Bicentenary Marist Celebration 2017
Sacred Heart College Marist Observatory
October, 1929 THE MARISTONIAN Page 10
Contents The importance of a Marist Education to the Primary School
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200/150 years of Marist in the World
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Present School Structure
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Marist over the years
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The Story of Saint Marcellin Champagnat
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Johannesburg back in the days
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Marist Brothers
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Koch Street –1889 onwards
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The story of Sacred Heart College Marist Observatory
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The importance of Marist Education to the Primary School The bicentenary and the 150 year celebration of Marist education in South Africa remind us of the incredibly rich history and unique educational philosophy of Marist education, which is the reason for our existence and underpins everything we do at the College. Preparation for each of the three whole-school masses, and the subsequent celebrations, focused on one or other pillar of Marist philosophy whether Presence, Simplicity, Family Spirit, Love of Work or In the Way of Mary. Our three staff masses, held at the start of each term, involved reflecting as Marist teachers on our vocation. School assemblies, masses and Religious Education and Life Orientation lessons were also used to celebrate this unique time in our history as a Marist school in South Africa. Over the past six years, the teachers from Playgroup to Grade 6 have worked at discerning 21st Century education for our culturally diverse and inclusive primary school. The 2017 Vision and Mission statement is encapsulated in the title ‘Building Foundations for Learning and Skills for Life’, the aim of which is to produce ethical citizens through an Education with Heart that Knows no Bounds. At the core of our Vision and Mission is the Marist philosophy of nurturing children to realize their true potential by creating: • an engaging learning environment, where children are encouraged to think critically and creatively, solving problems collaboratively within a culture of innovation; • an environment where the individual is encouraged to take responsibility for his/her own learning and development. Underpinned by the Marist Vision: Marist education, in the spirit of St Marcellin Champagnat, invites all to see life differently by standing in solidarity with young people at risk in their struggle for a wholeness of life, nurturing young people with care, love and understanding, reconciling young people, where possible, with their families, going beyond recognised limits of care and tolerance, encouraging young people, through relevant programmes, to continue to take charge of their lives, experiencing a heart that knows no bounds. This is done by: Developing personal dispositions - who they become: • in their intellectual, emotional, cultural, social, physical and values dimensions; • giving them a strong moral and spiritual foundation, ethical, law-abiding with a sense of justice for all; • to be compassionate, tolerant, honest;
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Robyn Picas Principal Primary School
The importance of Marist Education to the Primary School continued
• environmentally aware and active; • responsible for themselves, their actions, reflective, self-disciplined; • adventurous, resourceful, flexible, entrepreneurial with a visionary capacity; • achievement-oriented, problem solvers, change agents, collaborators; • independent with a strong sense of self, courageous, assertive, positive, happy and hopeful. Developing competencies - what they can do • Read - comprehend various genres, find relevance, discern • Write – express, in different genres, a variety of media • Speak and listen – work in groups, express ideas, listen, understand and debate • Numerate – well-consolidated numeracy skills • Technically literate in computing and electronic media, ethical digital citizenship • Think critically – meta-cognition, creative, analytical • Physically and creatively literate - sport, expression in movement, music, visual arts Being part of a Marist school means that all we do is directed by Marist educational philosophy and purpose. It demands that we, as teachers and leaders, lead with integrity and work to create a caring, supportive school family where we treat each other as brothers and sisters with a common purpose of being a community of hope and with an option for the poor and marginalized. On a personal level, it has made me aware of the great privilege of being in a Marist school, as a parent from 19882008, teacher since 1998 and, finally, as principal for the past ten years. It is the gift I have given my three children that has set them up for success in life, and it has been my ‘home-from-home’ for thirty years. Thank you to the Marist Brothers for their incredible vision of education and for the openness to lay people to share in the philosophy of Marist.
