Light Blue - Semester 2 2022

Photographers Stef Driscoll

Contributors

PRINCIPAL’S Perspective

Seeding a wise and sustainable future

Since 2020, visits to our Toorak Campus have not matched the regularity of years prior. Regrettably, until recently, ‘visiting’ had been via a screen for so long that one young swimmer looked up from his hooded tiger towel to comment, “I know you. You’re from Zoom!” Partially delighted by the recognition yet shocked to think my connection with this little learner had thus far only been via remote learning, I have ever since savoured so gratefully the time to walk slowly upon arrival and greet as many children as possible, ever mindful of the gift of being together.

Without question, a favourite spot to interact at Toorak is the herb and vegetable garden, gleefully explored and lovingly tended by students and adults alike. Much is seeded here.

Blessed to be part of an extended family of keen gardeners and orchardists, fond childhood memories include turning soil, watering crops, and relishing the delight of freshly picked fruit and vegetables, especially raspberries and peas. These experiences were lessons in the seasons and in weathering storms. The language associated with such work and bounty oftentimes references ‘cultivation’.

Just as we cultivate the land, so too can we choose to cultivate ideas. In this 111th edition of Light Blue we celebrate the cultivation of ideas seeded by wise choices that remain or are destined to become a sustaining influence in our School’s 167th year and beyond.

50 Years of Co-education

Our Chair of Council, Paddy Handbury (M’72), begins the publication by honouring a very special anniversary. Paddy’s article provides a personal overview of the history of co-education: from the ‘small seed’ that was sown in 1970 when a handful of girls from The Hermitage visited GGS to study Science, Mathematics and Latin, to when his children joined the School in the 1990s, to the opening of Elisabeth Murdoch House in 2010 (named in honour of Paddy’s grandmother, Dame Elisabeth Murdoch AC DBE (Greene, Clyde ’26)), and the move to equal numbers of boys and girls at Timbertop.

First Nations’ Scholars

By 2023, 90 First Nations’ scholars either have or are still studying at our School since the inception of the Indigenous Scholarship programme. To celebrate the growth of this programme, Mahaliah Kickett-Eades’ (Yr7 Ku) story of watching Marlley McNamara (Yr12 Ga) in Anastasia (Senior School Musical 2022) highlights the importance of role models, and links to Mahaliah’s cousin Elijah Weston (Cu’11). Elijah was our very first Indigenous scholarship student, joining GGS from Broken Hill in Year 7 in 2006.

Bostock House

The evolution of Bostock House, from its beginnings in a parish hall at Christ Church Geelong in 1924 to the construction of a school building in Newtown in 1926, to relocation to Highton in 1962 and move back to Newtown to Noble Street in 1998 is a fascinating read, with a new chapter currently unfolding. The cultivation of our northeastern land is in progress as we energise the expansion of our Corio Campus, and eagerly await the arrival of our youngest learners to this site.

Corio Campus Masterplan

Following an extensive stakeholder engagement process to develop a shared vision for the Corio Campus and to assist our project team (of architects, landscape architects and engineers) to shape and develop a successful masterplan with priority projects that will support our Strategic Framework (launched in 2019), we are proud to share the key themes that have emerged. One of those key themes was sustainability, which links to our School’s inaugural Sustainability Strategy, inclusive of policy, initiatives and achievements. This Strategic Project encapsulates so much of what it means to enable Exceptional Education

Primary Years Programme (PYP) of the International Baccalaureate (IB) at Toorak

2022 marks the 25-year anniversary of PYP at Glamorgan, now Toorak Campus. Staff professional learning and curriculum development began in 1997, with the PYP being introduced to classrooms in 1998. Accreditation was then issued by the International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO) in 1999, and since then, the campus continues to be a leader of PYP, locally, nationally and internationally.

Healing & Hope

On White Balloon Day in 2021, I spoke of the humbling and ambitious aspirations for Healing and Hope and our School’s capacity to lead with love and light; a new way of living our values and continuing to learn from our past. This year, the Board of Healing and Hope was established with a unique collection of founding Directors whose insights and wisdom will contribute to the fabric of this wellbeing initiative, which strives to bring comfort and assistance to those of our Geelong Grammar School community who are suffering –survivors, victims of trauma, and their families.

Student Wellbeing

With our refreshed GGS Model of Student Wellbeing, the growth and evolution of Positive Education (PosEd), including our Navigate and Pathways curricular, features in this edition too. Accompanied by a timely article regarding the School’s revised Respectful Relationships curriculum, and a piece reminding us about the importance of belonging, PosEd continues to centre on what it means to live a flourishing life.

Foundation

Our Chair of the Geelong Grammar Foundation, Penny McBain, reflects upon the outstanding achievements of the year, including raising $3.9 million, and the appointment of six new Eminent Members: Silver Harris, Gordon Moffatt AM KSJ (M’48), Andrew Muir, Emma Muir, the late Jeff Peck (Ge’42) and Tony Poolman (FB’60). We commend these members and the efforts of our community to continue to support the seeding of so many scholarships and initiatives.

Each page of this publication cherishes the ‘seeds’ sown by people whose courage to dream a brighter future for our School lives on through the choices and priorities of today. The power of people, collaboration, and knowledge to cultivate ideas that can enact the transformation we need to see now and in generations to come is enriching; it is also fundamental to contemporary and progressive education. Together, we are advancing our promise of Exceptional Education

…From little things big things grow…

Rebecca Cody Principal

“THE POWER OF PEOPLE, COLLABORATION, AND KNOWLEDGE TO CULTIVATE IDEAS THAT CAN ENACT THE TRANSFORMATION WE NEED TO SEE NOW AND IN GENERATIONS TO COME IS ENRICHING...”

CHAIR COUNCIL of

“From little things big things grow”: a saying I well remember from my childhood (like so many others – if a job’s worth doing it’s worth doing well, a stitch in time saves nine, and so on) used by my parents as they shaped me to be, hopefully, a better person. Now, it instantly conjures up Paul Kelly and Kev Carmody’s popular 1991 song of the same name, and the story of Vincent Lingiari, from which big things have grown from the seed planted by one man.

So it was in 1970 when the first, small seed was sown for a few girls from The Hermitage (and clearly some of their school’s brightest) to visit GGS to study Science, Mathematics and Latin. I was at Timbertop in 1970 but, when I commenced fifth form (Year 11) at Corio in 1971, to suggest I was intimidated would be an understatement – not simply because the girls were brighter than me, but because I’d had limited interaction with girls, having attended boys’ only schools. Their visits weren’t the norm. Leaving school part way through 1972 didn’t allow me time to fully enjoy the benefits of sharing the School with people of the opposite gender nor develop respectful relationships that GGS began to, and continues to, foster as a natural element of student life. On reflection, I wish I’d had the opportunity to enjoy my educational years in such a co-ed environment.

That little seed sown in 1970 developed into the first intake of girls to GGS in 1972 – 33 girls who joined in their own right as Geelong Grammarians, about half as boarders and half as day students, half in fifth form and half in sixth form. I can imagine how daunting this must have been and how adventurous and spirited they were – 33 girls amongst almost 300 boys in

Senior School. Although these girls studied at GGS for only one or two years, the move speaks so strongly to the success of the eventual, total move to co-ed enrolments, and of the lasting friendships that it ultimately developed.

When my children joined the School through the 1990s, I marvelled at how the School had changed since my time there. The Timbertop programme had developed into a much broader and balanced curriculum/co-curriculum that ensured students were given every opportunity, encouraged to discover and test themselves, and to enjoy the total environment that comes with its unparalleled campus life. Corio had become a much more tolerant, respectful and inclusive place than in my time, one in which girls and boys mingled naturally and developed lasting friendships. This continues today, as it should.

“HE (TOMMY GARNETT) HAS NEVER SOUGHT TO MAKE POPULAR DECISIONS; BUT HIS UNPOPULAR DECISIONS HAVE A CURIOUS HABIT OF TURNING OUT POPULAR IN THE END.

HE HAS INCURRED CRITICISM FOR MAKING CHANGES WHICH SEEMED TO CALL INTO QUESTION WELL-ESTABLISHED VALUES; YET, WHEN THESE CHANGES HAVE RUN THEIR COURSE, IT IS OFTEN FOUND THAT THOSE VALUES HAVE EMERGED STRONGER THAN EVER.”

Sir Robert (Bob) Southey (Cu’39, Chair of Council 1967-72)

little things...

Things grew quickly, and by 1974 there were 70 girls enrolled at Corio (with others being turned away because the Senior School was full). By 1975, co-ed spread to Timbertop, with the first 14 girls arriving in Term 3, followed by 14 more at the beginning of 1976 as part of an accelerated programme as the campus shifted from Year 10 to Year 9. In 1976, The Hermitage and Clyde School amalgamated with GGS, building on the strong family connections that existed between the three schools. Across the next three decades, the School moved progressively towards an equal number of girls and boys.

In 2010, came the opening of Elisabeth Murdoch House at Corio, providing the School with the capability to cater for equal numbers of girls and boys in Senior School boarding, complementing the two co-ed day houses. Shortly after, Timbertop moved to equal numbers of units available for girls and boys. For the past three years, Timbertop has had a 50/50 gender balance, and has also trialled co-ed campsites and co-ed hike groups. Amidst the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, our Middle School boarding houses were restructured and now offer boarding house beds on a 50/50 basis. In celebrating 50 years of co-education, I’m confident that the aspiration of Tommy Garnett (Headmaster 1961-73) was to see GGS provide a truly co-educational experience,

which has remained an absolute goal for all subsequent Headmasters and Principals, with Charles Fisher (Headmaster 1974-78) playing a particularly pivotal role in growing co-ed during those early years.

How bold and perceptive Tommy Garnett was, having the foresight to fully integrate girls into an all-boys’ school, and in particular a boarding school as world famous as GGS (thanks to the enrolment of King Charles in 1966). GGS was very much a pioneer of co-education amongst independent schools in Australia – The Geelong College followed in 1974, Wesley College in 1978, Carey Baptist Grammar School in 1979, Caulfield Grammar in 1981 and Haileybury College in 2000. How positively has educational thinking and practice evolved and advanced from that initial seed planted 52 years ago. As GGS likes to describe these types of developments, the School had a “Timbertop moment”! It was a natural, positive milestone in our proud history.

Paddy Handbury (M’72) Chair of Council

big things grow

YEARS

CELEBR A TINGCOEDU C A T I

The current students researched archival material, such as press clippings, photos, official documents and uniforms, as well discovering minutes from the Debating Society discussing whether the School should become co-educational (the motion was passed!). “It was super interesting to go through the archives and look at how girls joined the School and how it grew from 33 girls in 1972 to four full boarding houses (in 2010) and having an equal number of boys and girls on campus,” Grace said. “Their stories and their experiences, from then until now, are really interesting.”

The exhibition was just as interesting for members of that pioneering group of female students who joined the School in 1972.

“It was trip down memory lane; to see the photos and remember people that I had forgotten over the years,” Mandy Edwards (Bowen, Li’73) said. A handful of those “first girls” viewed the exhibition and spoke to current students when they were invited by our Principal, Rebecca Cody, to be guests of honour at the School’s annual Founders’ Day at Corio in June. “Each Founders’ Day we acknowledge those people whose devotion founded and preserved Geelong Grammar School,” Rebecca explained. “It was timely and appropriate then to also acknowledge those people who helped progress such a significant initiative by taking those first brave steps on the path to co-education, which has become such an essential component in the life of our School.”

“SOME OF THE NEW BOYS WERE GIRLS”, THE HERALD NEWSPAPER ANNOUNCED ON WEDNESDAY 2 FEBRUARY 1972 BELOW THE HEADLINE: “IT’S GLAMOR AT THE GRAMMAR”. THE PRESS CLIPPING WAS JUST ONE ARTEFACT ON DISPLAY IN THE MAIN QUAD DURING SEMESTER 1 AS PART OF AN EXHIBITION CELEBRATING THE 50-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF GIRLS BEING ENROLLED AT GGS IN 1972. THE EXHIBITION WAS CURATED BY CURRENT STUDENTS ALANNAH D’ANDREA (YR12 GA), KATYA EWING (YR12 HE), GRACE FORBES (YR12 HE), LUCIE GILL (YR12 HE) AND GEN WHITFORD (YR12 HE), UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF SCHOOL HISTORIAN, SOPHIE CHURCH.

It was a brave step, but not one they chose for themselves. “That decision was really one our parents made,” Libby Baker (Norton, Cu’73) said. “Very little of it had input from us.” Libby was one of 15 female boarding students enrolled in 1972, who were billeted to staff residence and spread amongst the boys’ boarding houses. “There were two or three girls to a house, so you were quite isolated,” Libby recalled. “You lived in the quarters of a married Master and his family, although you didn’t eat with them. You started your day with assembly in the house at 7.20am and then you all went on to breakfast, so we were very much with the student body the whole time, other than to sleep. I’m not particularly outgoing, so every day was a challenge, but every other girl was in the same position.”

It was challenging, and life-changing. “I have got to say that I’m very, very grateful for the education that I had here (at GGS),” Libby said. “I’ve gone on to be a Chartered Accountant. I’ve run my own business for 35 years now, and I’m absolutely sure that if I had stayed in a girls’ school, I would

have either been a teacher or a nurse. There was virtually no choice. You had a good education as far as it went, but the education here (at GGS) was far superior. To come here and to have that depth of teaching was really, really special.”

It is a familiar theme. “Coming to Grammar broadened your outlook on the possibilities of what was available,” according to Julia Schlapp (Li’73), who studied Science (Microbiology) at university and pursued careers in pathology and agriculture. “It was very challenging, but it was also fun and adventurous. My mother was an educated woman of her generation, and she was keen for her daughters to be educated and to have careers. There were great opportunities (at Corio). The choice of subjects was better. The library was better. Because I went on and studied Science and Agriculture (at university), I was always a female in a male career. (Coming to GGS) meant that I didn’t feel afraid to do that.”

Sixth form students from The Hermitage (Geelong Church of England Girls’ Grammar School) had joined Science, Maths and Latin classes at Corio in 1970 and 1971 at the instigation of Tommy Garnett (Headmaster 1961-73), which opened the door for girls to be enrolled at the School “in their own right” in 1972. Mandy Edwards (Bowen, Li’73) had been a student at The Hermitage since kindergarten. “I was certainly extended a lot more (at GGS) than I would have been (at The Hermitage),” according to Mandy, who was awarded the F. Stanley Sheppard Prize for Mathematics in 1973 and excelled in Physics and Chemistry. “I got into Science at Melbourne University and ended up doing Pharmacy, which I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to do. It gave me the skills to survive in that environment.”

Mandy said that although the “teachers encouraged us to speak up and didn’t treat us any differently”, in addition to their academic subjects, the girls also took cooking and flower arrangement classes. “We knew that we were different,” she said. “We were the first girls in a school of boys. We had our own school uniform. It was a big difference.”

From those first brave steps in 1972, the number of girls at GGS continued to grow, accelerated by the amalgamation with The Hermitage and Clyde schools in 1976 and a broader acceptance of co-education (Geelong College, Wesley College, Carey

Baptist Grammar and Caulfield Grammar School all became co-educational within a decade of GGS). By the time Mandy’s daughter Kate Edwards (He’05) commenced at Timbertop 30 years later, in 2002, there was 642 female students at the School. Today, in 2022, there is an equal 50/50 gender balance at Timbertop and Senior School (Years 10-12). “I think co-education is important and that the numbers are equivalent, I think that’s really important too,” Libby said. “I think that Tommy Garnett had a great vision and he had to fight hard for that, but I think what’s transpired is really very special.”

Top: Carole Dunk (Li’72) viewing The Herald newspaper clipping she featured in from 1972

Below: Libby Baker (Norton, Cu’73), Julia Schlapp (Li’73) and Mandy Edwards (Bowen, Li’73) with Principal, Rebecca Cody, and (Bottom) with current students Katya Ewing (Yr12 He), Grace Forbes (Yr12 He), Alannah D’Andrea (Yr12 Ga) and Lucie Gill (Yr12 He)

I THINK THAT TOMMY GARNETT HAD A GREAT VISION… WHAT’S TRANSPIRED IS REALLY VERY SPECIAL.

LIBBY BAKER (NORTON, CU’73)

When Marlley McNamara (Yr12 Ga) performed the role of Countess Lily in the Senior School production of Anastasia, there was one set of eyeballs glued to her every move. Mahaliah Kickett-Eades (Yr7 Ku) joined Geelong Grammar School in 2022 from Churchill, a small town in the Latrobe Valley, which was built in the 1960s to house workers constructing the nearby Hazelwood Power Station. It is the country of the Braiakaulung people of the Guna Kurnai nation, yet Mahaliah and her younger brother and sister were the only Indigenous students at her local primary school. The opportunity to go to boarding school at GGS has meant many things for Mahaliah. One that she did not anticipate was how it has felt to get to know other Indigenous students, particularly inspiring role models like Marlley. “I loved watching her (in Anastasia),” Mahaliah said. “She’s really funny and has an incredible voice. I felt really proud, and I know I can do the same.”

The School’s Indigenous Student Coordinator, Sandra Brogden, understands the importance of providing role models for our young Indigenous scholarship students. Sandra is a Minang Noongar, Karajarri and Bardi woman from Western Australia who has dedicated her life to improving educational outcomes for Indigenous children. As part of her support role at GGS, Sandra facilitates lunchtime catch-ups, outings and dinners for the School’s Indigenous students who come to Corio from all around Australia. “It is really important for them to connect and get to see and know each other,” Sandra explained. Middle School students like Mahaliah have weekly AIME (Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience) mentoring sessions with former AFL footballer Matt Stokes, and GGS and Northern Bay College will be partnering with the Polly Farmer Foundation in 2023 to augment academic tutoring. Mahaliah also has the experience of her family; uncles and cousins who have attended boarding school, including Geelong Grammar School’s very first

KEEP ON TURNING

Indigenous scholarship student, Elijah Weston (Cu’11), Mahaliah’s cousin from Broken Hill who joined GGS in Year 7 in 2006.

The beginnings of the School’s Indigenous programme can be traced back to an Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA) conference in Perth in 2005. The School’s then Director of Planning, Jon Apted (Ge’67, Staff 1978-2011), was presenting a Graduate Diploma in Education Management (Boarding) course he had developed with the University of New England (UNE). Whilst at the AHISA conference, Jon met Joe Ross, a Bunuba man from Fitzroy Crossing. Joe had helped establish the Australian Indigenous Leadership Centre (AILC), which was delivering short courses and mentoring in leadership and business governance for Indigenous people, working with the likes of Lowitja O’Donoghue, Mick Dodson and Pat Turner. Joe spoke to Jon about Indigenous scholarships and introduced him to Waverley Stanley, a Birra Gubba man who had received a scholarship to attend Toowoomba Grammar School. Waverley was in the process of establishing Yalari (which means “child” in Birra Gubba language); a not-for-profit organisation to provide boarding school scholarships for Indigenous students from regional and remote communities.

Jon immediately saw the opportunity for GGS to play a vital role. “The School has always had enormous potential to support kids from different backgrounds,” Jon explained. GGS was subsequently selected as one of the first Education Provider schools for the Federal Government’s Indigenous Youth Leadership Programme (IYLP). Elijah was the first student, but within two years there were eight Indigenous scholarship students at GGS, including Elijah’s younger brother Sam Weston (Cu’13) and cousin Salasei McCarthy (EM’13). By the time Elijah graduated in 2011, there were 18 Indigenous students at GGS. The School had forged a strong partnership with Yalari

as well as the remote community of Minyerri, south-east of Katherine in the Northern Territory, where a student Jon had taught at Newcomb High School, Neil Gibson, was Principal of the local primary school. “It did take a lot of energy and effort and emotion,” Jon said. “It took time to understand all the cultural differences – I was learning something new every day – but there were enormous benefits for all our students, not just the Indigenous ones. It’s a fantastic programme. It really is. It’s continuing to make a difference, which gives me a nice inner glow.”

When Jon retired in 2011, the School’s Vice Principal, Charlie Scudamore (Staff 1990-2020), continued to drive the growth of the Indigenous programme, which had garnered strong community support – an Indigenous scholarship funded entirely by GGS staff supported its first student in 2011, the Pope Family Indigenous Scholarship was established in 2014, the Helen Macpherson Smith Trust and ERM Power also contributed to the programme, and most recently the Warambat Scholarship (named after the Taungurung word for Mt Timbertop) was created. In total, more than 80 Indigenous scholarship students have or are still studying at GGS. The School’s first Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) was launched in 2017 and updated in 2020, outlining our ongoing commitment to developing an inclusive learning environment that recognises and values Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their histories, cultures and contributions. “That Indigenous culture is a part of the fabric of who we are (as a school) is a tremendous thing,” Charlie said. The School will review and update the RAP in 2023, guided by past parent and Wotjobaluk woman Taryn Marks, utilising the Reconciliation Australia framework and the Narragunnawali platform for schools. “We know we’re on a journey,” Taryn said. “We won’t always get it right but we’re having a go.”

Marlley

FROM

little THINGS

Tahlia See (Yr12 Ga), Marlley McNamara (Yr12 Ga) and Cassie Peris (Yr12 Ga) started their GGS journey together in 2017, immediately forming a strong friendship. Tahlia and Marlley featured in the SBS documentary Off Country, filmed during 2020, and all three graduated together in 2022. “Geelong Grammar opens up the world to you, which is so much bigger than your small town,” Tahlia said. “It is important to see what the world has to offer.”

