gave the cone to his aunt, Mrs Emma Gray. Mrs Gray lived on a dairy farm near Warnambool in Victoria and managed to grow four small pine seedlings after striking the original cone.
In May 1933, one small tree was planted from these seedlings with full military honours at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne.
Mrs Gray and her daughter Marjorie Underwood, then aged six, both attended the commemorative planting. This wartime story soon found its way into the All Saints history books.
During an annual All Saints Year 7 Canberra tour, Mrs Sue Daly managed to acquire a seedling from the Lone Pine family which was brought back to campus.
Mrs Underwood, the niece of Sergeant McDowell, went on to become an All Saints grandmother to Stephanie Constable (Class of 2009).
Both Mrs Underwood and Stephanie were in attendance at the planting of the All Saints Lone Pine, which continues to flourish more than 20 years later.
Mrs Daly says it’s important for young people today to be aware of history and to practise remembrance and give thanks during sacred moments like ANZAC Day.
“That one tree that stood on the hill at the battle of Lone Pine was something that epitomised the tenacity of Australian soldiers,” says Mrs Daly.
“At All Saints, we are trying to bring a certain connectedness to our ANZAC services so that these younger generations can better understand our country, it’s people and the fact that countless others have made sacrifices in support of freedom and democracy.”
WRITTEN WITH MRS SUE DALY 1. MRS EMMA GRAY AND MRS MARJORIE UNDERWOOD (AT AGE 6) PLANTING THE FIRST LONE PINE SEEDLING IN MELBOURNE. 2. ALL SAINTS' LONE PINE TREE TODAY.THE STUDENT COHORT OF 2021 MADE ALL SAINTS PROUD LAST YEAR BY DELIVERING AN EXTREMELY ADMIRABLE ATAR PERFORMANCE.
The Class of 2021 exceeded several benchmarks throughout the state collectively, and within it are 11 exceptional young women and men who individually achieved an ATAR score of 99 and above, making the ATAR Honours List.
Among them is All Saints’ 2021 Highest ATAR Scorer Emily Exell, who achieved the near perfect result of 99.90.
Emily has now started her career in medicine nearby at Griffith University and aims to specialise in paediatrics. “I’ve always wanted to get into medicine and am currently studying a Bachelor of Medical Science,” she says.
“I have a great rapport with kids and I love the idea of working with them, so I’m probably going to study paediatrics.”
Imparting words of wisdom to the ATAR cohorts to come, Emily says it’s important to maintain balance in all areas life.
“Keep a social life while you study and work hard,” she says.
“Balance is the most important thing… and also be sure to ask your teachers for help because they are always there for you. With every subject I had, they were always willing to help.”
Emily believes maintaining a hobby outside of academics and creating memories while at school is also essential to happiness and success.
“I play the drums, that’s a great stress reliever,” she says. “One of the fondest memories I have from All Saints is playing with my band on the blue stage in Year 12.”
Emily wishes the Class of 2022 the best in their final year of school and hopes every student finds their dream pathway.
STUDENTS ACHIEVING AN ATAR OF 99 AND ABOVE
• Abbey Burchill
• April Chen
• Briana Dorrough
• Harry Evans
• Emily Exell
• Liam Hamley
• Jude Hendriks
• Daniel Komada
• Mia McConaghy
• Emily Potter
• Grace Townley
Emily Hastie (Class of 2009) has a burning passion for the arts, quite literally.
Emily is one of the founders of Burleigh’s Mint Art House, a coworking studio and gallery which is home to a collective of 15 artists that work across a variety of mediums.
“This 24-hour house is about coming together as creatives and supporting the people around you,” says Emily.
“Whether I’m starting or continuing a project it will always involve a lot of talking with my neighbours about concepts and, in a way, peer reviewing.”
While she brings skills in freehand drawing and painting to this collective, Emily is perhaps best known for her work in pyrography, or ‘wood burning’.
“It was a niche that I discovered by accident one day when I was playing with a soldering iron,” she explains.
