Calling the Country Home

Mr Charles Martin

Old Boy MAU14 With over 320 Boarders spread across five Houses, The Southport School is one of the largest boarding schools in the country. Hailing from all over Australia (and some international), TSS boarders will eat, sleep, study and engage in sport and recreation on the school grounds for 37 weeks of the year and therefore constitute a huge part of the culture that makes this school so special.

In 1988, Headmaster Bruce Cook echoed this sentiment in his annual report: “I like to describe the School as being a boarding school to which day boys come rather than a day boy school to which boarders come. I am quite sure that many of our day boy parents send their boys to the School because of the boarding influence which permeates the very fabric of all that we do here.”

The story of TSS Old Boy, William Rudland (RAD15), is an excellent illustration of this idea. Originally in Radcliffe House and commuting from Ashmore to school each day, Will was not unlike any other Day Boy. While playing rugby for the school, he quickly befriended Charlie Wells, a Biddle

House boy and future School Captain, as well as other boarders, whose properties he would visit throughout his high school years.

It appears these experiences had an impact on Will, as he now calls the country home, having moved out there to live and work on a cotton farm alongside Charlie and the rest of the Wells family. I recently had the pleasure of catching up with Will and hearing about his adventures since graduating.

Where are you currently and what sort of work are you doing?

I have been living in Moree, NSW, for the past six months working as a trainee agronomist for Delta Agribusiness.

What and where did you study after finishing at TSS?

I originally intended to study something in finance through the University of Queensland. After one semester I decided that it was not for me and that I had a keen interest in agriculture. At the start of the next year I commenced a Bachelor of Sustainable Agriculture, majoring in agronomy, at the University of Queensland’s agriculture campus in Gatton.

It’s not often you hear of Day Boys moving out to the country after high school – how did boarding at TSS have an influence on you as a Day Boy?

I have family that owned a small cattle property near Moonie in Queensland. Spending much of my school holidays as a child out there I developed a curiosity with agriculture. This, combined with travelling to the properties of boarding mates throughout high school enticed me to do a gap year in the agricultural industry. After tossing up heading north to work on a cattle station and staying (relatively) local, I ended up taking a job on a cotton farm outside Moree. This worked perfectly as I got to live and work with one of my best mates, Charlie Wells, and his welcoming family. Without the friendships and influences I gained from many boarders like Charlie during my high school years at TSS, I wouldn’t have found a career in agriculture which I’m so passionate about.

What initially attracted you to working out on a property?

It was probably the sense of community that exists in the country. In the majority, the folks out here are honest and hard-working, and genuinely care for their community and the people in it.

What was it like trading living in a city for Moree?

Honestly, I prefer the lifestyle here and therefore found the transition from the Gold Coast to Moree relatively easy and painless. I live out of town on a large cropping farm owned by a family closely tied to the School. The community out here is awesome, and I have met many great and likeminded people through the Moree Rugby Union Club.

Any plans for the future?

My immediate plans are to progress my agronomy career with Delta. I’m enjoying seeing this wonderful country of ours. And for now, I’m happy to see what opportunities may come my way.

In the majority, the folks out here are honest and hard-working, and genuinely care for their community and the people in it.

Boarder-Day Boy friendships are in no way uncommon. Aside from bonding in the classroom and on the sporting field, several programs over the years have served to enhance the connection between Day Boys and Boarders and their families, as well as broaden students’ horizons upon leaving school. One more recent initiative is the Rogers House ‘Adopt a Boarder’ weekend, started in 2014 by Housemaster, Mr Ian Browne.

Here, Day Boy families are encouraged to host a TSS Boarder for a weekend and have them experience what life is like living on the Gold Coast. A few years later, the ‘Adopt a Day Boy’ program was initiated, inviting boarding families to host a Day Boy during the school holidays and show them what life is like on their home/property. Both have been a success, quite often leading to families visiting or holidaying with each other following the initial weekend or holiday encounters.