Tahlia See, Marlley McNamara and Cassie Peris

year twelve

year seven

“It is important to see what the world has to offer.”

Tahlia See (Yr12 Ga)

Mahaliah

Mahaliah

AMBITIOUS EVOLUTION

BOSTOCK HOUSE HASN’T NECESSARILY BEEN A LITTLE THING THAT HAS GROWN. FOR THE PAST 98 YEARS, BOSTOCK HOUSE HAS BEEN A HOME OF LEARNING THAT HAS TRANSFORMED AND EVOLVED ACROSS VARIOUS SITES IN AND AROUND GEELONG. FOR MANY FAMILIES, IT MARKS THE BEGINNING OF THE JOURNEY THROUGH OUR SCHOOL, BUT THE PREPARATORY/PRIMARY CAMPUS HAS ALSO HAD ITS OWN JOURNEY. AS WE PREPARE FOR THE NEXT STAGE OF THIS JOURNEY, AND THE ADVENTURE THAT AWAITS AT THE NEW, PURPOSE-BUILT PRIMARY SCHOOL AT CORIO, IT IS REMARKABLE TO RECOGNISE THE RHYTHM OF HISTORY REPEATING AND REVERBERATING WITH EACH RENEWAL.

In the beginning, it wasn’t even Bostock House. The Geelong Preparatory Grammar School began in the parish hall at Christ Church Geelong on the crest of the Moorabool Street hill in 1924, around the corner from the grand Gothic building that had been home to Geelong Grammar School from 1858 until the School outgrew the “gray-turreted mother” and relocated to Corio in 1914. Similarly, the Preparatory School outgrew the parish hall, and a new school building was constructed on the corner of Pakington and Aberdeen streets in Newtown in 1926. The Preparatory School was renamed Bostock House in 1933 by Sir James Darling (Headmaster 1930-62), in honour of Thomas E Bostock, a successful wool merchant who was Mayor of Geelong from 1905 to 1908, founded the Barwon

Heads Golf Club in 1907, and served on the Geelong Grammar School Council from 1909 to 1922, playing a vital role in the School’s move to Corio.

“Mr. Bostock was not an Old Boy of the School, but he could not have done more for its wellbeing. He loved the School… nothing, perhaps, afforded him greater happiness than those occasions in which his time and energy were being devoted to the School; he possessed in his heart a loyal and passionate devotion for the Light Blue Flag. The re-building of the School from its original site in Moorabool Street to its present site over-looking Corio Bay was due more than any other cause to Mr. Bostock’s confident assurance that a progressive step in the right direction was being taken. The School

will not forget, for he has left behind him an honoured name and a work that shall endure throughout succeeding generations.” – The Corian, August 1922

Bostock House outgrew its Aberdeen Street location and moved to farming land beyond Highton on the slopes of the Barrabool Hills in 1962, where it shared a site with The Hermitage and Marcus Oldham Farm Management College. GGS amalgamated with The Hermitage in 1976 and the campus became known as Geelong Grammar School Highton, for Prep to Year 9. Another restructure of the School in 1997 saw the development of a Middle School at Corio for Years 5 to 8, with three-year-old Kindergarten to Year 4 relocated to 139 Noble Street, Newtown; a

large, rambling Edwardian-style house built in 1916 for Edward George Gurr, the then Mayor of Geelong. It was purchased in 1953 by two sisters, Edith and Helen Wood, who established St Andrew’s Private School, which operated as a primary school on the site until 1994. GGS bought the property in 1997 and the new campus opened in 1998 as Bostock House (again).

“Very rarely do teachers have the chance to be involved in the formation of a new school, or in this case, a new campus. We have built upon the established principles of Geelong Grammar School Highton to create a new face for Geelong Grammar School – a campus which is aimed at developing confidence and self-esteem in young children from 3 years old until they reach

the end of Year 4.” – 1998 Parent Information Evening

By 2022, the School’s ambitions had once again outgrown its location. The expansion of Corio Campus with a new, purpose-built Primary School was announced in March. This exciting new stage in the journey for Bostock House will realise the School’s vision of a learning experience that embodies the Strategic Pillars of Adventure Education, Positive Education and Creative Education, with a particular emphasis on nature and inquiry-based learning that leverages the Timbertop experience and enlivens Adventure Education for all students at Corio. The result of three years of planning, market research and design iterations, this will be a unique and innovative project that connects

to the natural ecosystem of fields, ponds, native grasslands, creek, coastal ridge and lagoon, as well as the exceptional playing fields and facilities that Corio has to offer, such as the Handbury Centre for Wellbeing, Music School, Chapel of All Saints, and the School of Performing Arts and Creative Education (the SPACE).

“All innovations over the years have enabled the preservation of the GGS spirit and traditions, whilst also encouraging contemporary learning and teaching practises. What lies ahead is truly transformational and an exciting new chapter, not only for the Bostock House community, but for all of GGS.” – Rachael Dewhurst, Head of Bostock House.

The School has made significant progress in developing an exciting new Corio Campus Masterplan. Vital to the process has been extensive stakeholder engagement with our community to develop a shared vision for the future of the Corio Campus. Conversation architect, Geoff Brown from Tangent Consulting, helped the project team to guide an inclusive and flexible approach to engagement design, planning, implementation and learning. “We placed participation and creativity at the core of stakeholder engagement,” Geoff said. “Our approach sought to include a diverse cross-section of people and groups who would have an opportunity to engage at a meaningful and relevant level. We ensured equal access by staging a mix of in-person, onsite and online engagement activities. We responded quickly to emerging needs and to stakeholder feedback during the process. This commitment to listen and respond was critical in building ownership and trust with stakeholders and to overall project success.”

Engagement Campus Masterplan Corio

From the outset, the Masterplan has been developed in a highly collaborative way. The project team was committed to listening, understanding and learning from our community. The purpose of this process was designed to:

• Understand and plan for ‘beyond effective practice’ learning and teaching experiences, building in adaptability for advancements in technology and pedagogy;

• Understand and imagine new sustainable systems for the School (physical and functional);

• Understand and plan for better ways of living on campus and creating communities that connect with place;

• Unite facilities and supportive functions of the School with the educational experience; and

• Understand and plan for mutually beneficial relationships with adjoining land, land uses and neighbours.

What we did

Engagement began with a substantial information gathering phase, including a series of site visits and building inspections, to develop a close understanding of the living and learning aspects of the campus, both regarding existing conditions and anticipated requirements. The project team then produced a map of the stakeholders needed for each engagement activity, with strategies

tailored for each group of stakeholders.

• Surveys and Questionnaires: A sequence of surveys and questionnaires were undertaken, providing highly detailed information to inform the various Masterplan components.

• Wisdom Holder Interviews: In-depth interviews were conducted with a diverse selection of people, each occupying a different vantage point when looking at the past, present and future of the Corio Campus.

• Visioning Workshops: Online workshops that engaged broadly with more than 70 participants representing diverse stakeholder groups – staff, students, Support Groups, parent associations, OGGs, Council and Foundation Board – helped to imagine what was possible, stimulating creative conversations and guiding the development of a shared vision.

• CrowdSpot Survey: This interactive, online mapping survey captured specific, granular level feedback across the Corio Campus study area from a wide range of views and perspectives.

The second phase of engagement focused on presenting back to stakeholders what we had heard. Through a series of facilitated workshops, we also engaged stakeholders in detailed aspects of the draft Masterplan, including areas of agreement, sticking points and next steps in the process.

• Living, Learning & Enabling Workshops: A series of three themed workshops (Living, Learning, Enabling) presented engagement findings, initial Masterplan principles and tested proposed concept ideas with targeted stakeholder groups.

• Sensemaking Workshop: A workshop conducted with the School’s Executive and Leadership Team provided direction and insight to discern an appropriate pathway forward for the supported projects and sticking points.

• Council and Foundation Board Workshops: The draft Masterplan was subject to a process of testing principles, concepts, projects and prioritisation with the School Council, followed by a workshop with the Foundation Board to explore philanthropic opportunities.

What we heard

The broad range of voices we heard from expressed a desire to steer the Corio Campus towards a sustainable and cohesive future. There was a powerful alignment with the strategic direction of the School and the ability of the Masterplan to empower the strategic pillars (Adventure Education, Positive Education, Creative Education) and embody the strategic imperatives (Ethicality, Collaboration, Inclusivity, Progression, Substantiation). There was also interpretation of the campus as a defined series of precincts, neighbourhoods and relationships. Stakeholder engagement was augmented by the site analysis and building inspections, as well as place-based research and demographic mapping, exploring the history of Corio Campus and its current and future contexts. Community voice was supported by this research and analysis from the project team, which included architects, landscape architects, heritage and conservation

consultants, engineers, sustainability experts, regenerative agriculture specialists, arborists and cultural heritage advisors. Throughout the stakeholder engagement process and site analysis, several design principles emerged as necessary focus areas for GGS, both as a school and as a town.

• Innovation: Innovative facilities for real-world problem solving and creative thinking.

• Sustainability: Moving ‘beyond sustainability’ to create the greatest potential positive impact.

• Connectivity: A people-focused network for moving around the campus.

• Legibility: Clarity of purpose and direction. A clear alignment of principles and physical assets. Honouring past, present and future.

• Cohesion: A place to live, learn and grow together. A welcoming environment for an inclusive community.

Sustainability Corio Campus Masterplan

Sustainability emerged from the stakeholder engagement process as one of the five key design principles of the Corio Campus Masterplan. Sustainability was identified by our community as integral to the vision and future of the School, with an emphasis on moving ‘beyond sustainability’ to create the greatest potential positive impact and progress the School’s purpose of ‘shaping a better world’. Consequently, the development of the draft Masterplan has been underpinned by the One Planet Living sustainability framework, with sustainability concepts and methodologies informing building design, landscape treatment, retention and re-purposing of assets, ecological restoration, orientation and siting, as well as informing educational opportunities.

The focus on sustainability provides not only a chance to upgrade resources and facilities to best practice by embedding efficient and sustainable systems, but to also enliven education through student agency in the change process. With landholdings that border Limeburners Lagoon, which forms part of a Ramsar wetlands of international importance, the Corio Campus is a 230-hectare site of enormous environmental and ecological potential. The draft Masterplan begins to shape a vision of that potential as a focal point of innovative land management, activated by student agency in regenerative farming that connects to the School’s rural/agricultural roots. It also highlights opportunities to generate renewable energy, to capture and re-use water, and to enhance biodiversity, with particular reference to Corio’s unique coastal environment.

In total, the draft Masterplan identifies five key focus areas:

• Net Zero Energy;

• Circular Waste;

• Water-Wise Campus;

• Transport and Movement; and

• Ecology.

Sustainability Policyy

In October, the School Council endorsed an inaugural whole of school, multi-campus Sustainability Policy. Developed in collaboration with the School’s Sustainability Manager, Dale Martin, and the student-led Environment Action Team (EAT), the Policy sets in place clear, measurable and ambitious sustainability targets to work towards, with an overarching goal to embed effective practice sustainability initiatives, targets and decision making across all campuses, curriculum and community. “At GGS, the vision of sustainability is to coexist with our environment, meeting our current needs without compromising the needs of future generations,” Chair of Council, Paddy Handbury (M’72), explained.

The policy outlines the School’s commitment to four action areas:

• Governance and Community;

• Energy and Transport;

• Waste and Circular Economy; and

• Biodiversity, Agriculture and Water.

Each action area includes set targets to report against and work towards. The School will provide year-on-year updates reporting progress towards delivery of these targets from the 2021/22 baseline. By setting clear targets, managing resources efficiently and embedding sustainability into education, the whole School community can embody what it means to live sustainably.

The policy builds on existing sustainability initiatives, including lighting upgrades and solar panel installations. For example, as part of the School’s efforts to reduce emissions from electricity consumption, the Toorak Campus underwent a LED (light emitting diode) lighting upgrade which involved the replacement of over 500 lights and fixtures. This is expected to reduce the School’s electricity consumption by over 60,000kWh each year, which represents almost 10% of the campus’s electricity consumption. At Corio, 100 kWh of solar capacity has been installed on the roof of Elisabeth Murdoch House.

Resource Smart Schools

GGS has also joined the statewide Resource Smart Schools (RSS) programme. The programme provides practical support to reduce resource usage, make cost savings and integrate sustainability into the curriculum. Regional co-ordinators like Environmental Education Victoria (EEV), CERES and Sustainability Victoria work in partnership with schools to deliver professional learning opportunities for staff, hands-on audits run with students and curriculum resources. In 2023, students from all four campuses will be encouraged to get involved in projects across one or more of four key sustainability groups:

• Blue – Sustainability and Community Leadership;

• Yellow – Energy and Transport;

• Red – Waste and Circular Economy; and

• Green – Biodiversity, Agriculture and Water.

“At GGS, the vision of sustainability is to coexist with our environment, meeting our current needs without compromising the needs of future generations”

OF

THE PYP TOORAK

@CAMPUS

2022 marks 25 years of the Primary Years Programme (PYP) of the International Baccalaureate (IB) at Toorak Campus. Introduced in 1997, the programme has flourished throughout this time, with a studentcentred and values-driven approach to learning now fully embedded across ELC to Year 6.

The introduction of the PYP began under the leadership of Philippa Beeson, who saw the opportunities to build on the School’s “global outlook” and “systematic approach” to learning and teaching. In the May 1999 edition of Light Blue, Phillipa described the PYP as “more than content”. “It offers a comprehensive, inquiry-based approach to teaching and learning,” she explained. “It acknowledges different learning styles and recognises the vital role that assessment plays in successful learning. It fits perfectly with the philosophy underpinning teaching and learning (at GGS).”

This statement remains an accurate summation of the PYP and the many benefits that this approach has brought to our community. 25 years later, our students continue to be challenged and enriched by the PYP, which places our students at the centre, values their prior knowledge, and focuses on depth of learning. Our recent PYP Exhibition saw our Year 6 students immersed in an in-depth inquiry project that challenged them to develop knowledge, skills, and conceptual understanding, whilst demonstrating all of the attributes of the PYP Learner Profile. For me, the PYP Exhibition is an assessment of our success as a campus in implementing the programme. Some of our Year 6 learners have been learning through this approach since 3-year-old ELC and demonstrated a sophisticated understanding of themselves as learners, as well as how to be both problem posers and problem solvers.

Toorak Campus was the first school in Victoria to be authorised to offer the Primary Years Programme (PYP) of the International Baccalaureate (IB). There are now 40 schools across the State authorised to offer the PYP by the International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO) in Geneva, Switzerland. There are more than 7,700 IB programmes offered worldwide, across more than 5,600 schools in 159 countries. Developed as a pilot programme in the 1960s, the IB has built a reputation for quality, high standards and pedagogical leadership. Professor Howard Gardner at the Harvard Graduate School of Education said the IB helped students “think critically, synthesize knowledge, reflect on their own thought processes and get their feet wet in interdisciplinary thinking”.

Nicole Ginnane > Head of Toorak Campus

Heads of Senior School

Anthony Le Couteur joined our Corio community in Term 3 as Head of Senior School - Boys, quickly developing a dynamic partnership with our Head of Senior School - Girls, Catherine Krause (Parkinson, Fr’00). Ant joined us from Scots All Saints College in Bathurst, NSW, where he was Director of Boarding. Prior to this role, Ant served as Head of Wolaroi House at Kinross Wolaroi School in Orange, NSW, where he was also senior teacher of Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE). Ant has previously taught at Rouse Hill Anglican College and Trinity School in the UK, where he was a boarding housemaster. Catherine was previously Head of The Hermitage House (2018-2022) and spent 12 years at Lancing College in the UK, including seven years as a head of a girls’ boarding house.

Vice Principal

Residential

Education,

Care and Community (Years 7 - 12)

Tom Hall returned to GGS in Term 4 in a new role, as Vice Principal - Residential Education, Care and Community (Years 7 - 12). Tom had been our Head of Timbertop since Term 3, 2016, before embarking on a family adventure and rich professional learning and development opportunity at Shawnigan Lake School in Canada at the beginning of 2022. Tom first joined Timbertop in 2001, teaching English and History for three years. He returned for a further five years from 2008-2012 as Director of Student Welfare - Boys. He has also worked at Lauriston’s Howqua campus, was Head of Boarding at Girton Grammar School and was Deputy Director of the Outdoor Education Group, co-ordinating outdoor education programmes for schools across Victoria, before being appointed Head of Timbertop in 2016.

The GGS community has been an enormous part of my life and I am so pleased that I can continue to give back to it in this new role and fulfil the expanded responsibilities that it requires. I look forward to contributing to the School culture and function to help support students and staff in the same way I have been supported by the School since I began my first stint at Timbertop back in 2001 (pictured right). I hope to bring all this experience and understanding of GGS culture and community to the fore within the new Strategic Framework.

Catherine: I think Senior School is unique. Part of it is that there are so many different journeys to arrive in Senior School. More than 50% of our cohort are new to Corio in Year 10, so it brings together a vast array of experiences. Whatever their journey prior to Senior School, we want to add to it and prepare them for life outside of school.

Ant: Our commitment is to ensure that their final stage is a culmination of their experiences and our students can rejoice in that journey. Wherever it started, it finishes with three years with us in Senior School and there’s a real responsibility in bringing that all together and making that Senior School experience a really special one for our students.

Catherine: It is a complex beast but there are so many beautiful aspects – the beauty of our Houses, the beauty of our campus, the beauty of the staff who work with our young people, and the beauty of the diversity of our community.

Ant: I also think that part of that uniqueness and complexity, and something that I have had to get used to, is that we have so many people living and learning on campus all the time. Boarding is such an integral part of what we do, but we also need to ensure that day boarders are not forgotten. We have the privilege of moving across all these different aspects of the campus and one of our shared goals is to build bridges and to bring people together.

Catherine: We try to be present and known so that we build a rapport and a relationship. We’re often helping students in their most vulnerable moments, so our focus is on building relationships.

Ant: We need them to trust us as a team to look after their best interests and to give them a voice so that they can be open and honest with us.

Residential Education and the connections that are formed in those pivotal stages of a young person’s life is what sets our community apart. GGS is not just a school that you transit through from 9am to 3.30pm between the ages of 5 and 18. Our students can start as young as 3-year-olds in ELC and that connection goes right through to the Old Geelong Grammarian community.

I think we do our best learning when we are fully immersed. The most salient lessons are what we learn through the relationships that we have with other people; whether that’s the relationship between a Science teacher and a student in their class, or the relationship between a Head of House and a boarder, or the relationship between a Prep teacher and a student who is brand new to school. So many of those powerful relationships take place within a boarding structure, at Timbertop and Corio.

I’ve loved catching up with students that I got to know at Timbertop. Timbertop is a bit of a Peter Pan existence, in that the students stay the same age every year. It’s been great to reconnect with those students in Senior School and to watch them graduate gives an enormous sense of pride and satisfaction that you’ve played a small part in their journey. I’ve loved seeing these other aspects of the GGS journey. Of course, I’ve always been aware of these other stages, but to be at Corio and to be fully engaged in the entire journey has been fantastic. Even though I have worked for the School for 15 years in total, this new role is fully rounding out my Geelong Grammar School understanding and experience.

Catherine: To have someone who is new to GGS and someone who has been here, it’s so good to have both perspectives. It’s like the yin and yang.

Ant: I feel really blessed to be working alongside Catherine. We’ve started brilliantly and naturally have aligned values. Everyone has been so welcoming and willing to step in and support our work. There is a genuine desire to make the place better, to do what is best for the School and our students, and to make it an even more amazing place.

LeAnthonyCouteur

Catherine Krause

new school captains

How have you settled into your new role as school captain? And was there a moment that it sunk in for you?

Ned: It has been a busy first term in the position, with many exciting (and some scary!) experiences. I have felt very welcomed by the whole campus which has made the transition into the role a lot easier. The moment in which it sunk in for me was before and during our first address to the School. We were both very nervous before the speech but after we had done it, I think we fully appreciated the new role we were in and felt more assured that we were going to be able to fulfill the requirements of a leader at GGS.

Ellie: I remember the day I was announced as School Captain, I was coming back to my house for recess, walking through Middle School just as I had done every day since Year 10. Except this time, suddenly everyone knew my name. So many students were saying “Hello Ellie” and I was so surprised because I remember being at my primary school and thinking of the school captains as these idols or celebrities and it was so overwhelming at the time to think that I am now that person. I think for me, the whole role felt surreal for a few weeks but after I completed my first solo speech towards the end of Term 4, everything finally began to feel real. I suppose for me, it was this realisation that these school captains I had idolised for years were just normal people. I still want to be a warm, approachable figure, even for the youngest students in our school.

Why do you think there is such a strong sense of community at GGS?

Ellie: GGS is surrounded with unique opportunities catered to everyone. There are so many to choose from; whether it’s trying out a new sport, joining the debating team or participating in the School musical, the possibilities are endless. Each provides the opportunity to meet new people, some that one might have never previously encountered. The sense of community at GGS stems from this flow of opportunity. This intersection between “community” and “opportunity”, allows for people of achieve a sense of belonging within GGS, which in turn, brings the strong sense of community to the surface. I think that with the combination of the boarding and day boarding models, and the variety of co-curricular activities, it allows for these strong connections between staff and students to be created that I think are so integral and unique to GGS.