“My mum had asked me to draw something on a cutting board and I didn’t like the way the laser printer at work was making things pixelated. So, I went to bunnings and found this hot iron, and discovered I could create really three-dimensional and realistic things.”
Emily’s skills in pyrography have led to success on social media and earned various commissions.
Her favourite projects often involve portraits of people or pets, or designs that incorporate her love for the beach and surfing.
In September, Emily is excited to tackle her next challenge by presenting a sculpture at the famous Gold Coast outdoor art exhibition Swell for the first time.
“I’ve never gone into 3D practice before, and it’s extra challenging because at Swell the sculptures need to be strong, durable and visible to the public.”
Emily thanks All Saints and her former art teacher Mrs Vicki Morley for stoking the fire of creativity and encouraging her to pursue a career in visual art.
“It was people like Vicki in my life who really encouraged me and were the reason why Art was my favourite subject at school,” says Emily.
“All Saints was a place where you could find community and connection, and that’s a real human experience I want to keep sharing in my own way through Mint Art House.”
impactful stories through the lens of a camera.
Jess first gravitated to expanded photographic practice as her artistic medium of choice, as she liked how photography was an instant and engaging visual representation of everyday objects and spaces.
After graduating from All Saints, Jess first undertook a TAFE course in photography and then later a tertiary degree in Fine Arts majoring in photography, from which she graduated with first class honours.
Jess has now completed her Masters of Fine Arts by Research which culminated in a project installation at the Victorian College of the Arts’ graduation show.
“I feel really fortunate to have been able to do the installation, especially under COVID restrictions, I wasn’t sure whether anyone would be able to see my work,” she explains.
This installation earned Jess the Fiona Myers Residency Award, a coveted prize involving a monetary stipend as well as a three-month artist residency where Jess is encouraged to boundlessly explore her craft.
“Having this kind of support is wonderful for the development of my career and the production of new work,” says Jess.
“I’ve been given a really incredible opportunity to explore my ideas in a very unrestricted way and without limitation.”
The opportunity is now open to Jess to create a large installation at a Melbourne warehouse in June to showcase the results of her residency.
Jess also continues to work at RMIT University as a technician, helping other students bring their artistic visions to life.
She says the best thing about being an artist is having an avenue to convey her experience of the world; one that resonates with others.
“The most rewarding thing is when people tell you that your work made them feel something,” says Jess.
“I’m telling my experiences of the world in the way that I perceive it through my work, and so when someone responds to it – that is very satisfying, and awesome!”
Cullin Cooper-Jones (Class of 2019) is proving he has what it takes to be a Rebel.
The former All Saints School Captain has been pursuing his dreams to play professional rugby ever since graduating and has now taken his aspirations to the next level.
“I was playing first-grade men’s division in the Brisbane competition and last year I ended up playing in both the Colts, which is an Under 20s team, and also the men’s division,” says Cullin.
"Fortunately, both my teams ended up making the grand final, played at Suncorp Stadium which was an experience in itself."
Cullin’s performance at the finals turned heads down south, and he was invited to train on a trial contract with the Melbourne Rebels.
Seizing the opportunity, Cullin worked hard with the squad during the pre-season and recently extended his contract as an injury cover for the main squad in 2022.
“I’m a fourth string scrum half at the moment, meaning that I’m in that cycle where if one of the top players goes down, I may be selected
to take their place in Super Rugby games,” Cullin explains.
“There’s the Match Day 23 team and then there’s a second team that runs up against them in competition training, which I’m a part of. I’m just excited to be trying to give the best opposition I can to the main 23 and to help them grow and be successful throughout this season.”
There’s an old adage that says ‘don’t meet your heroes’, but Cullin is honoured to be sharing the field as a peer with several of his professional idols including Wallabies Matt To’omua and Reece Hodge.
“I’ve grown up watching these guys on the television and thinking, ‘I want to be there’, and now I’m getting a chance to learn from them every day – it’s been quite an amazing experience,” says Cullin.
