Boarders without borders: looking back, looking ahead

‘So, how are those boarders doing?’ This is a question I’ve been asked many times over in the last 18 months. It is not an easy question to answer. My standard response is, ‘They’re just getting on with it’. It reminds me a little of the ‘Keep Calm and Carry On’ slogan.

‘Getting on’ with what? Firstly, there has been a lot of adaptation. So many different routines at different times. Eating in the dining hall / assigned chairs in the dining hall. Lining up at a suitable social distance, hand-sanitiser before dinner and taking temperatures before bed. No visitors – but then visitors. No hot food deliveries or bubble tea, but lots of delicious treats provided by the kitchen staff.

Secondly, amusement. There’s a mixture of the old: Pancake Tuesday relay (tossing pancakes from one frying pan to the next), birthday dinners, Valentine’s Day chocolate fountain. Chinese New Year dinner, baking brownies, film nights, and perpetual evacuations!

And the new: surfing at Phillip Island, egg chairs, transformation of the computer room to a hangout space for Year 11s. New dining room tables and chairs; mirrors on the gym wall. Outings in the holidays to Half Moon Bay, the Dandenong Ranges, the drive-in, Peninsula Hot Springs and the NGV. And so much more. Some boarders even mastered the art of baking sourdough bread and making coffee art.

We said farewell to Karina, who has been a wonderful catering manager throughout 2020. We have since welcomed Nelly, who is fitting in nicely. We also farewelled Matt, the chef, and he has been replaced by Paul, who has a flair for decoration and creativity.

So where to from here? Is it more of the same? Or is there something exciting around the corner? In any case, we have a remarkable group of girls in the Boarding House this year. Our captains, Audrey and Ilona, have led the way with calm and steadiness. The boarding house staff have continued to go above and beyond in their care for the girls. As we’ve heard said many times by our Premier, ‘We’re all in this together’, and this is true for life here in the Boarding House.

Stuart Manderson Head of Boarding

PLC Boarders’ Surf Day – Easter Break

In the first week of the Easter break a group of PLC boarders headed down to beautiful Phillip Island for a surf and some beach adventure. Along with Nick Curtis, Damien Gogoll and Caroline Dehn, the boarders headed off bright and early.

The girls were met at the YCW beach by Asher Belsar from Outthere Outdoor Activities. His good use of humour and experienced knowledge of the ocean soon set aside any nerves.

He had us all doing warm-ups and limbering up in preparation for a fun couple of hours, then gave us a briefing and some tips. Once students were in the water there were smiles all round as we made the most of the enjoyable surf conditions.

At the end of the session we all dried off and headed to Summerlands, the beach the penguins come to, to enjoy the view while we had lunch. We were even able to see a sleeping penguin and a wallaby. Maybe the penguin thought it was a lockdown!

After that it was on to Cape Woolamai for a nature walk. We headed down towards Magic Lands beach and then up along the nature walk for beautiful views of the Pinnacles and Cape Woolamai.

It was a very full but fun day, enjoying the beauty of creation. There were sleepy smiles all round on the way back on the bus. It was time to call it a day, but more adventure awaits.

Nick Curtis Director of Christian Ministries