Ned: All GGS students, both boarders and dayboarders, spend a lot of time on campus, doing small things like eating meals together and playing sport or music after school which is unlike many other schools. It is through these activities that we have built a community which is amazing to be a part of. The relationships with both teachers and students within the school and, in particular, in houses is unique. Each house is its own community which people grow to love, then placing these houses together in different events, such as House Music, sees a competitive but friendly environment which draws everyone closer and creates an amazing community.

What is your favourite place or space at Corio Campus, and what makes it so special to you?

Ellie: My favourite place at the Corio Campus is the Hermitage Rose Gardens. It is a little garden tucked around the side of The Hermitage, and if you didn’t know that it was there, you would pass it without seeing it. However, each spring and summer, the garden is full of the most beautiful and divine smelling roses and flowers. I love it because it is like my own little secluded island of paradise, yet so close to the place I get to call home, which always helps to boost my mood and allows me to detach from the busy schedule that is school and boarding life.

Ned: Many people don’t realise that I love reading, love old books and tradition. The Hawker Library is a place that I have coveted since I first heard about it in Year 10. It is steeped in tradition and is a respectful, quiet place where I can study now that I am in Year 12. Of course, Perry House will also always hold a huge place in my heart too.

What does service mean to you and how does it influence your approach to leadership?

Ned: Being at a school like GGS means that I am lucky enough to be presented with an excellent education, am taught by kind and passionate teachers as well as being given numerous amazing opportunities. I think it is extremely important that through service activities, we are taught to appreciate all that we have and taught how important it is to give back to the community members who aren’t as lucky as us. Service has made me realise the importance of recognising everyone in the community as a contributor and potential leader. Through experiences such as Lorne 160 and Timbertop, I am able to recognise the importance of service to the wider community which I will look to implement into my leadership and further on in my career and life.

Ellie: To me, service is a word I tie in closely with support and love. I don’t think people truly understand how much a simple act of kindness can change someone’s life for the better until they experience it first-hand. Even though service sounds like a word associated with duty and obligations, for me, physical actions speak louder than words. Serving my community through passion and dignity and giving time to listen to everyone are two components that will influence my role as a leader in 2023.

We are delighted that Ellie Austin (Yr11 He) and Ned Cole (Yr11 P) are representing GGS as School Captains in 2023. Light Blue spoke to Ellie and Ned about the year ahead.

Ellie Austin

Ned Cole

(Yr11 P) 2023 School Captain

(Yr11 He) 2023 School Captain

Year 12 Results

Results Snapshot

• Zach Margis (Yr12 P) is Geelong Grammar School’s Dux for 2022. Zach achieved an IB score of 43, which equates to an ATAR of 99.45.

• Zarli Dickinson (Yr12 He), Lucy McCamley (Yr12 He) and Bill Nixon (Yr12 P) are proxime accesserunt of the Class of 2022, each achieving an IB score of 42, which equates to an ATAR of 99.10.

• Lachie Eliau (Yr12 P) is the School’s top VCE performer, achieving an ATAR of 98.5, with Caitie Remen (Yr12 EM) – one of our 2022 School Captains – achieving an ATAR of 97.8.

• There were two perfect VCE subject scores of 50, achieved by Daisy Turnbull (Yr12 Ga) in English and Henry Crutchfield (Yr11 Cu) in Biology, to go with 40 perfect subject scores of 7 among our IB cohort; 18 of our 41 IB students record at least one 7.

• Our median IB score is 35, which converts to a median ATAR of 92.6.

• Our combined IB/ VCE median ATAR is 81.32.

Zach Margis (Yr12 P)

Zach, from Caulfield North, joined the School in Year 9 at Timbertop before joining Perry House upon arrival at Corio Campus in Year 10. Zach represented the School in football and tennis, and earned distinctions in Chemistry (HL), Mathematics: Analysis & Approaches (SL) and Sports, Exercise & Health Science (SL) in 2022. He credits the dedication of the teaching staff at GGS for helping him and his classmates reach their full potential. “Such commitment is demonstrated by the additional teaching opportunities that the students experience every day from teachers committing time outside their usual scheduled hours to organise special educational events which help inspire us to learn,” Zach said. He plans to study biomedicine at The University of Melbourne.

Zarli Dickinson (Yr12 He)

Zarli, from Benowa on the Gold Coast, joined the School in Year 9 at Timbertop. A House Prefect in The Hermitage, Zarli excelled in a wide variety of disciplines at GGS, from coxing the Girls’ 1st VIII in rowing to winning the Cuthbertson, Sanderson and Isabel Henderson Prize for her essay titled “Interdependence”. Zarli was heavily involved in debating and public speaking during her time in Senior School, winning the Lara Lions Club Youth of the Year Award for public speaking, and also earned her silver award as part of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme in 2022.

Bill Nixon (Yr12 P)

Bill, from Mermaid Beach on the Gold Coast, joined the School in Year 9 at Timbertop. A House Prefect in Perry, Bill represented the School in rowing, rugby and swimming during his time at Corio Campus. He excelled in the classroom, earning distinctions in Chemistry (SL) and English: Language and Literature (HL) in 2022.

Lucy McCamley (Yr12 He)

Lucy, from Gisborne, joined the School in Year 9 at Timbertop before joining The Hermitage House upon arrival at Corio Campus. Lucy earned distinctions in Economics (HL), Mathematics: Analysis & Approaches (SL) and Spanish ab initio (SL). Lucy represented the School in hockey, rowing, sailing and swimming, receiving Half Colours for the latter.

Lachie Eliau

Lachie, from Toorak, joined the School in Perry House midway through a COVID-interrupted 2020. Lachie won the Accounting Prize in 2022 and received distinctions in English, Further Mathemetics and Specialist Mathematics. Lachie represented the School in cricket, football and cross country, leading Perry to victory in the 2022 House Cross Country competition.

Caitie Remen

Caitie, from Vaucluse in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, joined the School at Timbertop in Year 9 before spending her Senior School years in Elisabeth Murdoch House. Caitie, along with Harry Roe, led GGS in 2022 as our School Captains. Caitie juggled her duties with aplomb, earning a variety of academic awards in 2022 (Global Politics, Literature, Mathematics) whilst representing the School in debating, football and netball, as well at a variety of events throughout the year in her capacity as School Captain.

To read more about the academic success of the Class of 2022, visit www.ggs.vic.edu.au/classof2022

Preparation for Frozen Jr. began in Term 2 with the students’ commitment gradually intensifying as opening night inched ever closer.

The cast initially focused on learning the songs, choreography and blocking, and then eventually put these pieces together with all the other production elements. Double casting the play offered the cast and crew the opportunity to showcase the extent of our talent in Middle School at Geelong Grammar School; however, it also came with a set of unique challenges. It was amazing to watch the students grapple with these challenges and still act with determination and diligence. Frozen Jr. was performed across four nights in The David Darling Play House early in Term 4, with our Middle School performers producing a captivating musical for their friends, family and broader GGS community to revel in.

A LITTLE BIRDY TOLD Me

Told Me

STUDENTS, 2022

Our Year 12 Literature students published an anthology of short stories entitled A Little Birdy Told Me. Inspired by Sydney-based writer Ceridwen Dovey’s award-winning book, Only the Animals, the students’ stories creatively captured the voices of animals who have died against a backdrop of human conflict; from a donkey at Gallipoli to a koi fish at Hiroshima, an emu in the Australian outback, a chimpanzee in space, a butterfly at a Malcolm X rally and a koala in the Black Summer bushfires. Like Dovey’s collection, each story also pays homage to a literary figure, from George Orwell to Oodgeroo Noonuccal.

“Readers of this anthology are certain to be impressed at the maturity and complexity of the stories composed by our student writers,” Head of English, Vana Watkins, said.

“As Literature students, they have a keen eye for detail, an affinity for storytelling, and a commitment to quality which coalesces in this collection. Through the expert mentoring of their teachers, Katherine Barton and Katie Isles, they have strived to emulate Dovey’s complex style and craft their own original narratives.”

Only the Animals is on the VCE Literature Text selection and the students were fortunate to be joined by the author via Zoom to help guide their creative process. “The stories were imagined and written in just a few short weeks,” Year 12 Literature teachers, Katherine Barton and Katie Isles, explained. “We have been incredibly impressed by how our Year 12 students were able to capture the nuance of Dovey’s style, delivering narratives that demonstrate a sympathy for

the complexity of human conflict with insight well beyond their years.”

Ceridwen Dovey joined the book launch in the Fisher Library in Term 4 via Zoom to “congratulate and thank” the students and their teachers. “Quite honestly, there is nothing better as a writer than to be taken up by young writers,” she said. “Not just to be taken up, but when I was reading this beautiful collection, I had the sense that I had been leap-frogged by these wonderful authors. I was incredibly moved by the whole experience of getting to know some of the students through Zoom and feeling through their questions and engagement in the work that I was welcomed into a really intimate and sacred space of learning. The stories are not only moving, but they’re also often very funny –I had this grin on my face as I was reading.”

Stories inspired by Ceridwen Dovey BY GGS

CORIOBALD PRIZE

The 16th Annual Coriobald Prize exhibition was held in Term 3, once again celebrating our School community through portraiture. There were almost 250 artworks on display, with an array of prizes across Middle School and Senior School. This year’s People’s Choice Award was awarded to Ava McEvoy (Yr10 A) for her pencil drawing triptych featuring Kitty Kisvarda (Yr10 Fr) as The Birth of Venus after Botticelli, Ailish McEvoy (Yr12 A) and Alex Cordner (Yr12 A) as American Gothic after Grant Wood, and Imogen Clarke (Yr10 A) as Girl with a Pearl Earring after Vermeer.

Wellbeing Growth AND

Respecful Relationships

Our School is developing and evolving a comprehensive, wholeschool approach to Respectful Relationships education, embedding a culture of respect and inclusivity across the entire school community. GGS is a partner school for the Victorian Government’s Respectful Relationships initiative, which was developed from a recommendation of the Victorian Royal Commission into Family Violence. The School augments the Government’s Resilience, Rights and Respectful Relationships teaching materials with external experts, such as Bravehearts and Elephant Ed. Respectful Relationships is integrated into the School’s wellbeing curriculum and is taught at Corio through the Navigate and Pathways programmes.

The School has established a cross-campus Respectful Relationships team, led by our Director of Student Engagement and Experience, Rhiannon McGee, and our Head of Student Psychological Services, Justine Tonner-Joyce. The team has audited the School’s policies and practices, and is developing a strategic plan to ensure that there is an emphasis on implementing a whole-school approach to Respectful Relationships. “We have a comprehensive curriculum across Corio and Timbertop, and we’re taking a proactive approach to progressing and evolving that,” Rhiannon explained. “It really is about enabling a cohesive, coeducational culture by promoting healthy, respectful relationships and inclusivity, and addressing the causes of gender-based violence. Some of it is pretty tough stuff, but we’re not backing away from those conversations.”

Rhiannon said that the School’s approach utilises external experts to provide depth and variety to the way consent, Respectful Relationships and sexuality education is taught. Experts include Bravehearts, Man Cave, Flourish Girl and Elephant Ed, as well as sessions with former police officer Brent Sanders and lawyers Emily Scarlett

(Manifold, He’00) and Ben Tallboys about consent and the law. The School facilitated two professional learning sessions for staff in 2022 and, as a Respectful Relationships partner school, is engaging with independent, Catholic and government schools across the Barwon region to contribute to a community of practice. This includes trialling new programmes and projects, such as the Man Box study conducted by Jesuit Social Services. “Ultimately, we are equipping our students to go out and contribute to the betterment of society by promoting respect and inclusivity,” Rhiannon said.

Our School continues to grow and evolve our approach to student wellbeing in response to contemporary research and practice. We have been committed to a whole-school approach to Positive Education for over a decade now, which is deeply embedded in everything that we do as a school and community. We introduced the GGS Student Wellbeing Model in 2021, incorporating Positive Education with an interconnected network of people, programmes and policies that support emotional and physical wellbeing. The model amplifies the proactive Positive Education approach to social emotional learning, resilience education and character strengths to equip students with positive mental health strategies that build their capacity to cope with the stresses of everyday life.

Research indicates that wellbeing and learning have a reciprocal and interconnected relationship. Wellbeing positively influences student learning outcomes, and success in learning enhances student wellbeing. At Corio, the framework for student wellbeing is the Navigate programme for Middle School students and the Pathways programme for Senior School students. The Navigate programme aims to support students as they traverse the Middle School years; focusing on learning skills, personal wellbeing and what it means to belong to a community. The Pathways programme supports students as they navigate purposeful choices through the Senior School years and beyond. Students participate in a range of group learning experiences that focus on skills for learning, personal wellbeing, service, and the transition to life beyond school.

Pos Ed - Belonging

During second semester, our Positive Education curriculum investigated the topic of belonging; what it means to belong and why belonging is important. Humans are a communal species. Our ingenuity and our ability to survive on this planet all rely on the fact that we can live and work collectively. Human history shows great population booms and advancement in technology and science coinciding with movement into more centralised locations; when communities of people come together to learn and to work, we are in fact greater than the sum of our parts.

Consider some of the most extreme punishments for people who have behaved in an anti-social way. These punishments tend to involve removing these people from society, isolating them, and depriving them of contact with other humans. This extends from solitary confinement in a prison, to sending a child to ‘time out’, or removing them from the classroom.

It hardly needs to be said, but loneliness and social isolation cause profound distress. Feeling lonely causes your cortisol, a stress hormone, to skyrocket. Research by neuroscientist John Cacioppo has shown that feeling acutely lonely is as stressful as experiencing a physical attack – that loneliness can alter psychological processes that influence physiological functioning, diminish sleep quality, and increase morbidity and mortality. Similarly, research presented at the 125th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association in 2017 suggested that social isolation could be a greater health hazard than obesity.

As people, we are in an ongoing search for our tribe, and looking to shore up our place in our tribe. Even a momentary emotional connection has a positive impact on our physical health, as well as our psychological wellbeing and resilience. In particular, young people are more resilient when they have a good network of social support –it doesn’t have to be a parent but having reliable adults in the life of a child helps build a capacity for resilience.

Of course, we can’t be genuinely connected to everyone – you may have heard of Dunbar’s number. Robin Dunbar is a British anthropologist who specialises in primate behaviour. He has found, through his research into social networks and brain size of primates, that 150 is about the limit of a functioning social network. He has explained it informally as “the number of people you would not feel embarrassed about joining uninvited for a drink if you happened to bump into them in a bar”. There is evidence for this, from factories and offices to 11th century villages and Christmas card lists. If the number of people connected exceeds 150, the network is not likely to last long or feel particularly coherent.

Thus, belonging to smaller communities within our broader GGS community becomes important for our wellbeing. Our School has many ways that we create a sense of belonging – even something as simple as wearing a school uniform helps people feel connected and part of something greater than oneself. Being part of a House, Unit or class group is an important element of belonging at our School – activities which promote this feeling will be beneficial for students as they reconnect with their peers and staff. This might look like a Unit outing or treat, a class display around values or strengths (eg. “our class enjoys…” or “we are using our gratitude by…”), or a House assembly which promotes connection and sharing. Connecting with our community through events such as Family Day and our whole school Athletics Carnival, or being part of activities, hobbies and clubs, all help foster a sense of belonging.

For staff, prioritising a morning tea or lunch together, chatting after an assembly or catching up after a hike can potentially drop in our priority list when the busyness of the Term sets in – and yet it is these relationships which help us maintain balance and feel connected. When we invite members of our community to find ways to build on their sense of belonging, we can help to support the wellbeing of our community.

Cat Lamb Positive Education Collaborator

Members of the Geelong Grammar School community have faced significant challenges from the hurt of the past. In recent years, the School has been working to provide an authentic response to survivors of sexual abuse.

Principal, Rebecca Cody, has observed: “I have met with survivors and I am deeply sorry for their pain and suffering: to be sorry though, is not enough; complying with new legislation is not enough – we need to set an example and lead. We need to move forward by recognising the devastating impacts and effects of childhood sexual abuse and by never losing sight of the learnings from them”.

Ms Cody said: “Whilst we cannot undo the failures of the past, together we can acknowledge the harm, recognise the pain caused and together, we can support and enable a culture which fortifies against such devastating harms and places child safety at its core. Together, we can make a positive difference towards shaping a better world”.

For survivors, for victims of trauma, for those struggling in challenging times – there are options for reaching out and finding support.

You are not alone – you are a valued member of the Geelong Grammar School community – we are thinking of you, and we care.

SURVIVOR LIAISON COORDINATOR

Renee Handsaker provides outreach and support for survivors of child sexual abuse at the School. Renee can be contacted by phone on 0432 707 355 or by email: renee@sustainingconversations.com

INDEPENDENT COUNSELLOR

The School continues to provide the services of an independent counsellor, Pauline Ryan. This service is available to those in our community wishing to access counselling or support regarding abuse. Pauline can be contacted directly during business hours by calling 1800 799 139.

For further updates and links to services please visit the Healing and Hope webpage by searching Healing and Hope Geelong Grammar School, or by visiting https://www.ggs.vic.edu.au/School/ Our-School/healing-and-hope

and annually renew a commitment to student safeguarding. At Corio on Friday 9 September, students from across our campuses joined together alongside a white balloon painted on Perry Oval. The gathering provided the inaugural opportunity for the School to declare our Acknowledgement of Historical Harm. This poignant Acknowledgment was crafted, with deep gratitude, through collaboration with survivors, supported by the Recognition Committee and Survivor Engagement Committee and endorsed by our School Council. In addition, some of our students shared their messages of safety as voices for the future.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF HISTORICAL HARM

Healing and Hope is a unique initiative which has been established to endeavour to relieve the suffering and to provide practical comfort, assistance and support to survivors of child sexual abuse and victims of trauma within our Geelong Grammar School community, both past and present. It champions a fair and humane response to all individuals. Guidance, including direct input from survivors, their families and from many within the School community, has inspired and informed this new entity.

Healing and Hope launched its website in late 2022. You can find links on both the Geelong Grammar School and Old Geelong Grammarians websites, or you can visit www.healingandhope.org.au to find out more about the initiative – what it can offer you, and what you might be able to contribute in support of survivors, victims of trauma and their families.

The Healing and Hope Board of Directors was also established in 2022. Directors include current parent Philip Crutchfield KC (Chair of Healing and Hope, School Council 2017-2021), Sarah Benson (Je’91), the School’s Principal, Rebecca Cody, past parent and former OGG President, Ian Coltman (A’77), Chair of the Recognition Committee and former OGG President, Peter Chomley (Ge’63), past parent Kathleen Maltzahn, past parent and Chair of the Survivor Engagement Committee, Dr Susan Nicolson (School Council 2013-), and past staff member, Fr Jeff O’Hare (Cu’79).

Healing and Hope held a concurrent White Balloon Day event on Friday 9 September. Held in the Ernest Clarke Pavilion at Corio and attended by a small group of staff and survivors, it was a meaningful and significant gathering. Healing and Hope then held its inaugural therapeutic Retreat Day for mothers of survivors on Tuesday 15 November. It was well attended and a positive experience for all. Further therapeutic Retreat Days are planned for family members in the coming year.

Philip Crutchfield KC, Chair of Healing and Hope, reflected that “the courage of survivors and their families in their engagement with Healing and Hope is inspiring”. “To now be in a position where we can support and be inclusive of survivors and their families with the hope that in some small way, we can contribute to their healing is a privilege for the Board and staff of Healing and Hope,” Philip said. “We look forward to further engagement and meaningful connections throughout 2023.”

Healing and Hope employs two casual staff members, project manager Tanya Bishop (Hegarty, A’79, GGS Staff 1997-2000) and relationship manager Kate Parsons (GGS Staff 1988-2020), to respond and engage with survivors and their families directly and to facilitate counselling and link those in need with support services. Planned activities include wellbeing education and programmes, including awareness training, healing retreats, art therapy, facilitated conversations and seminars.

Healing and Hope has a home on a bend of the Barwon River at Stonehaven – a peninsula with trees to provide shelter, with a natural escarpment to offer protection, and of course water that nourishes the land – the grasses, the birds, the wildlife. Stonehaven is a place to nourish the soul. The property was transferred into the School’s name in 1975 and has been quietly waiting for discovery, for a special purpose, to welcome and heal, to connect with those who will cherish this place as one of hope – symbolising renewal and redemption. School Council dedicated this land for the purposes of Healing and Hope following an offer made to the Recognition Committee, who have long championed Stonehaven as an active symbol of real and genuine recognition.

You Are Not Alone.

You are a valued member of the Geelong Grammar School community and Healing and Hope will walk beside you. Healing and Hope can provide and facilitate support and encourages those who may not have reached out before, or those who know someone in need, to contact Healing and Hope directly on its dedicated mobile phone number: 0438 561 747 (call or text) or email: contact@healingandhope.org.au

OUTSIDE THE

An initiative at Timbertop that has grown and progressed in 2022 has been our annual winter expeditions to the Bogong High Plains. Introduced in 2014, the expeditions were intentionally designed to take students outside of their comfort zone in Term 3. Every other Term at Timbertop presents students with big challenges in the outdoors, but Term 3 was for hobbies and Mt Buller ski days. Even the ski trip to GGS Hut near the summit of Mt Stirling is pretty comfortable – students are sleeping in a hut, cooking bacon and eggs on the fire. The exposed and expansive Bogong High Plains presents students with a different alpine environment and a different type of challenge.