While the intensity of the training was daunting at first, Cullin quickly found his rhythm with university studies in Industrial Design and Business, plus some time for creative hobbies.
“I’m really enjoying the design side of things - I’m secretly quite a creative, which showed
when I was at school doing drama and the musical,” says Cullin.
“It’s a really good reprieve from rugby. Being in that environment of training every day, I do need to learn how to switch off. Whether it’s drawing, playing some video games or doing university work - each gives me a great rest from thinking about rugby all the time.”
Cullin said his experience at All Saints helped him form healthy habits in time management and encouraged him to be open to new adventures.
“There’s so much going on at All Saints, it taught me how to organise my schedule and sharpen my organisational skills," he says.
“There’s also the family atmosphere that All Saints brings. It’s definitely helped me to connect with my teammates and feel less like a stranger coming into a new environment.”
Cullin looks forward to continuing his rugby journey with the Rebels for the foreseeable future and to aims to “keep making All Saints proud.”
It was in Year 9 that Olivia Harris (Class of 2010) first got a taste for the accounting profession.
A guest speaker from The Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand revealed a pathway that, to a discerning eye like hers, would provide a low-risk and high-reward career for someone who was willing to put in the work.
After graduating from All Saints and completing a gap year at East Sussex’s Ashdown House in the UK, Olivia returned to Australia and commenced her degree in accounting at QUT.
“I finished up there in 2015 and went to work at Grant Thornton,” she says.
“I really enjoyed my five years there, where I worked my way up through the tax and then audit departments. Then one day I finally decided I’d had enough of professional services and wanted to work in an organisation.”
Olivia joined industry leading bicycle retailer 99 Bikes last year, a move which saw her become a financial leader in a business that was driven by entrepreneurship, and remained successful during the pandemic.
“The company had just undergone a significant phase of growth throughout COVID – unlike a lot of businesses, they did really well,” Olivia explains.
Recently, Olivia was promoted to Financial Controller for 99 Bikes’ entire Australian network: second-incharge to the company’s CFO.
“It was a bit unexpected to make such a big leap quickly, but I fit the piece and the CFO has backed me 100 per cent,” she says.
“I’ve come to find that this organisation listens to every single one of its people, no matter what role you’re in or what level you’re at. It’s a place where if you’ve got a great idea and are willing to give it a crack, you very well might come out on top.”
Olivia is proud to work in the kind of environment that puts its money where its mouth is in terms of maintaining flat structure and staff equality.
Even though she’s part of the leadership team, that doesn’t stop Olivia and the other managers at 99 Bikes from spending some time in the trenches.
“Each month, the support team will all spend a couple of days working in one of the stores and selling bikes,” she explains.
“We walk in our sales consultants’ and team leaders’ shoes, getting a feel for the customers and really integrating with all levels of the business to better understand what we do.”
“It’s exciting to sell bikes and learn first-hand about the systems and processes that the teams use in store every day.”
Olivia plans to keep riding on at 99 Bikes for the foreseeable future and encourages other young women who are considering a career in accounting to “go for it”.
“There’s absolutely no reason why you can’t do exactly what you want to do in this profession,” Olivia says.
“In my experience,” she adds with a laugh, “a woman’s eye for detail is extremely sharp.”
Since the very first graduating class bade farewell to All Saints, the Past Students Association (PSA) has assisted with reconnecting old friends, fostering a sense of varsity togetherness, and supporting the school in a variety of ways.
With a view to modernising and improving its reach around the world, the organisation has recently rebranded to All Saints Alumni (ASA).
ASA President Merissa Cole says there are some exciting projects in the woodworks to help improve ASA’s visibility and support alumni connections, reunion planning and much more.
"We're introducing a new online alumni portal, where past students can connect, share stories and keep in touch." says Merissa.
"Not only will it include alumni news, class notes and school updates, but it will also provide a platform for alumni to plan events, hold chapter meetings and network – not just on the Gold Coast but around the world.”