Sacred Heart is like a home away from home
Robyn Picas
Principal Primary School
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200/150 years of Marist in the World I have been part of Sacred Heart College since 1994. The 200/150 year celebrations this year are an opportunity to re-connect with what it means to be Marist. Although each day I am aware of being part of this extraordinary organisation, our preparations for this year’s celebration of 200/150 allowed me to truly appreciate what it means to be Marist. The Institute of the Brothers of the School, fondly called by us, the Marist Brothers is far reaching. It is present in 83 countries, has over 3000 Marist Brothers working with lay Marists serving over half a million young people. To think that this incredible reach is due to the vision and mission of a young priest, Marcellin Champagnat, and a small group of brothers is inspirational. There is a deep spirituality that resonates with me and being part of the lay Marists gives me an opportunity to explore this spirituality further. I appreciate the Mariol or feminine face that Marist spirituality expresses and the role of Mary in the lives of the Brothers. The values of humility, simplicity and modesty are lived by the brothers all over the world. Meeting and working with brothers like Br Jude, Br Mario, Br Joe, Br Vincent and Br Norbet has allowed me to experience these values first hand and to feel part of the extended family that is Marist. Celebrating the presence of Marist in South Africa for 150 years prompted me to think about this presence and the role of reconciliation that the Brothers have played throughout the world, and in part, their work in Southern Africa. I am reminded of the stories of the Koch Street School being turned into a hospital for the wounded soldiers during the Anglo Boer War, of the Brothers of Sacred Heart College providing refuge to apartheid activists and opening the doors to all races despite the laws of the country at the time. I was also reminded of the Brothers, working in Aleppo who looked after, fed and educated many families of both Christian and Muslim faiths, despite constant bombings, sniper attacks and lack of water and food. This sense of family spirit is one I hope we can continue to emulate at Sacred Heart College despite the polarizing politics impacting on the country and world. In recognition of 150 celebrations, a plaque was placed in the South Africa National Art Gallery which was originally the first Marist School in South Africa. As I stood and looked at the archway with the words Marist Brothers School, I was struck by the powerful simplicity of Champagnat’s mission to make Jesus known and loved. This mission has gone on to create an international organisation which plays a significant role in ensuring the rights of children worldwide in partnership with UNICEF in Geneva. By helping to ensure children’s rights and forming communities with lay people, 4
Heather Blanckensee Principal High School
100/150 years of Marist in the World continued the Brother’s educate young people all over the world so that they can also go out and make a difference in the world. I feel privileged to be able to share in this mission..
Heather Blanckensee Principal High School
Entrance to Sacred Heart College Marist Observatory Present school structure
Colin Northmore Head of College
Heather Blanckensee Principal of High School
Kathleen Dickson Deputy Principal Admin Pre-Primary & Primary School
Wayne Purchase Vice Principal of High School
Andre VD Merwe Deputy Principal Cocurricular & Discipline Primary School
Robyn Picas Principal of Primary School
Sue Jacobson HOD Pre-Primary School
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October, 1930 THE MARISTONIAN
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Marist over the years The Marist Brother movement began in France in 1816 in the turbulent wake of the French Revolution. From 1817 Fr. Marcellin Champagnat, accompanied by seven brothers, ran a primary school in the village of La Valla and between them educated children (and some adults) in the basics of reading, writing and Christian teachings at the school and in rural hamlets within the parish. The Marist movement was based on the simple philosophy of service in humility and simplicity through teaching the illiterate children of the poor. The discovery of pure Gold in 1886 in the City of Johannesburg; South Africa brought about a cosmopolitan community. By the time the first Marist Brothers arrived on the scene in October 1889, a theatre had been established, Waller’s Circus had been in town, the Salvation Army performed in front of dubious audiences, and a regular rash of hotels and bars had thrown open their doors to thirsty drinkers. By 1889 the first boys’ school in the city of Johannesburg at Koch Street was founded. Within two years the attendance was at 300. Due to the rapid expansion of the school over the years a separate premises were sought in order to separate the primary and high school sections and relieve issues of space.
Koch Street pupils in 1890’s
The foundation stone was laid in 1924 that year and in 1926 in Eckstein Street, Observatory, the high school, Marist College, was opened. In less than ten years the number of children in the high school was over capacity at 400 (equal to the number of children in the primary section at Koch Street) and demand for places led to a second primary school being created in the orchards of the Observatory site. In the 1960s the rapid urbanisation of Johannesburg saw the Koch street site dwarfed by high rise buildings and surrounded by commercial premises; the Brothers decided to sell up and Koch Street was closed down.
Sacred Heart College Marist Observatory students today
The Marist College at the time was an all boy’s boarding school which later became a nonracial and a co–educational with the amalgamation of Yeoville Convent and St Angela’s Ursuline which took place in 1980’s. The name of the school changed back to Sacred Heart College as it is known today.