On that first expedition in 2015, it immediately felt like this is what Timbertop students should be doing; camping in the snow, utilising the skills and capabilities that they had built up over the first two-and-a-half terms. It felt like a natural extension to our existing outdoors programme. Unit groups would set off from Windy Corner, skiing for about five kilometres, over and around Rocky Valley storage dam, to set up base camp. Initially, in those early years, the tents were already set up and sessional outdoor staff cooked the meals. Students would camp in unit groups, helped build snow kitchens and set off on day trips to explore their new environment.

This year, we challenged our students to be more independent. They took their own tents and cooked their own meals. When some of the groups arrived at base camp it was dumping with snow, everyone was wet and cold, and they had to set up their tents. It was challenging, but the students responded with resolve and resilience. It was progression through testing the boundaries of their capacity. They also had a lot of fun, applying their creativity to building in the snow, using snow shovels to build igloos and quite elaborate snow kitchens and caves.

The expedition to Bogong has become a highlight of the Timbertop year. I don’t know if that’s because students enjoy it necessarily, or just because it is so unique. It feels like we’re tapping into their adventurous spirit and we’re heading afar, going to a new place, camping in the snow. For this age group, that’s something that excites them. It makes them nervous as well, but they’re excited to head away on this adventure. Of every trip or hike that we do, it is also the most weather dependent. If it’s sunny, the high plains are the most glorious place you could possibly want to be, but on one trip this year it was a white out for two days, you couldn’t see, it was wet, cold and snowing. It was most definitely outside of the comfort zone.

Ross Hopkins > Head of Timbertop

Since the beginning of June 2022, three Geelong Grammar School students and one Old Geelong Grammarian have joined the ranks of the AFL/AFLW. Light Blue spoke to Troy Selwood, the School’s Head Coach of Football and Sports Performance Mentor, about his experience working with each of the draftees and what he hopes to see from them at the next level.

Georgia: I absolutely loved supporting Georgia this year, particularly in the lead up to the draft. Early in the academic year Georgia faced the disappointing news that she had a stress-fracture in the navicular bone of her foot; an injury which required immediate surgery and a lengthy rehabilitation program. It also meant that Georgia would miss her entire Year 12 of school sport. Despite the challenging situation Georgia found herself in, she never once felt sorry for herself. I really enjoyed becoming her ‘training and rehab buddy’ at the School, where we would often meet early in the morning at the Handbury Centre to complete pool, bike and, later, running sessions. Georgia showed determination and a level of resilience that will hold her in good stead for the rest of her sporting career. I look forward to watching Georgia develop and thrive in a professional sporting environment.

Noah: I think the West Coast Eagles have chosen very astutely, considering they selected Noah with the second-last ‘live’ pick in the draft. Noah is another student who had to deal with setbacks throughout his time at Geelong Grammar. He still found a way to stay positive, develop and improve himself. He was another student that was highly respected by students and staff, with everyone on campus always speaking so glowingly about their interactions with him. When working with Noah, the thing that stood out to me was his strong work ethic and focus to get the very best out of himself. He was never going to rely on his natural talent to make the AFL, instead matching that with elite dedication and perseverance. I can envisage Noah settling into his new life in Perth very well over the coming months and years. He deserves some luck with his body now, and I think he will take care of the rest.

Ollie: Ollie has impressed me from the day I started working at Geelong Grammar. He is a classy individual with a professional mindset. He is admired by many of the students in our football programme and accepted the responsibility that came with being a role model at the School. What really impressed me about Ollie this year was the way he handled himself when targeted by opposition teams and players in APS fixtures. He displayed patience, selflessness, determination and work ethic when really tested. He was still able to play terrific football despite the extra attention. Ollie has a very exciting AFL career with the Carlton Football Club ahead of him.

Oskar: Oskar is a great example of quickly getting back to your feet when you have been knocked to the ground. Like many talented young footballers, he was devastated when he missed out on being selected in the 2021 draft. Immediately after the draft, we put together a plan to help him further develop and remain in AFL recruiters’ thoughts. To Oskar’s credit, he absolutely nailed his pre-season with the Geelong VFL team and the Bendigo Pioneers. This led to him having a strong start to the 2022 season at both NAB League level and the VFL, culminating with his selection in the mid-season draft. I was extremely proud of him when the Gold Coast called his name out. He quickly relocated to Queensland and has transitioned into their AFL program very well. His is a story of perseverance and persistence.

Oskar Faulkhead (Cu’21)drafted by Gold Coast with pick 7 in the 2022 AFL Mid-Season Rookie Draft.

Ollie Hollands (Yr12 P) - drafted by Carlton with pick 11 in the 2022 AFL National Draft.

Noah Long (Yr12 P) - drafted by West Coast with pick 58 in the 2022 AFL National Draft.

Georgia Gall (Yr12 Ga) - drafted by Melbourne with pick 72 in the 2022 AFLW Draft.

ATHS day

For the first time since 2019, we had the pleasure of hosting students and families from each of our four campuses at Corio Campus on September 11 for our Whole School Athletics Carnival. The competition was fierce but the day is always contested in the right spirit between houses and campuses, and this year was no exception. One remnant of last year’s COVID Cup - the Corio Gift, pitting the various 100m age group winners against one another in a handicap race - looks to have been added to the event schedule on a permanent basis; this year’s Corio Gift winner was Indi Elliott (Yr10 A).

Indi Elliott (Yr10 A), this year’s Corio Gift winner.

Winding through mountains on remote but well-paved, well-travelled roads, I was endeavouring a valiant attempt to escape reality. The air was stifled and sticky, the jerking of the car was dizzying and disorienting, but I kept my eyes fixed on the screen in front of me, trying to ignore how nauseous I felt. The programme I was watching went something like: factual statement in posh British RP, quixotic question which quietens the room, witty remark from a wry, though a wee-bit more regional voice, laughter, chaos, and so on. The contents didn’t really matter to me, I was just trying to soak up the relaxed, mirth-filled atmosphere, hoping I could remember how to be around people again.

The difference between Timbertop and most other events that will drastically change your life is that Timbertop is known to be life changing. It has a reputation for changing lives. Back in 1953, Sir James Darling, then Headmaster of Geelong Grammar School, envisioned a challenging, brutal, yet forgiving environment, where life is distilled

to its most visceral, students are pushed to beyond their limits, and pain is just another spice of life to be savoured. With plenty of compassion at hand to help and wise mentoring mixed in, such a perfect paradise of hell cannot be surpassed.

All sorts of mental and physical turmoil trace their jagged marks through the exquisitely beautiful nature, who keeps her repose and grandeur, indifferent to whatever crisis has befallen whoever runs towards her in tears. At this point, these students will, supposedly, look about themselves and find, to their surprise, that they are absolutely fine. They find themselves in the company of peers who understand exactly how it hurts, because they feel it too, and kindness in character becomes the only kind of status people care about. They find themselves on the rocky outcrops looking out at those now-dwarfish hills they’ve cursed a thousand times climbing up, marking their journey on the landscape, and marvelling at how impossible it seems, even now, that they’re here. And thus, they will go

into life forevermore with ‘a firm belief in themselves’ and ‘an unwillingness to settle for anything less’.

And, in spite of all likelihood, that’s exactly what it’s been doing to people for seven decades and counting. People go in, endeavour a bit, suffer a bit, despair a bit, do a bit of soul-searching, fraternising, teeth-clenching, and come out the other side a better human. I knew all that in theory. But there’s a big difference between understanding and accepting. I knew pain was part of the deal, part of the special ingredient for growth. I like growth, growth is good, I wanted growth. I just wished I didn’t have to go through that middle bit.

Cindy Xu (Yr10 A)

Note: This piece was written in response to Robyn Davidson’s 1980 memoir Tracks, and formed a part of a creative writing folio focusing on notions of adventure: real, literary and mythological.

LITTLE AND OFTEN

As well as my full-time job, I like to paint. As well as a Chaplain, I am a painter. Someone recently asked me where I find the time to paint. It’s a strange question really. After all, when does anyone get the time to do anything other than work? Reading for example or watching TV, sewing, playing golf? My response is, “little and often”.

Little and often is a principle I have grown to enjoy. The Bible refers to it as “redeeming the time”: “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time.” – Ephesians 5:15-16 (King James Version). Or to put it another way, to make use of time. Those bits of time that we usually fill with watching the news or looking at our smaller screens or TV programmes that offer little to our overall wellbeing.

My paints are always ready, so is my canvas, for such times as I find myself able to spend 15-30 minutes or so in painting the background, or the outline, or whatever is simple and routine. I also have a chair where I can just sit and look and reflect on what I might want to change or continue. Little and often. I also like to play guitar, and so I always have a guitar on a stand and play it for a few minutes, little and often. The same rings true when training our puppy. Canine behaviourists say that little and often is far more beneficial than prolonged training. Consistency is the key.

The theme for Semester 2 and subsequent issue of Light Blue is: “From little things big things grow”. It has been an interesting and helpful theme. Like all good themes, the more we ponder them the more wisdom we receive from them. Another Bible verse advises that we: “Do not despise the day of small beginnings.” – Zechariah 4:10. This suggests that it is a human tendency to do so. Yet do not all things experience a humble start? The large oak starts from an acorn. The tallest building starts with an unseen foundation. We ourselves began with something resembling a small legless tadpole swimming towards a much sought-after prize.

Perhaps we should make more of the tiny, the small, the seemingly insignificant. Switching my camera to macro and focussing on a small piece of the natural world, like a leaf or a raindrop, reminds me to do just that. It draws from the well of wonder and promotes a silent internal swell of gratitude. Some might even call it worship, expressed in the most natural Cathedral settings, the great outdoors.

Little is a big deal. Little is packed with mystery and promise. Little is where big came from.

God is with you.

Rev Gordon Lingard Senior Chaplain

Left: The Pinnacle, Delatite Road (and Klingsporns’ farm) by John Sherwood Derrick (Art Master 1935-40)

Above: ‘Slumber Range’ and ‘Into the Interior’ from Rev Gordon Lingard’s 2022 exhibition, Sacred Hills, at Boom Gallery

Foundation Chair

2022 has been a year of reconnection for the Geelong Grammar Foundation. It has provided us with the opportunity to return with enthusiasm to our regular schedule of community events, including successful Biddlecombe Society lunches in Barwon Heads, Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney, our Geelong Grammar School & Geelong Grammar Foundation Black Tie Dinner, celebrating with donors at Leavers’ Day and our Volunteer Recognition Reception.

These events are especially important opportunities for us to recognise the support of our community of donors and to share the impact of these contributions on the life of our School. I have continued to be inspired by the generosity of our community as this year has gone on. As we come to the end of 2022, we celebrate gifts to the Foundation in excess of $3.9million. This has included donations of all sizes to support a wide range of initiatives.

provided 110 students access to a GGS education through scholarships. I am proud of the generosity of our community to enable these life-changing opportunities. We have

also seen the continuation of important initiatives in Creative Education and Positive Education, enabled through the support of our donors.

Most recently, the story of Jodene Gartsone (EM’16), shared on Giving Tuesday, provided a reminder of the incredible impact gifts can have on the lives of students, both in their time at the School and beyond (charidy.com/ ggstogether).

We remain grateful to all those who have given to support the School across 2022. I would like to particularly acknowledge the generosity of the late Jeff Peck (Ge’42) and Silver Harris, Gordon Moffatt (M’48), Tony Poolman (FB’60), Anne and Mark Robertson OAM, the Handbury Foundation, Min and Ian Darling AO (P’79), and Tim Fairfax (M’64). Thank you for your leadership and munificent support.

I am pleased to confirm the appointment of six new Eminent Members of the Geelong Grammar Foundation in 2022. Eminent membership recognises members of our community for their honourable service to the Geelong Grammar Foundation. It is a category of membership not defined by

the value of giving but by a commitment to the purposes of the Geelong Grammar Foundation, that is, to advance the School.

The Geelong Grammar Foundation now recognises 24 Eminent Members through this significant tier of membership, acknowledged in perpetuity. Our new Eminent Members are:

Silver Harris

Gordon Moffatt AM KSJ (M’48)

Andrew Muir

Emma Muir

The late Jeff Peck (Ge’42)

Tony Poolman (FB’60)

I thank our donors for their continued optimism and enduring commitment to supporting our School through the Geelong Grammar Foundation. We look forward with excitement to the possibilities ahead in 2023, particularly the opportunities to come through the Corio and Timbertop Masterplans, and for the chance to continue to connect and engage as a community.

Penny McBain Chair, Geelong Grammar Foundation

1. Jennie Angliss, Arthur Angliss (P’60) and Harry Roe (FB’22). 2. Chair of the Foundation Penny McBain, William Caldwell (P’83), Sian Martin-Jankowski (P’10), Arthur Ranken (FB’57), Sarah Manifold (Ga’86), Principal Rebecca Cody, Charlie Sutherland (P’86), Sasha McGregor (Mackinnon, Cl’90), Tony Poolman (FB’60), Ross Gibson, Suzanne Gall and Jim Gall (Cu’91). 3. Principal, Rebecca Cody. 4. Andrew Cochrane, Vanessa Mahon and Andrew Burgess (FB’81). 5. Mary Morton (Weatherly, Cl’85), Chair of the Foundation Penny McBain, Margie Gillett (Cordner, Clyde ‘71) and Mike Burston (M’70). 6. Chair of the Foundation Penny McBain, Deidre Pope and Will Wilson (P’78). 7. Charlie Sutherland (P’86) 8. Roger Job, Tom Job (Cu’22), Jackie Job and Rebecca Gorman. 9. Jamieson McNamara (M’22), Chloe Paton (Cl’22), Anna Ward (Cl’22), Caroline Shearer, Finn McLachlan (M’22) and Charlie Allen (M’22). 10. Van Do, John Simson (Cu’73), Belinda Simson, Principal Rebecca Cody, Van Do and Elaine Dang (Ga’22). 11. Sophie Manley (He’22), Deidre Griffiths (The Hermitage ‘68) and Gen Whitford (He’22). 12. Vanessa Mahon, Sebastian Durran (A’22), Michelle Durran, Holly Durran (A’22) and Peter Durran.

Making a positive difference, together.

Scholarships are a vital ingredient in the lifeblood of our School; essential for ensuring its continued diversity and vibrancy. Even more importantly, they provide life-changing opportunities for children whose families could not otherwise afford a Geelong Grammar School education, and we are immeasurably proud of the contribution that the Foundation, through the generosity of its members, has made to the Scholarship Programme. In 2022, this contribution enabled 110 students access to a GGS education through scholarships.

Annual Giving is a fundamental component of our comprehensive philanthropic programme. Our 2022 Annual Giving campaign focused on supporting scholarships, encouraging our community to participate in ‘Making a positive difference, together’ through telling the stories of our alumni –highlighting the transformational impact of scholarships and the positive difference these OGGs are making in the world. In June, we shared the story of Rohan Byrne (Fr’09), a PhD candidate at Melbourne University who was involved in the scientific response to the COVID-19 pandemic. More recently, on Giving Tuesday in November, we shared the story of Jodene Garstone (EM’16), who is studying a double degree in Arts and Laws at the Australian National University (ANU) and working to achieve equality and justice for Indigenous young people. In our Impact of Giving report we shared the story of Lee Hysan Scholarship student Mody Yim (FB’21), who joined the School from Hong Kong in 2017 and overcame the disruptions of COVID-19 to achieve a perfect IB score of 45 (equating to an ATAR of 99.95).

Jodene’s Story

Jodene Garstone (EM’16) is a Jahru and Bardi woman who joined Geelong Grammar School in Year 7 in 2011 from Halls Creek, a remote community in the Kimberley. Jodene remembers how excited she was to explore the world beyond her community and her first impressions of Corio. “It was so amazing and grand. I’d never seen anything like it,” she said. “I was really young, it was just the most exciting thing, and I didn’t think that I would get homesick.” She was wrong. For an 11-year-old girl in an unfamiliar environment, with her family on the other side of Australia, overcoming homesickness was an early lesson in resilience. “I knew that I was extremely lucky to have this scholarship to go to Geelong. I was trying to be tough because I really wanted to be here (at GGS), and I was enjoying myself, and I didn’t want Mum and Dad to worry about me because they were so far away.”

Despite the initial homesickness, Jodene felt supported, accepted and encouraged at GGS. “The teachers were so encouraging; they really pushed you to be your best, believed in you, and wanted the best for you. It was a whole new experience for me. I loved the variety of subjects. I could really feel myself growing as a student and as a person. I feel like Geelong Grammar is a community of diversity and that it’s a melting pot of so many different cultures and people from different backgrounds learning from each other.” There were more lifechanging lessons at Timbertop. “It was so different to being out bush than the way my family is out bush. It taught me that determination is more important than motivation, which is something that I’ve taken into other aspects of my life.”

Jodene’s determination to make the most of every opportunity is evident. Whilst she didn’t get the ATAR score in Year 12 to study her first preference at university, Jodene “worked really hard for the first year” at ANU to transition and will graduate with a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) and Bachelor of Arts in November 2023. “I have surprised myself. This scholarship (to GGS) put me out of my comfort zone and put me in a place that I never thought I’d be. I’ve exceeded my own expectations of myself, and that’s been so important. Being in a supportive environment with the safety net that the School creates, you can explore who you are. I used to be this really shy girl. I’m loving this journey of growing

and it was sparked by coming here (to GGS) and being allowed to be someone different.”

Whilst studying at ANU, Jodene completed an internship with the National Native Title Council (NNTC) and serves as Co-Chair of King & Wood Mallesons’ First Nations Youth Voice Council. “I want to make a difference to the lives of others. I feel that I’m on the right path, working in the space of Indigenous rights and human rights. All these opportunities are giving me the experience and the tools that I need. I can speak on behalf of Aboriginal people in a majority non-Indigenous space. I know that’s a space where my voice can be heard and respected, to work with other like-minded people to implement change. We need to be seen and heard. Everybody needs to know the beauty of our culture, not just what they hear on the news or all the stereotypes.”

The shy 11-year-old girl who arrived at Corio from a remote community in the Kimberley was MC at this year’s Yalari graduation at Parliament House in Canberra, celebrating the 2022 cohort of 26 Yalari Year 12 graduates, including Troy Brown (Yr12 P), Marlley McNamara (Yr12 Ga), Cassie Peris (Yr12 Ga) and Tahlia See (Yr12 Ga). It was an opportunity for Jodene to share her story of navigating the delicate path between two worlds with confidence and purpose. “I am living in two worlds but it’s the best of both worlds,” she explained. “I’m living in a world of opportunity and education and fulfilment and purpose. I can also go home and reconnect with my family and my culture on country. It’s just so beautiful to be in the middle.”

Mody’s Story

The story of Mody Yim (FB’21) is one of remarkable resilience and opportunity. In 2021, Mody became the third Lee Hysan Scholarship student to be Dux of Geelong Grammar School in the space of five years, following in the footsteps of Nat Lam (Ga’17) and Bernice Ng (Ga’18). What makes Mody’s story more remarkable is that he was marooned in Australia for two years and unable to return home to Hong Kong during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through school closures and remote learning, Mody was

supported by his Australian guardian, Susie Officer (Potter, Je’83), her husband Bruce (M’78) and their children, Amy (Yr12 Fr) and Thomas (Fr’20), and niece Emma Doak (Fr’19).

The Lee Hysan Foundation enabled Mody to come to GGS, the Officer family enabled him to stay and immerse himself in everyday Australian life. “Because of the pandemic we built a much stronger relationship together,” Mody said. “They helped me a lot. I got to learn more about the Australian culture. I learned how to become a better person because of them.”

Mody achieved a perfect IB score of 45 (equating to an ATAR of 99.95), but the objective of the Lee Hysan Scholarship is to provide students from Hong Kong whose families could not otherwise afford to study overseas with “an all-round education” at boarding school in Australia and the UK (offering scholarships to Rugby School as well as GGS). Roland Wu (P’93) volunteers with the Lee Hysan Foundation to select scholarship recipients and mentor students. Roland explained that the School’s focus on holistic education was extremely important. “For Mody and every other Lee Hysan scholar, one thing they take away from school deeply in their heart is that an academic school report is not everything,” Roland said. “If Mody had remained in Hong Kong, I think his academic result would represent him. But at GGS I saw him jumping into school life – he was a stage manager for one of the school

musicals, he constantly spoke about mates in Francis Brown House, he really cherished the friendships, and he really loved the boarding school environment.”

The Lee Hysan Foundation is a private family foundation established in Hong Kong in 1973. For nearly 40 years it has actively supported meaningful and impactful charity initiatives in Hong Kong across education, culture, environment, health and social welfare. The foundation focuses on initiatives that benefit Hong Kong – the boarding school scholarships are designed to “create a much deeper and long-lasting beneficial impact which will help to develop productive citizens who can contribute to Hong Kong”. With the financial support of the foundation, Mody is now studying a Bachelor of Biomedicine at Melbourne University, which is the pathway to the Doctor of Medicine (MD) programme. “I wanted to become a doctor as early as I can remember,” he said. “It is one of my first memories.” Mody doesn’t know where his medical degree will take him, but he does know one thing for sure: “I will give back to the Hong Kong community”.