With the rebrand has also come a fresh committee of alumni from various graduating years who are eager to take the ASA into its next phase of growth. Without further ado, please welcome the 2022 All Saints Alumni Commitee!
Graduating class: 2000
Favourite school subject: Mathematics
A bit about me: After All Saints, I studied Criminology and Applied Psychology. I taught English in Japan after university and then secured a role with the Australian Customs Service as a Senior Analyst, where I was eventually seconded as the National Training Manager. After leaving Canberra, I returned to the Gold Coast as a Regional Manager with Bond University, then Director of Admissions and Business Development at The French Beauty Academy. I have two daughters and am currently working at All Saints as the School Receptionist.
What I hope to achieve on the ASA Committee: I want to continue bringing the committee together to proactively contribute to the wider All Saints Alumni community; and help give life to new ideas.
Graduating class: 2002
Favourite school subject: Art and Chemistry
A bit about me: After graduating from All Saints, I moved to London mixing work and study while travelling the world from my little cottage in Hadley Wood. I completed my tertiary studies in International Relations (Business) majoring in International Marketing and Public Relations. After various roles in private and not-for-profit organisations, my passion for education marketing started while leading the communications department at Bond University. A few style guides, media campaigns and two amazing children later I found myself back where in all began at All Saints as Head of Marketing and Public Relations.
What I hope to achieve on the ASA Committee: I hope to help fellow Saints connect with our incredible professional and social network of All Saints alumni – both through meaningful events and online via our new alumni platform due to launch later this year.
Merissa Cole (née Schorr), President Maria Egan (née Vallero), Treasurer and School LiaisonGraduating class: 2002
Favourite school subject: Chemistry and Modern History
A bit about me: After leaving All Saints, I graduated with a Bachelor of Laws from Bond University and have worked as a lawyer since 2006. I have practised exclusively in the area of Family Law, and became an Accredited Specialist 10 years ago. I now enjoy part time work, having had a little boy in 2019. I am loving the balance of both work and motherhood.
What I hope to achieve on the ASA Committee: Despite finishing school 20 years ago, my best friendships still remain those I formed at school. I want to make reconnecting with previous classmates an easy task to do. I want to help the ASA Committee provide a platform for sourcing peers, communicating with friends and creating great reunions.
Graduating class: 1997
Favourite subject at school: English
A bit about me: I was the first graduating All Saints student invited to Kumamoto Chuo School, Japan as an exchange student. Embarking on that adventure shaped the person I am today. My passion for culture and community, plus my dedication to education, provided opportunities to work in Europe, America and Japan. Today, I teach primary school Japanese, which has been my favourite role so far. Having the ability to help shape a child’s perception about otherness, culture, globalisation, humanity and respect through second language acquisition is a privilege.
What I hope to achieve on the ASA Committee: I hope to assist year levels to reconnect with old friends, to share a laugh, a story and fond memories of their All Saints journey through reunions and social events.
Steven Fuller, Committee Member
Graduating class: 2001
Favourite school subject: Hospitality
A bit about me: After completing Year 12 and a hospitality apprenticeship, I started my career in hospitality at the Sheraton Mirage Hotel. After eight years I moved to Sydney and then Melbourne to expand my horizons. I was fortunate to be part of the opening management team for Crown Metropol Hotel. Over my career I have been fortunate to work at some of the best hotels and private residences in the country. I am currently the Food & Beverage Manager at Royal on the Park Hotel in Brisbane.
What I hope to achieve on the ASA Committee: I want to help expand the reach of the alumni and bring more past students into the fold while creating a network of past students and a vibrant alumni community.
Kate Hare (née Rostron), Committee MemberGraduating class: 1993
Favourite school subject: Art and English
A bit about me: Some of my memories that I am proud of from when I was a student included being part of the debating team in Year 12 and participating in the Rostrum Voice of Youth competition.
Since leaving All Saints I have worked in finance and owned and run a few of my own small business.
