From the Desk of Justine Mahon

LEFT TO RIGHT: Head Girl, Carmel Ah Chong, Deputy Head Girl, Helena Haldane, Principal, Justine Mahon, Deputy Head Girl, Katya De Silva and Deputy Head Girl, Florida Mataio.

Tenā koutou katoa, welcome to our November edition of Evergreen Ties. As we reach the end of another academic year, I feel so extremely proud to be Principal of St Cuthbert’s, a College with such a strong sense of community, in the true spirit of ‘By Love Serve’.

Our girls are now well into their second year ofexperiencing the disappointment of cancelled events and special occasions due to COVID-19.The most important thing we can do as educators and parents is reassure them that thistimeshall pass, focus on the good things we all have, and know that these young people will go on to live happy and fulfilled lives.While together in person, and further apart over screens, we have prioritized wellbeing and striven to provide our students with opportunities to learn, grow and share joy.

In this Christmas edition, we share some of these memories, including those we enjoyed in person, such as our St Cuthbert’s musical ‘The Sound of Music’, the many other dramatic, dance and musical performances, our first ‘Giving Day’, and, the times when we were fortunate to be on the side-lines supporting our talented sportswomen. We also celebrate the moments we experienced during our fantastic online learning programme, StCuth’s@home.

The celebrations don’t stop as the girls leave our gates. In this edition, we are profiling some of our amazing Old Girls who contributed to the stellar achievements of New Zealand sportswomen in 2021.

We were fortunate to have one of our Tokyo Olympians, Theresa Fitzpatrick (peer year 2012), who was a part of the Gold medal winning Black Ferns Sevens team, as guest speaker at this year’s Sports Colours celebration. You can read more about Theresa and her equally inspiring sister and Old Girl, Silver Fern, Sulu Fitzpatrick (2010) on page 14. a College during 2021, and, in keeping with this, I have some key members of our community I’d like to thank.

Earlier this year, we farewelled Elisabeth Bell as Chair of Parents & Friends (P&F). Elisabeth’s energetic and inclusive approach was instrumental in ensuring the P&F gained more members for its fabulous group of volunteers during her tenure. We now extend a heartfelt welcome to new Chair Phil McDonald, who is excited about continuing this legacy.

This is the last Evergreen Ties for Old Girls’ Association President, Georgina GilbertRobertson. It has been such a privilege working with the warm and gracious Georgina, who has been instrumental in providing ways for our Old Girls to share, connect, and be inspired despite the exigencies of COVID-19. Current committee member Kirsten McKenzie, will become President from the end of March, 2022. Our readers will be able to get to know Kirsten more in the next edition of Evergreen Ties.

In a few weeks, we farewell a particularly special group of young women, the Year 13 class of 2021. Even though the final years of their schooling have been marred by COVID-19 interruptions, these students have demonstrated remarkable fortitude and maturity in the face of such adversity.

In particular, I’d like to commend our Year 13 Student Leadership teams lead by Head Girl, Carmel Ah Chong, Head Boarder, Charlotte Berry, and Deputy Head Girls, Katya De Silva, Helena Haldane, and Florida Mataio. So often, the students we are striving to inspire, end up inspiring us. Never has this been more marked than in 2021. They have become amazing role models and leaders, and the support provided to their peers, and one another this year, was incredible to witness.

A special thank you, to all our Year 13 students for the mentoring they provided their ‘little sisters’ across the College, during StCuth’s@home online learning. I am eagerly anticipating watching where life’s path takes them next.

Finally, I would like to thank our wonderful devoted staff and Hayley Buckley and the members of Trust Board, for all they have done to support the College during such a challenging year.

On behalf of our Senior leadership team, I wish you all a blessed Christmas and a safe and peaceful end to 2021, and I look forward to seeing you in 2022.

Ngā manaakitanga (with best wishes).

Ms Justine Mahon — Principal