Mody describes the opportunity to attend GGS as “life changing”. “Without this scholarship, I would not have even dreamed of going to Australia for a vacation, let alone studying here. I could not thank the Lee Hysan Foundation enough for the opportunity it provided me.”

TOWARDS THE LIGHT:

The stained glass of Christian Waller

It is a little known but remarkable fact that Corio’s Chapel of All Saints houses the largest collection of Christian Waller (1894–1954) works in existence. The wife of the better-known stained glass artist Napier Waller – whose work is also represented in the Chapel – Christian was an artist of extraordinary brilliance, greatly admired for the originality of her designs, sumptuous use of colour, mastery of technique and symbolic detail. A leading proponent of Modernism, she was the sole female professional stained glass artist in Australia until the 1970s.

One of Waller’s most beautiful windows commemorates Robert de Wolf (M’34), who died aged 14 following complications from surgery. It incorporates the text from her favourite gospel and is a superb example of her skills as a colourist and designer.

Christian Waller Stained Glass: Towards the light by Dr Caroline Miley (ASP, 2022) is the first book to examine Waller’s oeuvre in its entirety, offering a detailed analysis of the themes, influences and iconography of over a hundred windows as well as accompanying designs and sketches. Twenty-one of these windows illuminate the Chapel of All Saints, comprising two windows executed in conjunction with Napier Waller – the John and George Russell Bell memorial window (1931) and the striking Falkiner window (1944) – two exquisite windows in the baptistry commemorating Robert de Wolf (1936) and Captain Stewart Weir (1950), and the beautiful cycle of 17 windows (1947–48) that were installed to commemorate OGGs killed in World War Two.

Through clear and informative descriptions, art historian Caroline Miley explains the iconography of these windows, which reveal Christian’s intensely spiritual focus, influenced by a synthesis between Theosophy (a religious teaching that focuses on the reincarnation of the bodily soul) and Christianity. The Weir window, for example, depicts St Michael, an archetypal subject

for war memorial windows, often depicted wielding his sword as the leader of the heavenly armies. Miley explains that in Christian’s window, St Michael’s sword is sheathed, a reference to peace, while the lighthouse motif on the shield is a symbol of Christ as both a ‘strong tower’ and ‘the light of the world’, and also refers to the Theosophical concept of radiance as a symbol for the Supreme All.

The cycle of 17 windows in the nave transepts is especially important, both within the history of stained glass in Australia and for its significant place in the body of Australian World War Two memorials. While all but three of the windows commemorate an individual person – and the others a theatre of war –the scheme as a whole represents the concepts of service, sacrifice, resurrection and eternal life, along with Christian virtues. The windows are small, but richly packed with symbolism and biblical texts, and bordered by exquisitely painted foliage unique to each window which enhances the theme. As Miley says, “these works contain a wealth of creative syntheses of Christian, Egyptian, Greek and Theosophical iconography united in a unique and remarkable program of memorial glass”.

While the esoteric qualities of Waller’s work were largely unappreciated during her lifetime, the more familiar influences of the Celtic Revival and especially the Arts and Crafts movement, the style in which the Chapel is built, infuse her Chapel windows with a transcendent beauty that places them among the gems of the building. Caroline Miley’s book, the culmination of many years of research and personal interest in Christian Waller, not only provides rich context and authoritative detail about the artist, it also reminds us of our good fortune – and great responsibility – in having custody of these extraordinarily significant works of art at Geelong Grammar School.

Sophie Church School Historian

A window from the World War Two memorial cycle

commemorating Captain William Lloyd (M’33), who was killed in the invasion of Sicily. Its symbolism includes the Eye of Horus, an ancient Egyptian symbol of protection, health and restoration, and a border of asphodel lilies, often planted near tombs to ward off evil. It also grows wild in Sicily.

The memorial window for Captain Stewart Weir (P’24) in the baptistry.

KING CHARLES III

THE ACCESSION OF KING CHARLES III FOLLOWING THE DEATH OF HIS MOTHER, QUEEN ELIZABETH II, ON 8 SEPTEMBER WAS A POIGNANT MOMENT FOR HIS FORMER

TIMBERTOP CLASSMATES. THEY EXPRESSED THEIR CONDOLENCES AND WELL WISHES FOR THE NEW KING’S REIGN IN A LETTER THAT WAS DELIVERED TO BALMORAL CASTLE.

(T’66)

Paul Fitzgerald’s portrait of HRH The Prince of Wales was given to the School by the Old Geelong Grammarians in 1978

This message is from members of the Timbertop Class of 1966 who had the privilege to be your school friends all those years ago in the mountains of Victoria.

It was with great sadness and our deepest sympathy for Your Majesty that we learned of the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth on 8 September. Losing a mother is a time of deepest grief. We extend our heartfelt sympathy and our thoughts to Your Majesty and to all members of the Royal family.

Collectively, we wish you strength and wisdom in the days and years ahead to help steer the world towards a more sustainable, peaceful future and to deal with the difficulties that must come with such august duty and calling. We also hope that part of the strength and stamina on which you can call rests in the memories of those long past days in the Australian bush. We are honoured to be counted amongst your friends and hope that you will find the opportunity to visit Australia frequently.

HRH Prince Charles arrived at Timbertop in early February 1966, aged 17. The Queen had consulted prime minister Sir Robert Menzies about the possibility of her eldest son coming to Australia to broaden his education, and Menzies approached Tommy Garnett (Headmaster 1961-73). A student exchange programme was arranged with Gordonstoun, Prince Charles’s school in Scotland, and Corio student David Manton (P’67) went to Gordonstoun while Prince Charles was in Australia. The arrangement was initially for one term but was so successful it continued for a second term.

Even though Prince Charles was three years older than the other Timbertop students, that campus was selected because it offered more privacy than Corio as well as providing the future king of Australia with a hands-on experience of living in the Australian bush. He was assigned two companions of his own age, Stuart McGregor (P’65) and John Burnell (FB’65), and given accommodation in the single masters’ quarters, along with his security detail, Inspector Derek Sharp. Charles, as he was known to his fellow students, participated in all aspects of Timbertop life and later described his experience as “the best part of my education – the part I enjoyed most, and I have very happy memories of it”.

Prince Charles visited Corio several times during his stay for meetings with his academic tutors, Michael Collins Persse (Staff 1955–2018) for history, John Glover (Staff 1933–69) for French, and Peter Westcott (Staff 1940–69) for English, who ensured that their pupil kept up to speed with the British A-level syllabus that he was following. In the May school holidays he went as part of a GGS school group to visit the Dogura Martyrs Memorial School in Popondetta, Papua New Guinea. On 28 July, his last night as a GGS student, Prince Charles stayed at Corio and read a paper on his ancestor King Charles I to the Historical Society, an account of which was recorded by Michael Collins Persse in the society’s minute book. Prince Charles returned to Gordonstoun for his final year of school, and completed his education at Trinity College, Cambridge. He returned to Timbertop for a visit with his sister Princess Anne in 1970, and has also visited Corio several times, most recently in 2005 for the School’s sesquicentenary.

“We are incredibly proud of the way his GGS experience helped to shape the growth and development of King Charles during a very formative period of his life”, said Principal, Rebecca Cody. “Many of our former students who were his contemporaries remember fondly his decency, persistence and resilience. We wish His Majesty King Charles III great health, joy and success in his reign.”

Top: A signed photograph of the Royal family presented to the School by Prince Charles in 1966

Middle: Prince Charles at Timbertop in 1966 (photograph by Robert Pockley)

Bottom: Upon his departure from GGS, Prince Charles was presented with a wooden stud box made by woodwork teacher Peter Jardine (Staff 1961–93) and students Richard Haughton (P’66), Tony Chandler (FB’67) and Norman Brien (FB’66). It featured a picture of the Timbertop chapel made from inlaid timber.

OGG President

It has been very welcome that OGG Reunions and Events have returned to pre-COVID levels of activity and engagement. Across the past few months, the OGGs have hosted a combined 40-Year Timbertop Reunion for the 1980, 1981 and 1982 cohorts, a 40-Year Reunion, a 30-Year Reunion, two 20-Year Reunions, for the 2001 and 2002 year groups respectively, and a 10-Year Reunion. We have also welcomed the return of the OGG Motoring Event and OGG Golf Day at the Barwon Heads Golf Club, where OGG Fellow Boz Parsons (M’36) presented the Boz Parsons Cup. Boz, who turned 104 in September, is doing well, undoubtedly due to the wonderful care he receives at home from his family and wife Barbara, who turned 101 in March.

OGG BUSINESS LUNCH

More than 120 people joined a virtual OGG Business Lunch with guest speaker Sarah Harden (Vickers-Willis, A’89) on Tuesday 18 October. Sarah, who is CEO of Hollywood production company Hello Sunshine that she started with actor Reese Witherspoon, was in conversation with Nina Thomas (Cl’93), Founder and Director of Harmonic Advisory. Sarah also delivered a keynote address for the Chief Executive Women (CEW) leadership summit in Melbourne in September and used both opportunities to discuss the importance of equality for women – Hello Sunshine tells stories in film, TV,

print and podcasts from a female perspective. Sarah had to rush from the OGG Business Lunch to attend the premiere of Hello Sunshine’s new Netflix series, From Scratch, based on the critically acclaimed 2019 memoir of Tembi Locke. An avid reader actively involved in Reese’s Book Club, Sarah did have time to share some of her favourite new reads, including Celeste Ng’s Our Missing Hearts and Eve Rodski’s Unicorn Space

TOWER LUNCHEON

It was wonderful to host the 21st annual Tower Luncheon at Corio on Saturday 5 November. We welcomed our 1972 leavers to the Tower Luncheon for the first time, as well as our 1971 and 1970 leavers, who were unable to attend the event due to its two-year absence during COVID. Our numbers may have been smaller this year as we continue to navigate our way beyond the pandemic, but I am especially grateful for all of those who joined us for a service in the Chapel of All Saints and lunch in the Dining Hall, including OGG Fellow, Jo Breadmore (FB’55). Our guest speaker was past Head of Timbertop, Tom Hall, who was recently appointed Vice Principal–Residential Education Community and Care. Tom gave a brilliant overview of the Timbertop program, which celebrates its 70-year anniversary in 2023.

BRANCH GATHERINGS

Tom also spoke at OGG branch gatherings in Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Bangkok in late October. Tom was joined by the School’s Head of Advancement, Elissa Gale, and Admissions Manager, Chavaune Francis. I would like to thank all OGGs who attended these gatherings, particularly our Branch Presidents in Malaysia, Ben Ibrahim (FB’96), Singapore, Randall Lee (P’93), and Thailand, Dejvit Santikarn (Cu’73).

50 YEARS OF CO-EDUCATION

I would also like to acknowledge the 50-year anniversary of the first girls being enrolled at GGS. The OGG Association promotes the welfare of the School and unites former students of GGS, The Hermitage and Clyde schools. The enrolment of girls at Geelong Grammar in 1972 laid the foundation for the amalgamation between GGS, The Hermitage and Clyde schools and, ultimately, the coeducational school that we know today.

Last but not least, I would like to welcome Whitney McLaren (Hammond, He’04) to the OGG Committee. Whitney was a School Prefect and House Vice-Captain who also rowed in the Girls’ 1st VIII. Her core strength of understanding, relating and connecting people will be a great asset to the Committee and we are looking forward to her participation and contribution in the coming years. I’d also like to thank all the OGG committee for their work, support, and enthusiasm during the year.

Thank you: Susie Donald (The Hermitage’75), Tristan Dwyer (Fr’01), Bill Ferguson (P’72), Margie Gillett (Cordner, Clyde’71), Elly Grace (Siperki, Cl’94), Sandy Mackenzie (FB’59), Sophia Marsden-Smith (Fr’09), Rob Perry (A’83), Will Richardson (M’02) and James Robinson (FB’77).

We are looking forward to a busy and engaging 2023.

Andrew Burgess (FB’81)

OGG President

Please visit the Old Geelong Grammarians’ website (ogg.org.au) for the 2023 Calendar of upcoming Reunions & Events

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6 Sue Smith (Cunningham, The Hermitage ‘60) and Mitchell Smith

7 Sue Smith (Cunningham, The Hermitage ‘60), Judy Munro and Robyn Webster (Wilkinson, The Hermitage ‘59)

8 Sandy Mackenzie (FB’59), Wendy Wilson (Edge, Clyde ‘56) and Jennie Angliss

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1 OGG President Andrew Burgess (FB’81) speaks at the 21st Annual Tower Luncheon

Deryk Stephens (M’56)

Noel Hart (FB’59)

Julia and Reece Burgess (FB’56)

P rincipal Rebecca Cody warmly welcomes Jo Breadmore (FB’55)

Mark Plaisted, Jason Ronald (M’72) and Frank Seppelt (M’67)

Jo Breadmore (FB’55) chats with Vice Principal Tom Hall

1947

Mary Clayton Boardman

(Shepherd, The Hermitage

1947), who was born on 3 May 1929 and died on 9 August 2022, lived a full life pursuing her interests and enjoying her large family. Mary loved her years at The Hermitage, where she was a member of Austin House and made significant contributions to the School. She received the Old Girls Association Prize in 1946, and was Head Prefect, House Captain, and Sports Captain for swimming and tennis in 1947.

Mary’s formative years were strongly influenced by her mother and grandmother who raised her after her father died from injuries sustained in World War One when she was just four years old. Being an only child, she had a fairly lonely childhood at home but flourished at school where she received an education that provided intellectual challenges as well as the practical skills necessary to become a homemaker.

Mary loved nature and the beach and was instrumental in fighting developments at her beloved Rosedale on the NSW south coast. Along with two friends she established the Rosedale Association that is still thriving to this day, protecting a beautiful part of the Australian coastline. She spent many weeks here every summer, initially in a house at the end of a long dirt track with no car, no phone and seven children while her husband was working back in Canberra. Mary surfed (on a body board) and played tennis into her eighties, even after a triple bypass at 78. She played regularly in the Diplomatic Australian Tennis Tournament in Canberra, winning several trophies.

Mary was very much loved by her family for her big, unique personality and her strong values. She was honest and always true to herself, and unafraid to air her opinions. She was loving, devoted, warm, caring, intelligent and well-read, athletic and strong, friendly, and sometimes even feisty with a wicked sense of humour. A wonderful matriarch, she was devoted to her large family. At the time of her death, she had 37 direct descendants, including seven children, 21 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

1951Graeme Smalbroke Bennett (M’51) was born in the western Victorian town of Stawell to John and Jessie Bennett on 1 January 1933 and died on 1 July 2022. Graeme followed his brother John Mayhall Bennett (M’40) to Geelong Grammar School, commencing in 1945. Graeme was not a naturally gifted sportsman but his dogged determination saw him gain a place in bow seat of the First VIII crew, in the relay team, and he was appointed captain of the Second XVIII in 1951. He was a Manifold House prefect in 1950 before his appointment as Manifold House Captain and School ViceCaptain in 1951 under Sir James Darling (Headmaster 1930-61).

After matriculation, Graeme attended Leeds University to study textile science before joining the Bennett family business at North Western Woollen Mills in Stawell, which his father John had started in 1926. Graeme rose to managing director and over 44 years guided the business through increasingly tough times for the industry until the business was sold in the late 1990s. He often met with politicians, including Malcolm Fraser and Bob Hawke, and was an advocate for the industry which was characterised by a cycle of reasonable times and employee lay-offs. He had a very strong relationship with John Button, Minister for Industry and Commerce under the Hawke and Keating governments for a long time.

Always community minded, Graeme was on the Stawell town council for 10 years and was mayor of Stawell in 1969 at an important time for the town, hosting dignitaries such as Sir Henry Bolte and Major General Sir Rohan Delacombe, the last British Governor of Victoria. Graeme was on the board of the Wimmera Institute of TAFE in the late 1990s and was part of that institution’s absorption into the University of Ballarat, and was a university board member with Geoffrey Blainey AC. Graeme was also an active board member of textile industry bodies including president of the Australian Wool Processors Council, the Australian Wool Research and Development Corporation with Sir John Landy, and the Cooperative Research Centre for Premium Quality Wool.

Graeme was scientifically minded, egalitarian, focussed on duty before all else and totally without prejudice. His humour was a strength, and he was able to communicate with everyone at all levels. He genuinely saw people for what they could achieve if given an opportunity and provided many opportunities for employees.

Graeme is survived by his wife Barbara, daughters Elizabeth and Anne, and son Duncan (M’82).

With David retired from the RAF in 1968, the family moved to Western Australia where they found their place in the creative community of Darlington in the Perth Hills. Number 17 Dairy Road was to be their home for the next 50 years. Jenny immersed herself in community activities, helping with the annual arts festival, and establishing with others the Mundaring Arts Centre in 1979. Jenny twice served as its chairman, and later as a trustee, remaining a patron for her lifetime. In 1969, she became co-director of the Cremorne Art Gallery, which had been established by her mother and was an important outlet for emerging West Australian artists. She exhibited regularly herself, presenting six solo exhibitions at Gomboc Gallery, with her work acquired by both private collectors and the Shire of Mundaring.

1951

Jenny Meryn Mills (Bunning, Clyde 1951), who was born on 6 June 1934 and died on 21 April 2022, was an artist, historian, writer and community figure. She was born in Peppermint Grove, WA, to farmer Charlie Bunning and his wife Elisabeth ‘Betty’ Blair Barber, an artist who had trained at the National Gallery and the George Bell School of Art in Melbourne. Jenny had a happy childhood on the family property, Mundaring Farm, situated in the picturesque Perth Hills region, where she was given the freedom to explore nature and develop a capacity for creative expression. The household hummed with art and artists.

Jenny attended PLC in Perth and then came to Clyde School for her final two years of schooling, passing her Leaving in 1950 and Matriculation in 1951. She returned to Perth to study arts at the University of Western Australia, graduating Bachelor of Arts in 1955 with a double major in history and literature. Keen to develop her own artistic capabilities, inherited from her mother, she spent the next 18 months in the UK studying at the Central School of Arts and Crafts in London, and with the painter Patrick Heron in Cornwall. While there, she met her future husband, the dashing RAF navigator David Mills. Romance blossomed on a shared return voyage to Australia in 1957 and, notwithstanding a series of marriage proposals from other suitors, Jenny and David were married in 1958. They returned to the UK shortly afterwards where they lived for the next decade in Yorkshire and Norfolk, where Jenny taught in secondary schools and raised their three children, Jane, Sarah and Julian.

Jenny’s talents as a writer, which were first developed during a brief period as a cadet journalist with The West Australian newspaper in 1957, emerged again in her role as social writer for the Sunday Independent newspaper, where she enjoyed regaling her readers with stories of significant social events. If news ran short, she was not opposed to reporting parties hosted by an imaginary ‘Major Smith’ to fill her quota! In the late 1970s, when she was commissioned to write a history of Bunnings, which was established in 1886 by her grandfather Robert Bunning and his brother Arthur as a sawmill, becoming incorporated as Bunnings Bros in 1907. Based on extensive research, and countless oral history interviews, Jenny’s book The Timber People: A history of Bunnings Ltd was published in 1986 to considerable acclaim. Jenny subsequently wrote numerous papers on the timber industry, and became vice president of the Australian Forest History Society. Other publications included an illustrated biography of her mother, I buried my dolls in the garden: the life and works of Elizabeth Blair Barber (2000), a biography of her army medic grandfather George Barber, co-authored with her cousin Simon Doyle, and several children’s books. She was also a member of the WA committee of the Australian Dictionary of Biography, and wrote several biographical entries for publication.

Jenny was a member of the inaugural Murdoch University Art Collection Board, a member of the university’s Banksia Association, and a generous financial supporter of the university. Her final years were spent with a paintbrush in hand, painting large canvases and enjoying the company of her children and grandchildren. She and David left their art-filled home of 50 years in 2015, and after David died in 2019 Jenny moved into an aged care facility in Mt Claremont, where she enjoyed the company of several old PLC friends until her death shortly after a cancer diagnosis. She is survived by her three children and eight grandchildren. A tribute published after her death recorded “Jenny Mills was one of the most generous, talented and delightful people. Her interest in and support for the arts, her immense encouragement of others, her integrity and care for doing the right thing was combined with a spirit of whimsy and humour. Many lives are the richer for knowing this marvellous woman”.

James Dowling ‘Jim’ Wilson (Cu’56), who was born on 20 April 1938 and died on 7 June 2022, was regarded by those who knew him as a living treasure. His passions were history, farming, travel and family, and his life has been described as one well lived. Over his 84 years, he formed many strong friendships with people young and old and from all walks of life. Testament to this was the turnout for his memorial service which saw the Geelong Grammar Chapel filled to overflowing.

Jim grew up at Puunyart Homestead near Camperdown with his parents Joan and Jack and his brothers, Douglas (Cu’63) and Gerald (Cu’57). As a child, Jim would ride his pony to the local primary school of some 20 students and this is when, inspired by his grandmother, he began collecting. His collection of historical Australian artefacts grew over time to be described in 1989 by the then director of Museum Victoria, Robert Edwards, as “quite extraordinary, and one of the most comprehensive and important of its kind in Australia, an invaluable contribution to knowledge of past life in country Victoria”.