I also have four children and now have my first grandchild. Currently I work in finance and coaching, and my husband and I own a successful painting business on the Gold Coast.
What I hope to achieve on the ASA Committee: As a foundation student of All Saints and one of the first graduates our relatively young alumni group, it is exciting to be paving the way and helping shape traditions and legacies for our future graduates.
Paris Faint, Committee Member
Graduating class: 2010
Favourite school subject: Modern History
A bit about me: After leaving All Saints, I graduated with a Bachelor of Journalism from Bond University. I worked as a senior journalist and designer for Business News Australia for six years before joining All Saints as a marketing chameleon. My favourite jobs include creating the Omaru, writing for the magazine you’re currently reading, and taking photos around campus! I’m also the Vice President of Gold Coast Debating and am coaching teams in all three subschools at All Saints.
What I hope to achieve on the ASA Committee: Sharing alumni stories is my passion. I’m excited to help people reconnect with old friends, and to showcase the incredible things our past students are up to.
Graduating class: 2008
Favourite school subject: PE and Business
A bit about me: My career has spanned journalism, PR and marketing. Currently, I’m Marketing Strategist at City of Gold Coast where I help promote this beautiful city. Some major milestones include a short stint as the Cash Cow on Sunrise, answering one question right on Millionaire Hot Seat and once winning Uno without using a single Draw Four card.
What I hope to achieve on the ASA Committee: I’m looking forward to the roll out of the new ASA website so past students have a central place to network, share stories and keep in touch. There are lots of exciting things in the works!
Graduating class: 1998
Favourite school subject: Modern History and English
A bit about me: After leaving All Saints, I graduated with Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of International Business degrees from Bond University and Master of Laws from University of Melbourne. I've lived, worked and travelled extensively overseas before finding my way back to the beautiful Gold Coast four years ago. I love the lifestyle that the Gold Coast has to offer and I'm grateful that my family can also experience some of the same pleasures I did growing up in this beautiful part of the world.
What I hope to achieve on the ASA Committee: I’m excited to connect back with the All Saints community, to help connect alumni and create networking and mentoring opportunities.
Melissa Inglis (née Coleman), Committee MemberGraduating class: 2006
Favourite subject: Extreme English
Graduating class: 2001
Favourite school subject: Drama
A bit about me: After leaving All Saints, I graduated with a Bachelor of Education, a Certificate of Education Studies and a Certificate of Theatre Studies from Griffith University. I also completed a Cert III in Community Recreation (Dance) with the Australian Teachers of Dance. I’ve taught a variety of year levels ranging from Prep to Year 9 as well as dance and drama at schools on the Gold Coast, Gladstone and Darwin. I’m also a mum to two amazing children.
What I hope to achieve on the ASA Committee: I’d love to be able to reconnect with past students and help create a community, where we can socialise and network through different events and reunions.
A bit about me: I graduated from Bond University with a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) and found an exciting career on the Gold Coast in commercial litigation. In 2019, while pregnant with my second son, I was promoted to Partner and will be taking equity in the firm this year. I’ve held various positions within not-for-profit organisations contributing to the vibrance and liveability of our city. I am looking forward to a new chapter with All Saints as my eldest son starts Pre Prep in 2023.
What I hope to achieve on the ASA Committee: I am looking forward to bringing together the community of our wonderful past students and present families. There is a real opportunity here for us to foster a network for all those people who have been part of the school over the last three decades.
IF YOU ARE AN ALL SAINTS GRADUATE, EMAIL SAINTS@ASAS.QLD.EDU.AU WITH YOUR UPDATED DETAILS TO START RECEIVING NEWS ABOUT OUR NEW ONLINE PLATFORM, UPCOMING REUNIONS AND MORE.
The Class of 2010 previously attempted to reunite twice in the past two years, with both events sadly derailed by COVID. On the third time lucky, the cohort was finally able to celebrate their 10 years since leaving All Saints in a very special way.