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The Story of Saint Marcellin Champagnat Saint Marcellin Joseph Benedict Champagnat was born on the 20 May 1789 in Le Rosey, Marhles, France. He was the ninth child of ten children. The ninth of ten children, Marcellin spent his early years working on his family’s farm, as he’d vowed not to return to school after witnessing cruelty to, and humiliation of, the school pupils. This experience, and the deep religious faith of his mother and aunt, shaped his life’s path, inspiring his religious vocation and his drive for compassionate education. Despite no formal early schooling, Marcellin wanted to study to become a priest and at the age of 15 entered a seminary (after twice sitting the entrance exams). He was ordained at the aged of 26, on the 22nd July 1816. On 2 January 1817, Marcellin encouraged two young men Jean-Marie Granjon and JeanBaptiste Audras, to join him in forming the nucleus of the Marist Brothers, a religious congregation of Brothers in the Roman Catholic Church devoted to Mary and dedicated to education. Others soon followed. La Valla thus became the birthplace of the Marist Brothers.
Marcellin Champagnat was born at Le Rosey on 20 May 1789
Marcellin Champagnat’s birthplace – Le Rosey 9
Champagnat’s bedroom
Chapel alongside Champagnat’s family home. The chapel was built in 1957 two years after the Beatificatioin of Champagnat
La Valla, the house where the first Brothers lived. The table was made by Father Champagnat
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Johannesburg back in the days
1895 Marist boys picnicking under a tree
Commissioner Street 1895 12
1897 Marist boys part of the Coronation Procession of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of Queen Victoria
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Marist Brothers taking part in the Johannesburg Carnival of 1898
1907 Brothers relaxing at a picnic site next to the river 14
1908 Marist College Boarding House
Snow in Banket Street 1909 15
Typical Family Home
Observatory Johannesburg today
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October, 1930 THE MARISTONIAN
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Marist Brothers The Brothers in Johannesburg There was very little that was extraordinary about the coach that rolled into the mining camp known as Johannesburg on the morning of Saturday 28 September 1889. Similar coaches arrived daily, bringing a strange assortment of men and sometimes even women to a town that was as much characterised by its dust, as by the gold beneath its “street�. But three of the occupants of the coach were somewhat unusual. They were dressed in the long dark robes of men of religion and each wore a crucifix prominently on his breast. Some of the bystanders would have recognised these three men as Marist Brothers. Anyone who
had known of the work of the Brothers in Cape Town, Port Elizabeth and Uitenhage would have had no doubt as to the reason for their arrival. They had come to start a school. The Brothers always lived, as they do today, in community residence at Marist institutions that they served. Prior to 1985, the Brothers based at Sacred Heart College in Observatory, Johannesburg lived in rooms on the upper floor of the main building, which today have been converted into the staff room and several offices. In 1985, a new residence was completed for the Brothers, providing rooms for 11 Brothers, a small Chapel space, a dining room and a communal lounge.
Top: Brother Joe Walton Bottom: Br Neil McGurk Right: Br Martin Whiteford with High School students
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Left: Brother Jude Pieterse Right: Brother Mario Colussi
The founders of Marist Brothers, Koch Street. Br Albert Dominic, Br Frederick and Br Euphrase
Brother Vincent George
Brother Jude with Primary School children
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The Brother’s House 2017
The pond at the Brother’s House 20
June, 1926 THE MARISTONIAN Page 23
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Koch street – 1889 0nwards Another Fifty Years a Maristonian An abstract from The Maristonian of 1941 page 55, written by Morris Alexander who was one of the three candidates who wrote and passed the December 1900 Matriculation Examination paper in Johannesburg It was on a bright Summer’s Day in the year 1889 when I entered on my first school days at the Marist Brothers, at Koch Street. The School then consisted of three classrooms which latter formed the West Wing of the larger building and was surrounded by veld. Brother Frederick was in charge, and was assisted by the late Brother Dominic and Euphras. From the very outset one felt himself at home, you found good fellowship and loyalty amongst the pupils, towards one another and also towards the school and teachers. If I remember, Brother Frederick was in charge of the Stationery Shop the entrance to which was covered with arches of grape – vines, the grapes being within easy reach. The boys somehow or other were always in need of pencils or other articles and this mostly occurred during the grape season – “nuf said” – can you imagine boys passing the vines and merely looking at the grapes? From the very early days of the school we were always in the lime – light.
Some Marist Pioneer Pupils of 1889
Mannie Alexander, Percy Commerford, P Busschan, Reg Smith, Morris Alexander, Joe Geddes, Maurice Nolan, Mr Commerford, E O’Donoghue, Alf Ferguson, Mr Jansenius, George Nolan.