His secondary schooling was completed at Geelong Grammar and he relished this experience. Jim started in Barrabool House and was in the first intake of students at Timbertop. In Senior School, Jim was in Cuthbertson House and enjoyed participating in all that GGS had to offer including rowing in the First VIII crew. Jim made many enduring friendships at Geelong Grammar and was proud that his four children and seven of his grandchildren followed in his footsteps.

After school, Jim continued his studies at Lincoln Agricultural College in New Zealand. He always looked back on his time in New Zealand with fondness and enjoyed serving on the Student Council and refining his agricultural knowledge. After Lincoln, Jim embarked on his first overseas travels and he often recounted his adventures in South America, the USA and India.

When his father died prematurely aged 56, Jim took over the running of Puunyart despite the encumbrance of crippling death duties. His good management culminated in a successful cropping, beef and sheep operation. Jim married Diana Martin in 1956 and together, they raised their four children in an environment of mutual love and respect. Jim and Diana both had a passion for travel and spent time travelling around Australia and visiting other countries including Africa, Alaska, New Guinea, UK, Japan and Europe.

They were both “people focussed’ and ran a bespoke farm-stay experience for international visitors.

Jim led a remarkable life of dedication, achievement, and service to the community. He volunteered his time and energy for many different organisations. Jim was president of the Angus Beef Society and judged cattle at agricultural shows locally and further afield. He was president of the Bookar Fire Brigade for many years and involved in local environmental issues including the quashing of two quarries which were having a destructive impact on the land. Jim generously lent items from his collection to exhibitions and created exhibitions to raise money at charity events. For the National Trust, he managed the farming operations of Mooramong Estate near Skipton and through his contribution to the Camperdown & District Historical Society as a foundation and ongoing member he is recognised as having made an outstanding contribution to the recording, preservation and understanding of local history. He is fondly remembered for the MC role he played for many years at the Peterborough Sandcastle Competition.

Jim was an interesting, popular and humble man – a mischievous prankster with an infectious laugh and a warm, engaging personality. He was admired for his values and achievements, which was evident in the great respect with which he was universally held.

Jim is survived by his wife Diana, their four children, Lisa Kebbell (Cl’83), Andrew Wilson (Cu’85), Skye Wilson (Cl’91), Tim Wilson (Cu’93) and 11 grandchildren, Sophie Kebbell (Cl’13), Rupert Kebbell (Cu’15), Jack Wilson (Cu’16), Oliver Wilson (Cu’17), Tom Kebbell (Cu’17), Indi Kebbell (Cl’17), Ruby Wilson (Cl’20), Reise and Chloe Wilson, and Finn and Isla Wilson.

1959 Angus MacNeil OAM (M’59), who was born in Corowa on 23 April 1942 and died on 25 September 2022, was a farmer and eminent figure in Australia’s pastoral industry.

Angus entered Bostock House in 1951, moving to Corio and Barwon House in 1953, and Manifold in 1956. He was a keen sportsman, winning school half colours for cross country, and house colours for athletics, cross country, football and tennis. He was cross country champion in 1959. After school, he returned to the family property Green Park at Rand in the Riverina of New South Wales, which his father had bought in 1931 after moving from Melbourne to avoid a tuberculosis epidemic.

He joined the NSW Farmers Association (NSWFA) in 1962, commencing what was to be a lifelong service to primary industry and the community. Angus served on the Corowa District Council of the NSWFA from 1989–2004, as a board member from 2000–05, and was regional chairman in 1984 and 1990. From 2001, he was also a member of Grain Producers Australia, and served on various committees and boards, including as a member of the Grain Council of Australia from 2000–04. He also lent his support and expertise to Landcare New South Wales, of which he was a member and active contributor from 1998, including establishing and leading the Rand Walbundrie Billabong Creek Landcare Group. He joined the Murray Catchment Management Authority in 2006, and served as a board member.

Angus’s community service extended to his local area. In 1964, aged just 23, he became the youngest Urana Shire (now Federation) councillor in its history, later serving as deputy president for a decade and devoting a total of 25 years to the Shire. He gave generously of his time to community projects and groups, including the Rural Fire Service, the local Football Club, the Rand School Council, and numerous local committees, in all of which he was an active and valued participant. He volunteered at both the Sydney Olympic Games and the Melbourne Commonwealth Games, and chaired a group that raised $40,000 for Alzheimer’s Australia. His motivation was the desire to give back to society, and the satisfaction of making a difference to others. His efforts were recognised in 2019 when he was made a Member of the Order of Australia. A staunch Liberal Party supporter, Angus helped guide Sussan Ley, MP for Farrer, to victory over her National Party rival in 2001, and undertook the role of campaign manager in subsequent elections.

Angus married his wife, Gail, in Horsham in 1977. She survives him along with their two daughters, Georgina (Cl’98) and Kate (Cl’01), and four grandchildren.

StaffRobin ‘Robby’ Bedggood (née Lesh) (Staff 1968-96), who was born on 22 August 1939 and died on 5 September 2022, was an enthusiastic and committed member of the Corio community. Robby first came to GGS in 1968 when she took up a job as Matron in Barwon House. It was here that she met John Bedggood (Cu’52, Staff 1960–96), who was then Housemaster of Otway House, and they were married in 1969. Robby thoroughly enjoyed her role of Housemaster’s wife and became friend and confidante to many a boy in Otway House, and later, to both girls and boys in Connewarre and Otway Houses. In the early 70s she helped run the second-hand uniform exchange and then took it over until it moved to a bigger premises.

Robby’s joie de vivre and friendly, warm personality led to her forming many lifelong friendships at GGS. The Corio staff and their spouses were known to perform light hearted dramatic productions in the 70s and Robby was often seen up on stage in amongst the fun. She was heavily involved in the tennis programme at the School for many years, having played at Wimbledon and many other tournaments in Australia and overseas prior to moving to Corio, and was a talented coach. Her knowledge of the School and GGS families made her an invaluable OGG secretarial assistant from 1988–96. Robby was part of the Chapel kneeler tapestry project and she also produced a banner embroidered with the School crest which hangs at the front of the Chapel near the altar. She helped proofread The Corian and Light Blue for many years, when John was editor of these publications. In retirement, Robby and John moved to Point Lonsdale. John died in March 2020, and Robby is survived by her daughter, Caroline Morpeth (Bedggood, Ga’87) and son, John (Cu’92), and four grandchildren.

1980 - 1982 40 Year Timbertop Reunion

1 James Calvert-Jones (Cu’85), Peter Holmes a Court (P’85), Peter Jones (A’85), Lucinda Tucker (Je’85), Cassie Franzose (Mitchell, Cl’85) and Kirby Roper (Foreman, Cl’85)

2 Anthony Sharp (Fr’82), Mark Cleary (FB’84) and Andrew Roper (M’85)

3 Deb Moloughney (Je’85) and Susie McDonald (Ga’85)

4 David Gall (Cu’85), Michael Bodey (Fr’85) and Peter Holmes a Court (P’85)

5 Philip Zlatnik (FB’84), Ian McFadden (FB’84), Lucinda Tucker (Je’85), Andrew Burns (Fr’81), Andrew Roper (M’85), Victoria Young (Cl’85), Jamie Welsh (P’85), Andrew Wilson (Cu’85), William Lawson (Timbertop ‘82) and John Eisner (Cu’85)

6 Kate Bramley (Je’84), Georgie Somerset (Robinson, Cl’82) and Sally Stewart (Sutherland, Cl’84)

7 William Lawson (Timbertop ‘82), John Eisner (Cu’85) and Stephen Dearnaley (A’85)

8 Matt Joyce (P’83), Julia Howells (Cuming, Cl’84), Sarah Roper (Kennon, Cl’84), Rosa Coy (Cl’84) and Sarah Covill (A’84)

9 Angus Carnegie (Cu’84), Mark Cleary (FB’84), Andrew Taylor (Timbertop ‘81) and Eve Armytage (Robinson, Je’84)

10 Andrew Roper (M’85), Peter Jones (A’85) and Peter Backwell (FB’85)

11 Mark Allen (FB’84), Carolyn Munckton (Cl’84) and Dugald McLachlan (M’84)

12 Michael Davis (P’85) and Stephen Dearnaley (A’85)

13 Scott O’Hare (Cu’83) and Andy Paton (M’82)

14 Nick Falkenberg (Cu’83), Rob Perry (A’83), Digby Seymour (P’83), David Satchell (FB’83), Sophie Holloway (Mann, Cl’83), Andrew Dodd (Timbertop ‘80), Jo-Anne Elliott (Je’83), Damon Howes (P’83), Marshall Baillieu (P’83), Garrick Hicks (P’83) and Serena Zlatnik (Cl’83)

1982

40 Year Reunion

1 Sarah Watson (Je’82), Philip Szepe (P’82) and Ruth Vagnarelli (Hickinbotham, Cl’82)

2 Mark Ritchie (P’82) and Robert Lofven (P’82)

3 Tamsin Jowett, Richard Jowett (P’82) and Ruth Vagnarelli (Hickinbotham, Cl’82)

4 Tim McKewan (Fr’82), James Sutherland (P’82) and Sally McKillop (Capper, Cl’82)

5 Mark Ritchie (P’82) and Alan Friday (M’82)

6 Naomi Hatton (Bradley, Cl’82), Scott Pannam (Cu’82) and Libby Ross (Milledge, Je’82)

7 Sally McKillop (Capper, Cl’82), Zara Brookes (Morrison, Cl’82) and David Jones (Cu’82)

8 Anthony Rudolph (A’82), Cathie Grey (Jones, A’82) and Penny Olden (Preston, A’82)

9 Mary-Ann Lewis (Je’81), Liz Peach (A’82) and Juliet Cook (Robinson, Cl’82)

10 Naomi Hatton (Bradley, Cl’82) and Libby Ross (Milledge, Je’82)

11 Cathie Grey (Jones, A’82) and Libby Ross (Milledge, Je’82)

12 Mark Breguet (Fr’82), Mark Ritchie (P’82) and Juliet Cook (Robinson, Cl’82)

13 Sally McKillop (Capper, Cl’82), James Flintoft (Cu’82) and David Jones (Cu’82)

14 David Langley (FB’82), Alan Friday (M’82), Simon Wilkins (M’82) and Penny Olden (Preston, A’82)

15 Simon Wilkins (M’82), Duncan Bennett (M’82), Cindy Bennett and Neal Morgan (M’82)

16 Sarah Watson (Je’82), and Mark Ritchie (P’82)

17 Philip Szepe (P’82), Jim Howson (FB’81) and Libby Ross (Milledge, Je’82)

18 Paul O’Bryan (M’82) and Petille von Bibra (Je’82)

19 Cate Campbell (Robinson, Cl’82), Liz Peach (A’82) and Mary-Ann Lewis (Je’81)

20 Ali Moore (Je’82), Cathie Grey (Jones, A’82) and Tim McKewan (Fr’82)

21 Ted Landy (M’82) and Andrew Wright (P’82)

22. Sally McKillop (Capper, Cl’82) and David Jones (Cu’82)

23. Helene Rosanove (Cl’82) and Scott Pannam (Cu’82)

24 Scott Pannam (Cu’82) and Jenny Allen (Cl’82)

25 Jen Clarke (Ryan, Je’82) and Libby Ross (Milledge, Je’82)

26 Mary Hayward (Je’82) and Petille von Bibra (Je’82)

27 Edwina Grant (McLachlan, Cl’82) and Sara Cuming (Cl’82)

1980

John Kelly SC (M’80) was appointed a judge to the County Court of Victoria in October. John came to the Bar in 2004, was a foundation member of Parnell’s Barristers’ criminal and administrative law list, and was recognised as a silk in 2016. John has previously served as Solicitor in Charge of the Aboriginal Legal Service (West Kimberley, Western Australia) and Senior Solicitor, Northern Territory Legal Aid Commission (Alice Springs). In these positions he has had many years of experience appearing in the equivalent of the Magistrates’ Court, County Court and Supreme Court, running committal hearings, summary hearings, bail applications, jury trials, single judge appeals and civil matters. John is pictured above with David Hanna (FB’81) and Magistrate Patrick Southey (FB’81).

Simon Fieldhouse (Cu’72) translated his trademark humour to a collection of figurines and statuettes that exhibited at Maunsell Wickes gallery in Paddington in October. Best known for his work with watercolours and pen, Simon’s latest exhibition was titled ‘Whimsical Sculptures’, and featured comical situations and historical figures using new technology, including a Roman gladiator on a Segway. “I am interested in depicting the collective things that we do as a society with whimsy and humour,” Simon said.

1972

Michael Hickinbotham (P’80) received the Australian housing industry’s highest honour, the Housing Industry Association’s (HIA) 2022 Sir Phillip Lynch Award of Excellence earlier this year. Michael is Managing Director of the Hickinbotham Group, which is regarded as one of South Australia’s most successful and diversified groups, spanning construction, development, premium spirits, finance and biotechnology. The Phillip Lynch Award recognises outstanding individuals who have made innovative and valuable contributions to the housing industry and demonstrate unfailing integrity and an exemplary attitude of excellence. In presenting Michael with his award, HIA Managing Director, Graham Wolfe, recognised Michael’s “significant innovation and leadership within the industry” on policy and regulatory reforms. “Over three generations, the Hickinbotham Group has sought to create neighbourhoods where Australian communities can thrive,” Michael said. “It is a privilege to support families on their path to home ownership, particularly as we acknowledge that the past two years have been challenging for many Australians.”

1980

1990 Marta Dusseldorp

(Cl’90) has been appointed to the board of Screen Australia for a three-year term. Marta has worked extensively in theatre, film and television, including TV series Wentworth, A Place to Call Home, Stateless, Jack Irish and Janet King – for which she won an AACTA award. Her film credits include Bruce Beresford’s Paradise Road, Paul Cox’s Innocence, John Curran’s Praise, and Jonathan Teplitzky’s Burning Man. For the stage, she spent three years with Sydney Theatre Company’s Actor’s Company and received a 2009 Helpmann Award for her role as Queen Margaret in Shakespeare’s The Wars of the Roses Marta relocated to Tasmania in 2020 and started Archipelago Productions, producing feature films, television, and works for stage and festivals. She recently appeared as Prosecutor Lucy Bloom in the Foxtel drama series The Twelve and has also freshly finished filming the eight-part crime series Bay of Fires on location in her home state, which will screen on ABC TV in 2023. Marta is already using the platform of her new role at Screen Australia to lobby streaming services to invest in creating more Australian stories using “Australian storytellers”. “It’s a small investment, but more importantly I think we tell incredible stories, stories that come from place, they’re authentic and they’re ours,” Marta said.

1993 Russ Kun (Cu’93) was elected unopposed as the 16th president of the Republic of Nauru in September. The president is elected by the Parliament and must also be a sitting member of the Parliament. Russ was first elected to the Parliament of Nauru in 2013 and served as deputy minister for Finance, Nauru Ports, Tourism, and National Heritage and Museum in the previous government. He is a member of the Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption (GOPAC) and has led efforts to develop a code of ethics for the Parliament of Nauru, serving as chair of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Leadership Code. Prior to entering Parliament, Russ worked for the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Environment, and was also a member of the Nauru National Commission for UNESCO. Russ met with Australia’s deputy prime minister, Richard Marles (P’84), who visited Nauru on his way back to Australia from Hawaii in October where he had met with Japan’s defence minister and the US defense secretary.

2000 Harley Manifold (M’00) was a finalist in both the 2022 Darling Portrait Prize at the National Portrait Gallery and the 2022 John Leslie Landscape Prize at Gippsland Art Gallery. This is the first time Harley has had pieces selected as finalists for these particular prizes – he has previously been a finalist in the Doug Moran National Portrait Prize (2015, 2017 and 2021) as well as the Salon Des Refuses of the Archibald and Wynne Prize (2016, 2019 and 2021). Harley’s layered oil paintings explore identity and place. Through his work, Harley explores the juxtapositions of contemporary life, often featuring everyman figures navigating moody, deserted landscapes. His entry in the Darling Portrait Prize was entitled ‘Gareth’ and portrayed a middleaged man in the bath with a Batman mask, whilst his entry in the John Leslie Landscape Prize was entitled ‘I don’t need Netflix to see Stranger Things’ and depicted a dark and deserted highway at night.

1992

30 Year Reunion

1 Charles Jeffries (M’92) and Lucy Bennett (Je’92)

3 Tim Whitehead (Cu’92), Sophie Morell (Ga’92) and Alya Stephen (Je’92)

3 Campbell Taylor (Cu’92), Meaghan Courtney (Kinross, Ga’92), Kate Bell (Graham, Ga’92), Pep Effeney (Lindblade, Ga’92), Bec Humphrys (Halsted, Ga’92) and Colin Brice (Fr’92)

4 Sam Maffett (P’92), Iain Bucknell (P’92) and David Sacks (FB’92)

5 Josie Keam (Naylor, Cl’92) and Claire Johnston (Alexander, Fr’92)

6 Michael Browne (A’92), Richard Pace (FB’91) and Massimo Cellante (Timbertop ‘89)

7 Claire Greig (Davison, Cl’92), Rachael Creek (Bufton, Cl’92), Caroline Craig (Timbertop ‘89), Liz Bodey (Fr’92) and Skye Wallace (Ga’92)

8 Capi Edgley (Ga’92), Toby Yates (FB’92) and Kate Reid (Cl’92)

9 Andy Page (A’92), Risto Pearce (Timbertop ‘89), Leanne Pearce and Sam Harris (A’92)

10 Daker Pern (Cu’92), James Cunningham (A’92) and Michael Browne (A’92)

2002 20 Year Reunion

1 Harry Smiles (FB’02), Richard Noble (Cu’02), Fenton Read-Smith (FB’02) and Champ Chungyingruangroong (P’02)

2 Will Richardson (M’02), Ryan Andrews (M’02) and Tom Ellis (Cu’02)

3 Eleanor Smith (Viggers, Fr’02), Amelia Taylor (Tyers, He’02), Paul Colby, Georgie Selman (Wilson, He’02), Rachel Cumming (Fields, He’02) and Rich Austin (M’02)

4 Annabel Bainger (Southey, Cl’02), Sarah McCormack (Vickery, Ga’02) and Loren O’Keeffe (Fr’02)

5 Sidonie Sheene (He’02), Tom Lyons (M’02) and Champ Chungyingruangroong (P’02)

6 Geordie Miller (Cu’02), Alice Landale (Finlay, Cl’02) and Edwina Atkins (Cl’02)

7 Annabel Kilpatrick (He’02), Stewart Luk (Cu’02) and Sidonie Sheene (He’02)

8 Sidonie Sheene (He’02) and Lucy Jasper (He’02)

9 Rachel Cumming (Fields, He’02) and Genevieve Milesi (Ga’02)

10 Samantha Harris (He’02), Jess Hall (A’02), Annabel Kilpatrick (He’02), Amelia Taylor (Tyers, He’02), Rachel Cumming (Fields, He’02), Georgie Selman (Wilson, He’02) and Lucy Jasper (He’02)

11 Chris Gatenby (M’02), Hugh Cumming (Fr’02), Edward Baker (Cu’02) and Ryan Andrews (M’02)

12 Amelia Taylor (Tyers, He’02), Zoe Robinson (Baker, He’02), Annabel Kilpatrick (He’02) and Georgie Selman (Wilson, He’02)

1 The Class of 2001

2 Finbar Murphy (Cu’01) and James Peck (FB’01)

3 Eliza Heathcote (Ga’01), Fleur Mann (Cl’01) and Marion Goss (Mackinnon, Cl’01)

4 Liza Cumming (Fr’01) and Elisa Hansen (Cl’01)

5 Jai Mirchandani (P’01), Rangsan Tawintermsup (M’01), Earth Luechaikajohnpan (P’01), Panu Wongcha-um (P’01), Nathee Nithivasin (P’01) and Michael Wong (M’01)

6 Missy Higgins (Cl’01), Aimee Wilde (Cl’01), Lahnee White (Clark, Ga’01) and Caroline Rook (Ga’01)

7 Skylah Sutherland (A’01) and Bec Gregson (Robertson, A’01)

8 Richard Cutler (FB’01) and Aimee Wilde (Cl’01)

9 Mel Capri (Seymour, A’01), Victoria Sgro (Cl’01), Alice Modise (England, A’01), Edwina

Chalk (Ingle, Ga’01) and Courtney Ray (Russell, A’01)

10 Ally Heine (Vondra, He’01), Lachlan Teague (Cu’01) and Ben Symons (Cu’01)

11 Bec Gregson (Robertson, A’01) and Michael Webb (A’01)

12 Clem Mann (Cl’01), Miff Smith (Fr’01) and Kate Bishop (Beecher, Ga’01)

13 Michael Webb (A’01), Jarrad Cacuick (Fr’01), James Peck (FB’01) and Finbar Murphy (Cu’01)

14 Clem Mann (Cl’01) and Fleur Mann (Cl’01)

15 Marion Goss (Mackinnon, Cl’01), Mel Capri (Seymour, A’01), Penny Andrew (Cl’01), Jorda Burnett (Fr’01) and Tori Batters (Cl’01)

16 Paddy McKay (P’01), Anna Landy (Ga’01) and Paul Byrne (Camp, Fr’01)

17 Joanna Youl (Clarke, Cl’01) and Panu Wongcha-um (P’01)

18 Claire Timms (Bingley, He’01) and Skylah Sutherland (A’01)

19 Georgie Leslie (Bain, A’01) and Georgie Lazzari (Burchell, Fr’01)

20 Rob Parrish (FB’01), Pim Sereika (Small, Fr’01), Clare Hendry (A’01), Tim Owen (M’01) and David Bird (A’01)

21 Sophie Klopper (A’01), Edwina Chalk (Ingle, Ga’01), Joanna Youl (Clarke, Cl’01), Andy Burke (Ga’01) and Chloe Woodley (Delany, He’01)

22 Eliza Heathcote (Ga’01) and Alex Bougouin (Vollebregt, Ga’01)

23 Finbar Murphy (Cu’01), David Bird (A’01), Angus Ramsay (Cu’01) and Hugh Chauvel (FB’01)

24 Victoria Sgro (Cl’01), Jorda Burnett (Fr’01) and Marion Goss (Mackinnon, Cl’01)

2008

William Bleakley (FB’08) won Best Video at the 2022 ARIA Awards in November for the music video he directed for the Vance Joy song ‘Every Side of You’. William studied a combined Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Commerce at the Australian National University (ANU) before undertaking a Master of Film and Television (MFA) at the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA). He started Swag films with Lucy Knox in 2017, starting out in music videos, and progressing to award-winning short films, television projects and commercials across Australia and New Zealand. William’s short film A Birthday Party was a Sydney Film Festival Dendy Awards finalist in 2017. It also played at Melbourne International Film Festival 2017, where he was invited to attend the Accelerator Lab. His documentary Last Man Standing about film processor Werner Winkelmann was a Tropfest finalist in 2018, and played at the UK’s leading documentary festival, Sheffield Doc Fest, in 2018 and MoMA’s annual international festival of non-fiction film, Doc Fortnight, in 2019. William has directed music videos for a wide range of Australian and international artists, including the DMA’s, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Jessica Mauboy, Middle Kids, Ocean Alley and Courtney Barnett. He has created commercials for global brands, including Google, Mastercard, Nike and Visa.

