Rebooting The Comet

The Comet

Rebooting a classic

By Joe Wright, Principal

The College’s very first A4 newsletter was published in 1994 in anticipation of our opening in 1995. It was titled ‘Wide Bay Anglican School Newsletter’ as the name of the College had not yet been firmly decided. One of the key announcements was the purchase of the land that the College sits on today. The land was described as being ‘surrounded by farms which would in the future be surrounded by houses’. We are certainly seeing that prediction come to pass. It also incorporated the timetable for 1994, including building works and the appointment of teachers. Once the College began operation they created a monthly newsletter called … ‘The Newsletter’ . It was supplemented by a weekly ‘News in brief’ . The A4 columns were filled with news from upcoming and recently completed College events as well as congratulating students on their achievements. In 2003 ‘The Newsletter’ became the ‘College Comet’ , the same year the new website started. The referencing of a celestial object (‘comet’) fit in line with the astronomical theme that was evident in many areas of the College including the House names and the year book –‘The Constellation’

During the first two years of the College there was also a biannual publication titled ‘Echo’ which was designed to capture the essence of our school life and build a link between the College and the wider community in which we were trying to establish ourselves. Scan the QR code to hear Mr Wight's interview with ABC Wide Bay celebrating FCAC's 25th Anniversary.

It was a newspaper type format and in a time where smart phones did not exist and the internet was still being established, I could imagine that FCAC families would have waited upon its publishing with much anticipation. It was an ambitious publication for a school in its infancy to produce and I can only admire the time and dedication required to compile it. This year we are bringing back the ‘College Comet’ but with a different focus. It will be an online magazine that focusses not only on 'what' we do, but also 'why' we do it. The Comet will celebrate the achievements of our students as well as those of our alumni. It will acknowledge our history and all that makes our College great. The Comet will tell the story of FCAC.

Below: Foundation staff member, Mrs Anne Patterson and Mr Wright dig into the archives to explore past versions of the newsletter.

Father Jeff

A L I F E T I M E O F S E R V I C E By Ayo Oluwa Opemipo Olulope (Grade 7 - Edited by Tracey Wigmore)

Father Jeff Jarvis was born on the 14th of July 1945 in a small town called Macclesfield in the UK. After a stint as a Police Bobby in London, he started his chaplaincy journey – a journey that would continue for over 50 years – in England at the Cambridge University, as a Hospital Chaplain.

In 1978 Father Jeff and his family migrated to Australia, to take on a role as School Chaplain at Christchurch Grammar School in Western Australia. This was followed by a stint as the Rector at Edge Hill in Cairns and Chaplain to the Trinity Anglican School. The family moved to Toowong, Brisbane in 1980 and Father Jeff was Chaplain at Brisbane Boys College. As a young boy, he was always expected to follow his father into the Army. After a long period of time with careful consideration and prayers, he decided to follow the armed forces path, by enlisting in the Naval Reserves in 1985.This involved a lot of traveling during school holidays to different bases around the country.

St Margaret’s Anglican School was the next stop in his Chaplaincy career, where his wife Helen, also worked as the School Nurse.

In 1996, there was another move for the family and this time it was to Hervey Bay to take on the role as the first School Chaplain at Fraser Coast Anglican College – a role that lasted for 10 years. All the while, Father Jeff had continued serving in the Navy Reserves, when he was recruited to serve full time as a Navy Chaplain. Father Jeff served in the Navy for ten years, during which he spent time in Sydney, working at various hospitals, including St Vincent’s Hospital and then as the Chaplain for Fleet North, based in Darwin.

Father Jeff, a man of many talents, helped the navy crew with their jobs as well including damage control, fire-fighting, amongst other things. He was also involved with caring for people who suffered PTSD, as well as being the Patron of ‘Shipmates for Cancer’, sitting with the dying and conducting funeral services.

With great experiences come great memories that last a lifetime. One of his favourite memories was when he turned 65 at sea. The refugees, Buddhist, Muslims, and Christians surprised him with sea songs and shared tins of orangeade and pistachio nuts for his birthday which he really enjoyed. Father Jeff and his family are very close to each other, so it was hard for them when he was required to travel away with the Navy. Father Jeff strongly believes that it was especially hard for his wife. There were many family events and special occasions missed, however one of the hardest and most heartbreaking was when the whole family had planned to all be together in Hervey Bay to celebrate Christmas for the first time in many years.Unfortunately, Father Jeff was urgently called to duty in the Middle East and missed yet another family gathering.

Father Jeff has a grandson who is following in his faith led footsteps and currently is a Youth Pastor at Riverlife Baptist Church in Brisbane.

The Navy was a great experience for Father Jeff, one he says he will never regret. He met lots of officers and sailors, many who have become friends who he still keeps in contact with through social media and organisations such as the ‘Naval Association’ here in Hervey Bay. Even though having distance from family and home was hard, Father Jeff’s commitment and calling was to his Chaplaincy work was important to him.

After a long time at sea, he was wished a very happy retirement and returned to school chaplaincy at Fraser Coast Anglican College in 2017, a position he still fills to this day.

This is the story of a husband, father, grandpa, priest, former navy chaplain and school chaplain who is still enjoying his life at 76, never regretting a day of his entire life. You may think this is the end of the story but, Father Jeff believes, the end is only the beginning

Above: Father Jeff and Mrs Helen Jarvis