The reunion was held on campus, in an All Saints first, which also included a sunset tour accompanied by a few honoured teachers and Headmaster Patrick Wallas. These alumni were delighted to reminisce with their former teachers and peruse the full collection of their Omarus, the oldest of which was 1997.
One past student even finally managed to return their old violin to Mr Bardsley. Hopefully, this cohort has paved the way for future homecoming-style reunions to take place at All Saints.
WHILST WE SPENT THE EASTER HOLIDAYS HUNTING FOR CHOCOLATE EGGS, SAANVI WAS WALKING THE HALLS OF AN INSTITUTION THAT MANY OF THE WORLD'S MOST NOTABLE POLITICIANS, THOUGHTLEADERS AND LITERARY ICONS HAVE CALLED THEIR ALMA MATER.
At first, Saanvi Roy (Year 11) thought it was spam.
“Congratulations Saanvi, you’ve won the Leonard L. Milberg ’53 High School Poetry Prize…” the email began.
Saanvi’s poem Narrabeen had won an international poetry competition run by Princeton University, one of the United States’ most famous and revered ivy league institutions. She could scarcely believe it.
“During the shutdown period last November, I had an American friend studying here who let me know about the Princeton poetry contest and encouraged me to enter because she knew writing was something I am passionate about,” Saanvi explains.
“I wasn’t thinking too much of it – because it’s Princeton – and I knew they would get so many applications, so I just sat down and wrote a poem in about an hour and then submitted it. I completely forgot about it until this year.”
Just as Paul McCartney penned the iconic Beatles hit Yesterday in under a minute, the time crunch
First, he learns to tread water. He beats it underneath him a butter like churning of cold salt. The water is inside him, airless and peaceable. Overhead the gulls riot, a heartbeat of wings and watchful eyes trained on the little matchstick below. It is love. The sand is fifteen arm lengths away on a good day and hot as heated metal. Soles turn pink on airless afternoons and the bridge of a nose browns like a crumbling pastry. A mother’s baked good.
clearly had no bearing on the quality of Saanvi’s final product.
Saanvi wanted to write something quintessentially Australian, and on that front she delivered in spades.
“I was looking at all the previous winning entries and they all felt very ‘American’,” she explained. “So I asked myself ‘what can I do to make this very Australian?’ and my mind immediately went to the beach.”
Narrabeen tells the story of a drowning and was inspired by numerous stories that were circulating in 2021 about tourists who had lost their lives in Australian surf.
After Princeton initially made a few attempts to contact Saanvi via email, they ended up contacting All Saints to deliver the good news. That’s when it finally sank in.
The University flew Saanvi to America during the Term 1 holidays where she was invited to read Narrabeen at a special luncheon in her honour.
“All the prize winners were invited to Princeton and we attended a few workshops and classes together where we also got to talk to the professors and get some feedback on our writing, which was so intense but also so valuable,” she says.
Saanvi spent 10 days in the US, during which time she also visited New York and spent a day with her friend in Philadelphia at an American high school. She says the Princeton experience has inspired her to pursue writing as a career.
“I’d never really considered creative writing as something I could actually do beyond school but going to America and seeing there is a community of dedicated people who are pursuing it seriously was just very special and eye opening.”
Eventually, studying at Princeton “would be the dream” for Saanvi.
“The application is next year, so after everything in Australia is all sorted, I think I’ll give it a go!”
Are you an All Saints graduate with a penchant for rugby? If so, you’re invited to play in the biennial alumni game at the All Saints Fair. The game is open to any All Saints rugby player who graduated between 1993 and 2021. If you are interested, please contact Sean Bale sbale@asas.qld.edu.au to confirm your availability/physical fitness to play.
SATURDAY AUGUST 20
AT THE ALL SAINTS FAIR
2:30PM
For more information about upcoming events visit asas.qld.edu.au/ calendar.
Current families can also download the All Saints Anglican School app to view our calendar, term dates and all Saints Alive newsletter editions.