2021, in response to the impact of COVID-19, she began developing online courses for parents and has also created school-readiness holiday programs to help prepare typical and neurodiverse children for school. In 2019, Olivia started a non-for-profit called A Night for Aphasia to raise awareness about this acquired language disorder. This is now an annual event that raised $10,000 last year. “It’s incredibly rewarding to be noticed (with this award) but it’s not why we work as hard as we do,” Olivia said. “I am so thrilled to be doing something I love, in a community that I love. I am incredibly fortunate to be in a position to positively affect a person’s life and to give them a voice.”

2019

Olivia Rayner (O’Hare, Fr’11) was recently awarded the national 2022 Australian Catholic University (ACU) Young Alumni of the Year. This award recognises a graduate who is 35 years or younger at the time of nomination whose early accomplishments since graduation have led to high achievement in their professional field or community engagement. It can be awarded to any ACU graduate in any field, across Australia. Olivia completed a Bachelor of Speech Pathology at ACU and has also completed a Bachelor of Psychology Applied Science at RMIT University. She is a Certified Practising Speech Pathologist (CPSP) and a member of Speech Pathology Australia, and has had clinical experience in the assessment, diagnosis and intervention a wide range of practice areas, for both adult and paediatric clients. In 2020, she started her own speech pathology practice, Now We’re Talking Speech Pathology and Psychology in Williamstown, which employs 13 staff and works with three local primary schools, assisting more than 275 families a week. Olivia also mentors speech pathology students and participates in podcasts and interviews to inspire young students to become speech pathologists. In

2011

Brodie Murray (M’19) performed his new play, The Whisper, at the Melbourne Fringe Festival in October. The Whisper is set in 1940s Australia and was inspired by the story of his grandmother, Lorraine, and an incredible 400-kilometre, 12-month journey from South Australia’s Bordertown to Swan Hill. “I wanted to write this play to honour family, to honour legacy, to honour the stories of survival of people from South East Australia,” Brodie said. Brodie received the Best Emerging Indigenous Artist Award and the Young Creatives Award for his play Billy’s Choice at last year’s Fringe Festival, which was adapted for film by cinematographer Davide Michielin and director Rachael Maza. He studied Aboriginal Performance at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA).

2012 10 Year Reunion

1 Sean Ross (FB’12), Millie Bernardi (Cl’12), Brittany Hapgood (De Lutiis, Cl’12), Joshua McLennan (Fr’12), Alex Carroll (Fr’12) and Annabel Adams (Cl’12)

2 Ethan Purcell (P’12), Cate Benardout, Johnathan O’Neil Donnellon (P’12) and Hashim Hassan (FB’12)

3 Mimi Boydell (Ga’12), Gussie Gould (He’12) and Libby Sutherland (Cl’12)

4 Millie Bernardi (Cl’12) and Brittany Hapgood (De Lutiis, Cl’12)

5 Emily O’Beirne (EM’12) and Harry Mitchell (P’12)

6 Medina Asgari Stephens (He’12), Chloe Payne (Timbertop ‘09) and Meggy Wu (Ga’12)

7 Finn Kinsella (FB’12), Deluca Lawson-Matthew (M’12) and Emil Schwarz (M’12)

8 Tiffany Gray (Ga’12), Mimi Boydell (Ga’12),

Gussie Gould (He’12) and Libby Sutherland (Cl’12)

9 Bryan Choo (Cu’12), Freddy Koch (Cu’12), Rogan Kennedy (A’12) and Sandon Lowe (Fr’12)

10 Edwina Swain (EM’12), Meggy Wu (Ga’12) and Alex Hussen (A’12)

11 Will Evans (M’12) and Xara Kaye (He’12)

12 Jasper Lai (FB’12) and Jane Lloyd (Cl’12)

This year has continued well with many successful events held thus far. We had a lovely Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Old Girls’ Day Lunch in the Gladys Bell Room at Corio on Saturday 3 September, which had a lovely ambiance. As we were not in the Darling Hall, we unfortunately did not have our Sanctuary, so compensated by holding a short service and lighting our candles and remembering our school days and the special friendships made.

There were no changes to the Office Bearers at this year’s AGM, with Liz Bennett (McDonald, The Hermitage ’66) continuing as HOGA President, Jill Nicholls (Holmes, The Hermitage ’68) as Secretary and Susie Donald (The Hermitage ’75) as Treasurer. The meeting was followed by a lovely meal, with guest speakers Janet Ryle-Yeates (Bone, Fr’76) and Simone Arnott (Fr’77) entertaining us with their memories of the trials and tribulations of being among the first girls to go from The Hermitage to Grammar after the amalgamation in 1976. Even though we were not in our usual location, because of lower numbers, everyone present still thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Of course, we had to have a rousing rendition of Cooee sung to make the day complete!

It was a busy week, as on the Monday following, September 5, the Annual HOGA Golf Day was held at Barwon Heads Golf Club. The weather was kind to the golfers, with everyone enjoying the day. Our guest speaker was Judy Vanrenen OAM (The Hermitage ’69), who founded Botanica World Discoveries 20 years ago, taking guests to beautiful gardens around the world and writing three beautiful coffee table books; Beyond the Garden Gate (2015), Along the Garden Path (2017) and Over the Garden Fence (2020). Her talk, entitled ‘A Botanical Journey’, gave an insight into her gardening and garden tourism exploits. It is amazing what some people can fit into their lives!

With the end of the school year upon us, we again carried on the tradition of presenting each Year 12 girl in The Hermitage House a copy of Proud to be Women: A History of The Hermitage Church of England Girls’ Grammar School, Geelong (1906-76) by Meanie Guile. We believe this gives them the understanding of the proud history that the name The Hermitage stands for.

We have been very fortunate to be able to hold many class reunions so far this year, with more to come. These have been very well received and everyone attending has had a wonderful time reigniting old friendship, combined with lots of chatter and laughter. We once again held a reunion in Adelaide and hopefully will be holding one in Ballarat in the near future. If anyone lives in a rural community and would like to hold a gathering of Old Girls, whether for lunch or afternoon tea, please contact Jill Nicholls on 0400 800 136 or email hermitagegirls@gmail.com and she can assist with contact details.

On that note, HOGA must add a very big thank you to Denise Hanrahan, Events Coordinator at GGS, who has been an amazing help in the absence of Katie Rafferty (Spry, Ga’84), who is on Long Service Leave. Nothing has been too much trouble for Denise and her help has been coupled with the assistance received from Dougal Morrison, Data Analyst.

As always, we are looking for ladies to assist in organising a reunion of their year group. For 2023, we are looking for contacts from the 1953, 1963 and 1973 cohorts. Please contact Jill Nicholls, who is very happy to help. We are also planning a couple of different events, including a picnic at the Geelong Botanical Gardens and a tour through Barwon Mansion in Winchelsea. Stay tuned for more information.

COGA

COGA’s annual magazine, The Cluthan, was distributed in September to 608 members. It contained an invitation to the COGA Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Old Girls’ Day Lunch, which was held at Royal South Yarra Lawn Tennis Club on Sunday 23 October. The AGM was attended by 26 members, with over 50 apologies. Guest speaker Di Whittakers (Moore, Clyde ’63) talked of her extensive travels across the Australian outback, leading fully catered camping tours in 4WD vehicles, covering thousands of miles across rugged and remote terrain. The tours blazed across giant red sandhills in the Simpson Desert, along the Gunbarrel Highway, up the rocky trails of the Flinders and O’Donnell ranges in South Australia and the Northern Territory, through the Kimberley region in Western Australia, to Birdsville, Oodnadatta and Lake Eyre. At Clyde in the 1960s, Di was awarded the Tidiest Junior Prize. Her organisational skills were evident early and are especially useful for running her family’s Riverina property and catering for weeks off-road in barren terrain with food supplies counted down “to the last lamb chop”. Di’s husband Jon Whittakers was her tech assistant in projecting some spectacular travel images. It was lucky they could make it to Melbourne from Deniliquin NSW for the AGM, with so many roads blocked by flooding.

During our AGM, we acknowledged sadly the death of COGA Vice President, Anne Stoney (Peardon, Clyde ’62) in August. Anne was a loyal and long-serving member of the COGA Committee, a former Treasurer and Secretary who gave generously of her time and energy to COGA events over the years. Her friendship, good cheer and sense of humour are greatly missed.

The COGA committee for 2023 comprises Margie Gillett (Cordner, Clyde ’71) as President, Elizabeth Landy (Manifold, Clyde ’59) as Vice President, Trish Young (Clyde ’75) and Peta Gillespie (Clyde ’69) will continue as Secretary

and Treasurer respectively. Committee members include Katrina Carr (Moore, Clyde ’75), The Cluthan editor Julia Ponder (Clyde ’69), Sally Powe (Douglas, Clyde ’73), Di Whittakers (Moore, Clyde ’63), Jackie Mackinnon (Kelly, Clyde ’69) and Kammy Cordner Hunt (Cordner, Cl’76). The committee includes liaison representatives for The Cluthan, Clyde House, Archives, Golf, the Isabel Henderson Kindergarten and the COGA membership database. Former COGA President Sue Schudmak (Sproat, Clyde ’64), Anna Tucker (Kimpton, Clyde ’71) and Jane Loughnan (Weatherly, Clyde ’70) also consistently help with these liaison roles.

Sally Salter (Alison Stevenson, Clyde ’51) recently sent a donation to the Clyde Scholarship Fund. We thank Sally for her generous gift, which will help foster educational objectives consistent with COGA’s aims.

The Cluthan is a compilation of news, articles, reports and photos contributed by COGA members. In publishing obituaries each year, we rely on information from friends and families of the deceased. As an alumni association, maiden names are recognised and known ahead of married or other names. All too often, tributes are published for women without acknowledging the names they were given by their parents. That name is part of one’s early identity, character and development. We endeavour to capture the essence and energy of Clyde girls, to record their life stories and perpetuate their individual legacies among friends. Each Clyde girl is knitted into the fabric of her family, community, workplace and country. Each life story is unique and memorable. In addition to impressive careers and adventurous lives, there are stories of extraordinary community service and volunteer work, time given generously and wholeheartedly to help others, and this is a legacy COGA can be proud of. Please send contributions to Julia Ponder via coganews@gmail.com.

1 The class of 1970 held a delayed 50-year reunion weekend at Woodend in May, visiting Braemar College, the former Clyde School. Pictured L-R: Alice Austin, Katrina Weatherly (Kelly), Debby West (Blakiston), Nanette McMullin, Sally Davies (Montague), Jane Loughnan (Weatherly), Jackie Brown (Kemp), Ingrid Tsiligiannis (Alliston), Tina Taylor (Creswick), Anna Tucker (Kiimpton), Sally Anne Skene, Lou Gatenby (Harrison), Deborah Eastwood (Llewellyn-Jones), and Megan Smith.

2 AGM guest speaker Di Whittakers (Moore, Clyde ’63) with her husband Jon and COGA President, Margie Gillett (Cordner, Clyde ’71)

3 Gay Morton (Howard, Clyde ’57), Lou Robinson (McMillan, Clyde ’58) and Jenny Blencowe (Hogg, Clyde ’55) at the AGM and Old Girls’ Day Lunch

4 Di Whittakers (Moore, Clyde ’63) with husband Jon, Elizabeth Landy (Manifold, Clyde ’59), Ann ‘Dizzy’ Carlyon (Clapham, Clyde ’58) and Peta Gillespie (Clyde ’69) looking through

CORIO BOOK CLUB

Stephen Murray-Smith (Cu’40) and Clem Christesen are the subjects of Jim Davidson’s dual biography Emperors in Lilliput (The Miegunyah Press, October 2022). Murray-Smith and Christesen were giants of Australian literature from the 1940s to the 1980s, serving as editors of literary journals Overland and Meanjin respectively. Davidson (who was editor of Meanjin from 1974-82) traces the commitment of Christesen and Murray-Smith to these ambitious cultural projects and how they attracted and promoted many of the key writers and thinkers of that period.

The book “unravels the double helix of Australia’s twentiethcentury literary DNA,” according to ANU Professor of History, Tom Griffiths. “By telling the stories of Clem Christesen and Stephen Murray-Smith together—and of his own experience in the middle of it all—he (Davidson) elevates this elegant portrait of two literary magazines into a deeply rewarding and searching analysis of the making of a national culture.” The book ranges from before the Menzies era and the Cold War, through the Whitlam period and beyond. It shows how the editors developed a “distinctive literary nationalism” and constantly aimed for a more liberal and diverse culture. Author, Sophie Cunningham, explained that “the genius of Emperors in Lilliput is that while the book’s focus is tight, and the research impeccable, the sweep of the story Davidson tells is both broad and deep”. In a review on The Conversation website, Melbourne University journalism lecturer, Jeff Sparrow, concluded that “the nationalist paradigm provided a basis for Christesen and Murray-Smith to privilege literary achievement: the spiritual wellbeing of the country depended, they declared, on great writers”.

Ann Andrew (Gooch, He’65) has written a history of the pioneering pastoralist Crooke family’s settlement of Gippsland, Success in Kangaroo Land: the Crooke family of ‘The Holey Plain’ (Ann Andrew, September 2022). A local historian and the author of five previous non-fiction books, Ann sourced family letters and documents dating back to Edward Crooke’s arrival in Australia in 1837 and the story of Edward and his son Edward Jolley Crooke’s settlement of the Holey Plain near Rosedale on the La Trobe River, where the latter built a large Italianate mansion in 1880. The book provides fascinating details of squatters and their battles to settle and establish agricultural land, including Edward Crooke’s often acrimonious relationship with the Lands Department. The family has a long association with Geelong Grammar School, with Edward Jolley Crooke’s twin sons Dale and Edward (Cu’31) starting at Corio in 1926 as 10-yearold boarders, having been to Glamorgan from the age of eight (prior to its acquisition by GGS in 1946). The Crooke connection with GGS extended to Edward and Dale’s children and grandchildren attending the School.

Anson Cameron (M’78) has written a biography that exposes the complexity of one of football’s toughest players. Neil Balme: A Tale of Two Men (Viking, August 2022) tells the story of Balme’s unique football journey, from infamous on-field enforcer of the 1970s to successful coach and avuncular football administrator. Balme’s colourful playing career at Richmond led to coaching appointments at Norwood, Woodville-West Torrens and Melbourne, followed by football administration roles at Collingwood, Geelong and Richmond. Along the way he has been involved in 11 premierships and earned a reputation as one of football’s sharpest minds. The Age review described the biography as “a genuine cut above usual sports writing”. “Cameron covers Balme’s playing life, his coaching and key administrative roles at various clubs, plus the impact of football on his private life with sympathy, wit (he has a great turn of phrase) and the kind of intellectual inquiry his complex subject requires.” Anson has written six novels, including the “brilliant” and hugely relevant environmental satire The Last Pulse, as well as a childhood memoir, Boyhoodlum. He writes a regular column for The Age and Sydney Morning Herald newspapers and was described as “the perfect biographer to present Neil’s story” by The Footy Almanac.

Great Properties of Tasmania is the third book in a series of sumptuous publications exploring the magnificent rural properties of Australia.

Unsurprisingly, there are significant connections with Geelong Grammar – beginning with the author Richard Allen (P’80), who has been a writer for more than 30 years and has published several books. Accompanied by the stunning photography of Melbourne-based freelance photographer, Kimbal Baker, Richard’s highly engaging portraits of 18 Tasmanian properties reveal fascinating insights into the hidden rural treasures of the Apple Isle –eight of them home to Old Geelong Grammarians.

Several families have lived in their properties for five or six generations, in Richard’s words “a demonstration of tenacity, imagination and cohesion”. Remarkably, Lachie O’Connor (P’20) is the seventh generation of his family to live at Connorville in Cressy, along with his mother Kate and father Roderic (P’74), son of Roderic (FB’44). Their ancestor, another Roderic, arrived in Van Diemen’s Land in May 1824, and by the time he died in 1860 he was the owner of 65,000 acres. Connorville now comprises 42,500 acres on which the O’Connors run Merinos and Angus cattle, breed prime lambs and grow a variety of crops. Looking to the future, one-fifth of the property is commercial native forest set aside of carbon sequestration and another one-fifth is reserved for perpetual conservation.

CONNORVILLE CRESSY

Below: Lachlan and Roderic O’Connor at Connorville in Cressy

MT IREH LONGFORD

Piers Dumaresq (Cu’97), son of Martin (Cu’62), is the sixth generation of his family to live at Mount Ireh, Longford. Piers’s ancestor, Edward Dumaresq, came to New South Wales as private secretary to his brother-in-law, General (Sir) Ralph Darling. In 1835, he was granted land by the Crown which the God-fearing Edward named Mount Ireh, meaning ‘the Lord will provide’. Piers has been at the helm since 2012, ensuring Mount Ireh is a viable business enterprise while also caring for the property’s significant historical buildings.

Nearby, Mountford has been home to the Mackinnons for five generations since 1877 when it was purchased by Allan Mackinnon, an immigrant from the Isle of Skye who arrived in 1822. His son, Charles, built up a flock of Corriedales ewes, and a Corriedale stud which became the oldest in the country. Mountford is now under the stewardship of Charles’s grandson, Hugh Mackinnon (P’67) and his wife Anne, and sons Charlie (P’97) and Roly (P’04), brothers to Marion Goss (Cl’01). Charlie manages the grazing and cropping side of the business, and Roly is in charge of Mountford Berries, which accounts for a significant part of their revenue. Hugh has worked closely with Landcare and Greening Australia to plant tens of thousands of trees, striving to leave Mountford in the best shape possible.

Near Ouse in the central highlands, Scott (M’71) and Sam Ashton-Jones (M’13) are the fourth and fifth generations of their family to live at the 10,000-acre property, Ashton. Their ancestor, Joseph Tice Gellibrand, arrived in Van Diemen’s Land in 1824. Gellibrand played a significant role in early European settlement before he disappeared, lost in the bush, on a journey from Corio Bay to Melbourne. It was Scott’s great-grandfather, Walter Ashton-Jones, who bought Ashton in the 1870s. Scott’s father, Geoffrey, inherited the property in 1967 and made significant contributions to the wool industry, developing Ashton alongside Scott and weathering some tough times. Scott’s wife Mary Lou (Nielsen, Clyde’66) has made her own significant contribution to Ashton, and her three sons from her previous marriage to Richard Mackinnon (M’71), Andrew (M’97), James (M’99) and Chas (M’04), are at home there.

Top: Hugh and Roly Mackinnon at their Mountford property.

Above: Christ Church, Illawarra, Mount Ireh, Longford.

Right: Mary Lou and Scott Ashton-Jones at Ashton, Ouse.

George Mills (M’66) has the pleasure of living at Panshanger, the spectacular Italianate homestead dating from the 1830s that was nominated by former prime minister, Paul Keating, as one of his favourite Australian buildings. The property was purchased from a descendant of the original owner, Joseph Archer, by George’s great-grandfather, Thomas Mills, in 1908, as a wedding present for his son Charles. Thomas’s story was one of rags to riches – he arrived on the Queensland goldfields in 1869 as an illiterate butcher, and finished up as the owner of several profitable gold mines with large investments in the stock market. George and his wife Maree run a mixed grazing and cropping enterprise along with their son Nick, with a focus on sustainability.