I remember the opening of the Johannesburg General Hospital. The pupils of the school were in attendance. Brother Frederick had taught us a song in French which we sang in front of the Hospital buildings. Following on this we took part in the Queen Victorian Diamond Jubilee Celebrations. The whole school, then numbering about 800 pupils were in the Procession which went through the streets of Johannesburg. After the march we gave a display of Club – swinging, Baton I drill and other Exercises at the Wanderers Ground, after which we were all treated to Buns and Ginger-Beer.
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1965 Final Assembly at Koch Street 23
Brothers and pupils at Koch Street in the early years
Koch Street buildings, playground and old gym
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the story of sacred heart college Marist Observatory An abstract from The Marist Brothers (Johannesburg) 1889 – 1989 Centenary Magazine written by Alastair Smurthwaite In October 1933 Brother Frederick paid a visit to Johannesburg. He was 88 years old but by all accounts still sprightly and not lacking in humour. He was taken to see the school at Koch Street which he had founded nearly fifty years before and found both the school and its surroundings changed almost beyond recognition. He also visited the magnificent new Marist College in Observatory. He was impressed, but he could not help but observe of the town, “This is not Johannesburg, not the Johannesburg I knew.” Indeed it was not.The population of Johannesburg was nearing half a million. In 1928 it had been granted the status of a city and was far and away the largest city in South Africa. Just as the Brothers had risen to the challenge of meeting the educational needs of the mining camp in Brother Frederick’s day, so they were to rise to the new challenge of an ever – growing need for their services in the ever – growing city.
Marist Brothers College 1929
1935 New block in the Primary School section
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The Story of Sacred Heart College Marist Observatory continued
In September 1924 the Administrator of the Transvaal, J H Hofmeyr, had laid the foundation stone of the second Marist College, in Observatory. The school itself had not opened until January 1926 but it proved to have been well worth waiting for. The entire senior section of the old Koch Street School, numbering some 250 boys, was transferred there and we are told that “The boys were full of admiration for the well – ventilated classrooms, the hall, the tennis courts and the wide open spaces”. The first school magazine named “The Maristonian” was published that year which was produced almost entirely by pupils of the school. The wide open spaces were in fact the grounds and the sports fields and despite the imposing buildings, there was a great deal of work to be done. Over the years the grounds were laid out largely by the Brothers themselves. One of them, Brother Henry, even obtained a blasting certificate so that he could remove the rocky outcrops from the property himself. The stone was used to build a boundary wall. Marist Observatory continued building upon the high reputation that had been established by Koch Street. Almost every year a record number of pupils was reported. Within five years there were 332 boys and the Brothers had to turn down a number of applications because of lack of space. By 1934 the numbers were close to 400 with an almost equal number in the primary section at Koch Street. Though it had not been intended, the demand for places soon forced Marist Observatory School to take in primary school pupils of its own. As a consequence of this and other factors the numbers had topped 600 by 1941.
Founding Stone 3rd September 1924
Front cover of The Maristonian 1926
1941 was also the year that Brother Emilian retired as principal. In his valedictory message he set out what he saw to be the basic nature of a Marist education. The aim, as he saw it, was,” Not simply to cram young heads with knowledge, not to train athletes; but to train boys to think and do, and instil into them Christian principles that will be a force in their lives and make them citizens of South Africa.”
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As this meant that the story of Marist Observatory in the first few decades of existence was a story of continual development and expansion. The swimming bath was opened in 1930. As early as 1931 a new boarding wing was under construction which included the chaplain’s quarters, a sickroom and a library as well as accommodation for 60 boarders. In 1935 a new classroom block was ready for use. The school hall was improved in 1951. In 1980 an amalgamation took place between Marist Brothers Observatory, Yeoville Convent and St Angela’s Ursuline Convent to form Sacred Heart College as it is today.
1973 Aerial of the College
1972 Science Wing
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2009 Aerial view of Sacred Heart College Marist Observatory
2007 Fountain in the High School Quad
2017 Top field in Autumn
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Main entrance to Sacred Heart College Marist Observatory
Fountain and water tower in the High School
2016 Intermediate Phase Quad 30
Jungle gym in the Primary School
Play area in the Primary School 31
High School archway
The “Old Boys Grounds” was the first established school turf cricket pitch in Johannesburg
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June, 1928
THE MARISTONIAN
June, 1927
October, 1930
June, 1927
October, 1926
The Three Violets represent the virtues of: Humility, Modesty and Simplicity.