6 minute read
OUR VILLAGE
During this unique period of time, we have seen members of the Ballarat Grammar Community, our Village, come together to support each other in many extraordinary ways. From Old Grammarian Gurus helping current students with their studies, and others motivating us all to get our daily exercise to achieve our collective ‘Journey to Country’, and families donating their fee reductions back to our Community Fund – Our Village really is an extraordinary place.
- Cesare Pavese
THE BACKYARD CAMPSITE
Current Outdoor Education Co-ordinator and OG David Marriott (1995) established a Facebook page — The Backyard Campsite — for the School and broader community to connect over a virtual campfire, and to share pictures and stories. David was overwhelmed with the response to the idea with more than 3000 Ballarat Grammar families, Old Grammarians, and many others around the world joining up. Members made comments that it was wonderful to share the outdoor experience, separately, but together during this strange time across the world.
BALLARAT GRAMMAR BUSINESS DIRECTORY
With many family businesses either closed or struggling to continue during and following the lockdown, we have established a Ballarat Grammar Business Directory to support businesses of both current and past families.
This Directory enables us all to support one another. If you’re looking to use a business or service, or planning to get away for a break, you can refer to the Directory and, if you can, use a Grammar family business. It’s a great way to be more mindful and to support each other as we move through this incredibly difficult time.
You can connect to the Business Directory online via www.bgs.vic.edu.au/our-village or https://businessdirectory.bgs.vic.edu.au/
Are you an OG or past parent with a family-owned business? Would you like to have your business featured in our new Business Directory? Go to www.bgs.vic.edu.au/our-village - click on the Business Directory, then click on ‘Register your business’ to send us your details. While you are there, check out all the other great Grammar family businesses you can support.
JOURNEY TO COUNTRY
Exercise remains as important as ever to help keep us physically and mentally fit and healthy. Throughout COVID-19 restrictions, exercise appeared on the very short list of acceptable reasons for being out and about. We encouraged our students, families and staff members, consistently, to ensure they achieved 30 minutes (or more) of exercise every day and shared many opportunities for live fitness sessions, homebased programs, running training, and other online training opportunities.
However, something was missing – a connection and a team spirit to work together to achieve a common goal, bringing us closer together during this time of isolation. Unfortunately, our Middle School Trip to Timber Creek was postponed for 2020. And it was at this point that our Journey to Country was born – a House Challenge where we would make a Journey to Country, together, 7000 kilometres in total, to visit our friends at Timber Creek and Kalumburu in North West Australia.
The Journey to Country was crafted so that every member of our Community from Prep to Year 12 could take part. Students and staff worked in their Muster/Homeroom/Classroom groups and encouraged each other to complete the journey: 5 minutes of exercise was equal to 1 kilometre on the Journey. And we made it – hello to our friends in Timber Creek and Kalumburu!
BALLARAT GRAMMAR COMMUNITY FUND
As the COVID-19 pandemic started to impact us all so dramatically through enforced restrictions and lifestyle changes, it quickly became evident that some of our school families were experiencing sudden and unexpected financial difficulties.
In response to this unforeseen situation, the School Board quickly engaged the full support of the Ballarat Grammar Foundation and the Beckworth Trust to offer financial support to families. The School Board also determined to offer a fee reduction for Term 2 for families with children in the Junior, Middle and Senior Schools, and the establishment of the Ballarat Grammar Village aimed to provide support and resources to past and present Ballarat Grammar families.
In offering the fee reduction for Term 2, families were provided with the opportunity of opting out and redirecting the equivalent funds to the Ballarat Grammar Community Fund. It is extremely pleasing and humbling to see the response from our community to this initiative. More than 85 families chose to direct their fee reduction, totalling an amount of $68,040, to either the Ballarat Grammar Community Fund or Ballarat Grammar Foundation Scholarship Fund. Also, other generous donations from families and supporters of the School, providing a further $22,500, have been received for a total amount of $90,540.
The strength of Ballarat Grammar has always been its sense of community, built on trusted relationships. Whilst the challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic have been difficult for us all, the compassion and support shown by our families and those who make up our broader School community have been exemplary and further emphasise our strength. The following comments from parents capture some of the sentiment of the impact these initiatives have had on our families:
“The School’s commitment to providing the financial and emotional support to all families, to allow all students to continue their education uninterrupted for 2020, is incredibly inspirational. We feel very proud to call ourselves Grammar parents.”
“We are extremely proud of the work Ballarat Grammar has put into protecting our community in the current climate. We are grateful for the financial assistance that Ballarat Grammar has offered with respect to the 20% fee reduction. As such, we would like to donate our
Term 2 fee reduction to the Ballarat Grammar Community Fund. We make this decision given the support Ballarat Grammar has offered not only us as parents but also our children in their online learning activities. We can appreciate the effort you are all putting in as staff and sincerely thank you”.
The Ballarat Grammar Community Fund is being administered by a sub-committee of the School’s Finance Committee.
M O T I V A T I N G O U R STUDENTS AND STAFF
For the Journey to Country, we had many of our successful and sports-loving Old Grammarians film short videos to motivate our students to ‘get on board’ the Journey to Country. And it worked! Many of our Houses, working as a team, made the 7000 kms to Timber Creek and Kalumburu, and back to Ballarat!
Old Grammarians helped motivate our students and staff: Grace O’Dwyer (2017), Hilary Hazledine (1982), Holly Dobbyn (2014), Lauren Butler (2018), Lloyd Meek (2016), Rene Caris (2016), Stewart Crameri (2006), Tamsin Hinchley (Barnett, 1997), Tarikka Campbell (2019)