Trefusis, near Ross – named in the 1820s by Cornish settler Captain William Bunster after the Trefusis estate in Cornwall – is home to Hamish Wallace (P’76) and his wife Georgie, who bought the property from Georgie’s parents, Jim and Jo McEwan, in 2007. The arrangement suited Georgie and her two sisters and ensured that the property remained in family hands after more than a century of continuous ownership by the McEwans. Georgie’s grandfather, Alec McEwan, the son of a Scottish immigrant, purchased Trefusis in 1923, and her father Jim took over the property upon Alec’s death in 1948. Georgie now runs an award-winning flock of Merino ewes, and Hamish runs composite breeding ewes for prime lamb production.

TREFUSIS

PANSHANGER

PANSHANGER LONGFORD

Below: Hamish Wallace of Trefusis.

Bottom: Panshanger

LOCHIEL ROSS

Another property near Ross, Lochiel, is home to Valerie le Maitre (Cameron, Clyde ’57) and her geologist husband Roger. Valerie’s grandfather, Eustace Cameron, purchased the property in 1905 from the Kermode family, which had owned it since 1824 and renamed it Lochiel after Cameron of Lochiel, the head of the Scottish Cameron clan. Valerie has lived there on and off since 1947, returning permanently in 1995 to assist her father Sir John Cameron (M’30), a noted pastoralist and chancellor of the University of Tasmania, with the management of the property. She took ownership in 1998 upon Sir John’s death and has since built the property up to almost 9,000 acres, running 5,000 breeding ewes and 250 breeding cows, and conserving areas of the property with important flora and fauna.

Max Cameron (P’76) and his wife Helen Baillie came to Wesley Dale at Chudleigh comparatively recently, in the 1990s, having bought out Max’s three aunts who had inherited the property from their father, Major Ralph Cameron (P’36). There is a further OGG connection with the Reed family, who owned the property from the 1820s before it was sold to the Camerons in 1956. John Reed (M’21), grandson of the original owner Henry Reed, grew up at Wesley Dale, and used the proceeds from its sale to build the modernist residence in Heidelberg, Victoria, that became the Heide Museum of Modern Art. Another of Henry Reed’s grandsons was Sir Hudson Fysh (GGS’05), the founder of Qantas. Over the past two decades, Max

and Helen have painstakingly restored the homestead and its outbuildings, created a garden of note, and built up a substantial flock of breeding ewes and dairy heifers.

The connection of many of the families with Geelong Grammar School is a reminder of the School’s deep ties to Australia’s rural and pastoral industries, and to our built heritage. In their care for these places, a sense of custodianship, rather than ownership, is evident. Conservation and sustainable practices are in action at many of the properties. The shadow of a turbulent past is acknowledged – as Piers Dumaresq says “We must never forget the tragedy that befell the Indigenous people of Tasmania. Likewise, we must not ignore the achievements of the early colonists and their part in shaping the landscape and society of modern Australia. Our role as the current custodians is to tend to the heritage of all our shared histories”. Great Properties of Tasmania is a delightful and heart-warming insight into the families charged with this responsibility.

WESLEY DALE CHUDLEIGH

Top left: Valerie le Maitre at Lochiel, near Ross.

Top right: The Lochiel homestead from the rose garden..

Left: Wesley Dale in Tasmania’s north-west.

The connection of many of the families with Geelong Grammar School is a reminder of the School’s deep ties to Australia’s rural and pastoral industries, and to our built heritage.

There is probably no better introduction to the role of archivist at Geelong Grammar than to take a phone call from someone who can claim tenure of almost one-third of the School’s existence. Darren Watson had been in the archivist’s position for less than a month when Frank Covill (Staff 1953–2003) phoned, alerting him to a plethora of material he wanted to donate to the archives. “He informed me it covered a couch. Upon visiting him, I found that the collected memorabilia did indeed cover a couch – to the height of a foot or more – and extended somewhat beyond it! It ultimately filled my entire car.”

Though such large donations are infrequent, they are not atypical. As a result, our school archives contain an enormous range of material, including photograph albums, medals, scrapbooks, prize books, ephemera ranging from Speech Day programs to cash receipts, correspondence, obscure objects, uniforms and shelves of trophies. Managing it all requires an experienced and steady hand, and thus it is fortunate for GGS that Darren comes to us after a 30-year career with the National Archives of Australia, most recently as manager of public engagement at the Victorian office. School historian, Sophie Church – who regularly uses the GGS collection to create displays and write articles about interesting people and events – spoke to Darren about his explorations in the GGS archives and the value of history.

Darren, meeting Frank was a great introduction to your role as archivist. What impression did he give you about GGS?

In the course of that initial visit, I had a long and very enjoyable talk with Frank about his experience of Geelong Grammar. Looking through his memorabilia revealed a wealth of sources for exploring the history of the School. Frank recognised that GGS is a unique working environment and I think he was interested to know what my response to that had been. I was happy to be able to tell him at that stage that, although there was some adjustment on my part required, I felt I had been embraced by everyone whom I had met from the school community. I am really enjoying the role!

What has surprised you about the role thus far, and how does it compare to your role in the National Archives?

The diversity of tasks and responsibilities which the role demands are very different from what is much more of a single-focused role within the National Archives, where you are working with other archivists on mutually supporting tasks. That’s also been one of the greatest satisfactions with this role – the professional opportunities that it provides to develop understandings and skills, and exercise initiative in a variety of different directions.

Why did you decide to become an archivist?

I heard about the job of archivist from a careers advisor when I was still in high school. I have a recollection of sending off to the National Archives for some career information! Moving forward, I had a deep love of history and historical studies, and the role of archivist is a very good fit for that.

So what advice do you have for students considering a career in the museum and heritage sector?

Go out and get as much experience in as many different facets of the sector as you can because all that experience ultimately will stand by you. Don’t pigeonhole yourself because there is scope to acquire a diversity of skills across the sector, which is both personally rewarding and will also take you forward professionally. Just enjoy it. It demands a certain individual passion, and it does give you scope to pursue that. It’s a very personally rewarding sector to work in for that reason.

It’s hard to describe the allure of history – for me, it’s a constant inspiration and often past times seem more interesting than the present day! Why does history engage you?

What I enjoy about history is discovering differences with societies of the past but also those points of shared humanity. The two of those exist in tension a little bit, but both in their own way are enticing for anyone who is undertaking historical research – people with the same motivations but expressing them in an entirely different context, which often demands different approaches. I find that really interesting.

Of course, being an archivist means capturing the present as well as the past. What does this mean in a school context?

You’re really engaging with the continuity of the school as a living institution. You’re doing it a disservice by looking at it purely as an extension of its own past. It’s a dynamic institution. It’s creating its own reality as it moves forward, and my role is to ensure that changing reality is captured in a way that it can be understood by members of the school community and by others into the future.

That’s a lovely segue to the observation that the preservation of our past is crucial. As the Australian History Councils have recently surmised in a joint statement on the value of history, ‘The study of the past and telling its stories are critical to our sense of belonging, to our communities and to our shared future’. Now in the 167th year of its existence, this statement is as true at Geelong Grammar as anywhere!

CREATIVITY

Claude Brizay nearly didn’t make it to Australia at all. In late January 1942, he was at Singapore airport with his mother, Madeline, an artist, and his three younger brothers, Yvon (FB’49), Ronald (Ju’48), and Jean Pierre (Ju’48), waiting to board a plane to Australia when they were caught in a heavy air raid. As glass shattered around them, they took shelter in a sandbagged room among the aerodrome buildings. Bombs exploded within metres of their hideout, destroying several planes on the tarmac. Remarkably, the Brizay family escaped without a scratch, covered in plaster dust. “I wasn’t frightened of the Japanese,” a brave 11-year-old Claude told a news reporter. “It was just the noise the

In the Paris home of Mme Hélène Brizay there is a pottery figure of Napoleon Bonaparte – unremarkable, if not for the fact that it was made almost 80 years ago at Geelong Grammar School by Hélène’s late husband, the artist Claude Brizay (FB’48). When he died in 2013, it had been more than six decades since Claude had set foot in Australia, but he continued to be inspired by the wide-open spaces and changing colours of the landscape around Corio, where, as a boy, he unexpectedly found a home.

bombs made.” Shortly afterwards, Madeline and her children departed Singapore for Darwin on the last seaplane to leave before the British surrendered to the Japanese on 15 February.

The boys’ father, Emile Brizay, a well-known French engineer, managed to escape on a Dutch ship which had detached from a convoy of ships that was sunk. He too, miraculously, made it to Australia, arriving on 5 March. The Brizays left everything behind – their beautiful home, furniture, and their car which, according to family legend, was personally acquired by General Tomoyuki Yamashita himself. The Japanese had been keen to ensnare

Emile, not only to curtail his resistance activities – he hosted a radio program in support of Free France and harboured refugees – but because he had expertise in the new reinforced concrete techniques developed by Eugène Freyssinet. Before the war, Emile had designed most of the bridges in Malaya, the church of St Teresa, and the Ford Factory in Bukit Timah where General Arthur Percival signed the instrument of surrender.

The Brizay family settled first in Sydney but moved to Melbourne, believing it to be a more intellectual city which would better suit their interests. General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander of Allied Forces in the Southwest Pacific, heard that Emile was in Australia, and offered him work through the building firm Hornibrook Construction designing timber-trussed ‘igloo’ aircraft hangars for an aerodrome near Brisbane. It is said that Emile nominated as his fee the price of schooling for his four sons, that the Americans chose one of the best schools in Australia, and thus the four Brizay boys came as boarders to Corio.

Separated from her husband and children, Madeline found herself facing challenges in an unfamiliar country where her accent and European flair set her apart from others. Sadly, she became depressed, leaving her children emotionally isolated. School was hard at first for the Catholic Brizay boys. With their poor English and strange ways, they were labelled ‘frog eaters’. Claude became seriously ill with pleurisy, underwent a major operation, and convalesced for a full year afterwards. As he regained his health, he threw himself into a variety of sports, earning kudos from his peers when he became the Junior School’s outstanding athlete of 1945, winning the 100 yards, 220 yards, hurdles and long jump. In Senior School, he won House Colours in Football and Cricket.

“I WASN’T FRIGHTENED OF THE JAPANESE,

IT WAS JUST THE NOISE THE BOMBS MADE,”

A BRAVE 11-YEAR-OLD CLAUDE TOLD A NEWS REPORTER.

Claude Brizay

Claude’s recovery, both mental and physical, was greatly assisted by the care shown to him by another ‘alien’, the German artist Ludwig Hirschfeld-Mack (Staff 1942-57) who was himself a refugee and had spent almost two years in an internment camp before he was offered a position as the Art Master at GGS in 1942. It could only have been fate that brought together a man who had once studied under Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky, and a boy who was destined to work in the studio of Salvador Dalí, in the most unlikely environment of Corio. Hirschfeld-Mack identified, and then nurtured, Claude’s nascent artistic talent. The pottery Napoleon was made under Hirschfeld-Mack’s guidance, and in 1947, Claude’s design for a stained-glass window for the cathedral in the city of Dodoma, Tanzania, was selected as the winning entry in a school competition. ‘Mr Hirschfeld is very keen for this kind of work to be executed for people outside the School, as it stimulates our interest and makes our world useful’, noted the Corian.

Claude Brizay (far left) with Salavdor Dalí (centre back) and others in his workshop

In his later life, Claude painted works inspired by his interest in Australian Aboriginal art.

The artistic philosophies that HirschfeldMack had developed as a student at the Bauhaus before the war were fostered on the young Claude, who found inspiration in the idea of reimagining a new way of living through creative expression. When he returned to France to join his parents, at the end of 1949, it was with, as Hirschfeld-Mack fostered, “the soul of an artist and the mind of an engineer”. Claude enrolled in the Ecole des Arts Decoratifs, specialising in interior architecture and artistic expressions of spatial geometry, where he came under the influence of the social realist painter, Marcel Gromaire. Claude then worked with Jean Lurçat, the artist who had once kept company with Matisse and Picasso, and who was responsible for the revival of French tapestry. Later, in the early 1960s, he worked with Salvador Dalí, making costumes and masks. He continued his artistic practice for the remainder of his life, spending long hours in his studio producing colourful abstract works that reveal more than a little influence of the Bauhaus.

Over time, Claude lost touch with his old life at GGS, but the impressions formed during his childhood in Malaya and Australia never left him. As Claude’s daughter, Valérie, beautifully expressed: “He sought to communicate with others in solitude, through the arrangement of colors and shapes, color representing for him instinct, senses, emotions, and shapes: the intellect. He thus reunited in pictorial language what was lacking in spoken language: the attachment of emotion to intelligence. I see him in a bubble, a separate world, that of a Dreamtime from the land of the bush, or rather a Dreamspace from which it is up to me, as to each of those who contemplate his paintings, to decipher the lively and precise language, memories of previous countries, and violently hidden emotions.”

AUTHOR’S NOTE

In 2019, while researching the influence of Hirschfeld-Mack at the School, I came across a news article about Claude’s winning design for the cathedral window. Intrigued, I tried but failed to follow the trail of Claude Brizay. Then, by sheer coincidence, in 2021 Nitaye Eliacheff emailed the School Archives, wondering if we had any information about his maternal grandfather, Claude Brizay. This article is the result of our communications. I am grateful to Nitaye for sharing photos of his grandfather’s work, and a beautiful memoir of her father written by Nitaye’s mother, Valérie Brizay.

Sophie Church School Historian

The sculpture of Napoleon made by Claude at Geelong Grammar

OGG Sport

OLD GEELONG FOOTBALL CLUB

The 2022 VAFA season was a wild ride for Old Geelong, culminating in a return to B Grade for the Senior Men’s team and a premiership for the Reserves. The Seniors snuck into the finals in Premier C Grade, finishing in fourth place ahead of Old Ivanhoe on percentage, before producing an inspired finals series –defeating Mazenod by 7 points in the semi-finals, upsetting Hampton Rovers by 1 point in the preliminary final, before losing the grand final by 21 points to Monash Blues.

The runners-up finish lifted Old Geelong from C Grade to B Grade in what OGFC President Simon Bones described as “truly one of the great achievements in the history of the club”. “The Seniors basically played four knockout finals in a row, falling just short at the last hurdle,”

Simon said. “Watching them over those four weeks was an absolute thrill, and their courage and fierceness at the contest was a sight to behold.”

The promotion was made all the more remarkable in a season interrupted by limited access to Como Park, with players training at unusual locations (Lucas Reserve in Malvern East) at unusual times across the first half of the year. The Reserves capped a dominant finals series with a 53-point win against Mazenod in the grand final. The Women’s team had a challenging season in Premier B Grade, finishing in seventh place with two wins. One of the highlights was Brooke McKay (He’15) becoming the fourth Oggette to reach the 50-game milestone.

Old Geelong Grammarians are well represented at OGFC, including at committee level, with Jimmy Legoe (M’97), Jake Ward (M’05), Sophie Batten (EM’14) and Peter Lemon (FB’64), and in leadership positions on-field, with Will Sloss (M’12) as captain. The representation will increase next season with Nick Dixon (A’14) joining the club as a player and Co-Coach of the Senior team alongside Nathan Brown. An exceptional cricketer and footballer at

GGS, Nick has since played for Geelong, Port Melbourne and Essendon at VFL level, for Collegians in Premier A, and was Co-Coach of North Shore in the GFL, where he was selected in the GFL Team of the Year and won the 2022 club best and fairest. Nick will be joined by brother Scott Dixon (A’13) as Senior Assistant Coach. Scott has played for Old Geelong since 2017, was captain from 2019-2021, and played his 50th game for the club in 2022.

2 Boz Parsons (M’36) and Sandy Maconochie (M’68) at the OGG Golf Day at Barwon Heads Golf Club on October 21.

3 Barb Parsons and Jan Embling (Bell, The Hermitage ’71) at the OGG Golf Day.

4 Co-Captain Matthew Planner (Fr’16), Coach Jeremy Nettlefold (Cu’08), and co-Captain Nick Morwood (OGC).

5 50-game players Brooke McKay (He’15), Georgie Rule (EM’13), Caroline Edwards (He’09) and Annabel Rafferty (A’14).

1 Tim Breadmore (FB’15) in the Reserves grand final. Tim’s grandfather Jo Breadmore (FB’55) was a member of the OGFC premiership teams of 1956 and 1957.

Births

Jessica and Charles Coburn (Cu’12), a son, Edward Arthur, on 21 July 2022

Kayla Gallo (Ga’07) and Joshua Beaumont, a daughter, Stella Blue, on 5 June 2022

Libby and Chris Gatenby (M’02), a son, Hedley John Fairfax (Jack) on 20 November 2022

Jaime and John McCarthy (Cu’02), a son, Maverick Neil, on 29 August 2022

Sarah and Blayney Morgan (P’97), a daughter, Isla, on 14 November 2022

Eleanor (Turnbull, Cl’08) and Alec Pengilley, a son, Angus Jeffrey Turnbull on 6 December 2020

Eleanor (Turnbull, Cl’08) and Alec Pengilley, a son, Thomas Charles Simmons on 5 September 2022

Elizabeth (Alder, Cl’03) and Charles Sullivan a son, Richard Charles Gordon, on 6 February 2022

Nell (Mott, He’07) and Lachlan Sullivan, a son, Douglas David Gordon, on 11 May 2022

Nicholas Cacuick (Fr’03) and Brittney Johnson, a daughter, Joni Rae, on 2 July 2022

Deaths

George Harold Allison (1942-47) on 12 June 2022

The Rt Rev John Bayton AM (Past Council) on 15 August 2022

Robin (Robby) Bedggood (Matron 1966-67; OGGs’ Assistant 1988-96) on 5 September 2022

Mary Clayton Boardman née Shepherd (The Hermitage 1935-47) on 9 August 2022

Richard Rankin Briggs (1949-53) on 9 October 2022

Anthony John (Tony) Brocksopp (196870) on 1 July 2022

Jillian Romayne (Jill) Buchanan née Palmer (Clyde 1947-53) on 13 July 2022

Valerie McLarty Douglas Buller

née Simpson (Clyde 1945-46) on 11 September 2022

Cedric Lyle Carr OAM (1945-48) on 3 April 2022

Claire Louise Carroll (1988-93) on 19 May 2021

Peter James Paton Connell (1963-71) in early April 2022

Penelope Anna Crawford née Collins (Clyde 1955-60) on 16 September 2022

Nancy Elizabeth Elliott née English (The Hermitage 1939-42) on 6 June 2022

Beatrice Alison (Alison) Gardiner née Lay (The Hermitage 1948-49) on 1 August 2022

Charlotte Austin (Choti) Henderson née Palmer (Clyde 1955-62) on 18 July 2022

Sue Margaret Henry née Vedmore (The Hermitage 1957-61) on 14 December 2021

Marie Leila Hocking née Just (The Hermitage 1933-44) on 17 April 2022

Rupert Michael Imhoff (1989-02) on 19 July 2022

Brian Johnson Kibel (1949-51) on 12 October 2022

Anne Kantor née Murdoch (Clyde 194752) on 14 September 2022

Arleen Margaret Kratochvil (Hermitage & GGS Past Staff) on 2 November 2022

Susan Jessie (Sue) Lawrance née Murch (Clyde 1954-59) on 16 October 2022

William Egerton Laycock (1952-53) on 2 February 2021

Xenia Laycock née Gardiner (Clyde 1940-43) on 20 October 2022

Adrian Charles Lyon (1966-68) on 4 August 2021

Stanley Ernest (Stan) Matthews (1945-51) on 23 March 2022

Rev Alan Brian (Brian) McGowan (194851) on 14 November 2021

Jenny Meryn Mills née Bunning (Clyde, 1950-51) on 21 April 2022

David Henry Athelstan Nall (1939-46) on 1 October 2021

John Stuart (Stuart) Nall (1937-45) on 19 September 2021

Robert MacNeil Osborne (1946-49) on 7 August 2022

James Rylah (Jim) Peart (1944-47) on 25 August 2022

Michael Alonzo Pidgeon (1956-60) on 5 August 2022

John William Pullen (1962-64) on 6 October 2022

Robert Henry (Bob) Robertson (1940-46) on 4 August 2021

Simon MacDonald Scott (1960-66) on 25 July 2022

Ivan William Short (1945-49) on 9 January 2022

Laurence Carl Stalker (1949-51) on 30 April 2021

Peter Raglan Stevens (1950-57) on 3 July 2022

Elizabeth Anne (Anne) Stoney née Peardon (Clyde 1956-62) on 27 August 2022

Robert Henry (Bob) Swinburn (1969-75) on 7 August 2022

Charles Jeremy (Jeremy) Ward (1962-65) on 6 July 2022

Michael John Wilson (1943-1946) on 24 June 2022

Christopher Grant Woodhouse (Chris) Mitchell (1953-64) on 26 November 2022

Marriages

Kayla Gallo (Ga’07) married Joshua Beaumont on 28 November 2020

James Gibney (P’08) married Jane Pelham Ayers on 20 August 2020

Fleur Mann (Cl’01) married Adrian Miller on 20 March 2021

John McCarthy (Cu’02) married Jaime Lee McCarthy on 7 May 2022

Olivia O’Hare (Fr’11) married Tom Hough Rayner on 26 February 2022

Nicholas (Nick) Cacuick (Fr’03) married Brittney Johnson on 30 April 2022

Sara McMicking (Cl’06) married Tom Dahlenburg on 8 October 2022