Ad Alta - Issue 34

VOLUME 34

JUNE 2021

Ad Alta Virtute The St Joseph’s College Geelong Alumni Magazine

LYNDON TAKES HIS SHOT AT DREAM CAREER Old Collegian Lyndon Watts is wowing Sydney audiences as Aaron Burr in the smash hit musical Hamilton.

(Photo: Daniel Boud)

Compassion

Innovation

Integrity

A message from the Principal Sometimes a year seems like 12 months, but sometimes it seems like an eternity. The latter seems the case since the last Ad Alta was published. During this time life at St Joseph’s, and in the broader community, has changed enormously.

The first and most obvious shift has been COVID-related with students and staff required to teach and learn remotely for a significant period of time. This change has demanded flexibility and the development of a quite different approach to learning.

Remote learning at St Joseph’s has had both positives and negatives. Many young men have found the lack of face-to-face contact and social interaction extremely difficult. Providing support for well-being and mental health for students and staff has been a particular challenge.

The positive side of remote learning has been the development of a skill set that will hold many boys in good stead in their working lives beyond St Joseph’s. Our classes have been delivered in a mixture of ‘real-time’ and ‘any time’ learning, meaning that most students have developed skills in time management, selfmotivation and independent learning. These may not have developed, or not developed to the same extent in a face-to-face classroom environment. In the future we hope to provide an option for senior schooling whereby those boys suited to this style of learning can undertake a blended mode of face-to-face and remote learning.

Congratulations to the class of 2020 on the results they achieved, despite the extraordinary educational challenges caused by the global pandemic. We wish them

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all the best and hope the lessons learnt throughout last year will set them on a path to success in their chosen endeavours.

A second shift in the last year has been the public call to identify and eliminate predatory, unjust and disrespectful treatment of women by men. This rightful articulation of the rights of women to safety, equality and respect is directed very broadly but places particular responsibility on boys’ schools like St Joseph’s.

At the time of writing, over 23,000 people have signed a petition demanding that schools do more to educate young men on issues relating to sexual consent. There is a particular focus on our obligation to find ways to further educate our boys, not just about sexual assault and informed consent but also the elimination of sexual prejudice, discrimination and sexism. The College currently has a range of appropriate curriculum and programs in place but is conscious of our obligation to do even better.

We currently deliver a range of age appropriate curriculum with ‘Respecting Boundaries’ addressed in year 7 and emotional literacy in year 8. Year 9 students cover ‘Sexual Assault Primary Prevention’, Respectful Relationships and the ‘doctors and teenagers’ program.

In 2021 they will also undertake ‘The Men’s Project’ from Jesuit Social Services which has a strong focus on eliminating toxic masculine behaviours.

At Mt Sion our year 10, 11 and 12 students cover ‘Building Respectful Relationships’ which includes awareness of gender based violence’, ‘barriers and enablers to consent in relationships’, the normalisation

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of pornography, and an exploration of power, consent and the culture of sexualization in our media.

I hope that this summary of both the cultural expectations we have of our young men and the content of what we teach them gives some sense of the priority with which the College treats these matters. Our goal is to graduate fine young men, committed to eliminating any and all abuse, particularly toward girls and women and being advocates for equality and respectful treatment of all.

Perhaps the most public demonstration of this commitment was seen recently when we hosted the inaugural Respect Cup to celebrate International Women’s Day at GMHBA Stadium in which our year 12 First XVIII football team played St Patrick’s Ballarat as a curtain raiser to the women’s game between Sacred Heart and Loreto, Ballarat.

With an uncertain economic future during much of 2020, we were extremely grateful for the continued generous support of our College Bursary program by our Old

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Collegians, Foundation members and financial donors.

More than ever, our willingness to look after each other is what unites us as a community.

The events of the last 12 months have been challenging and they continue to challenge. Our College has an 86-year history of producing graduates who are well equipped to succeed and make difference in the world beyond St Joseph’s. In the COVID era this continues, as does our commitment to having graduates with the skill, understanding and commitment to be good partners, good fathers and good work colleagues who are committed to doing their part to bring about gender equality.

God Bless

Tony Paatsch College Principal

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News from the President 2020 was a year that has presented our Old Collegians with many challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic is much more than just a health crisis. It has weakened the fabric of our societies and lifestyle. It has been extremely tough for many business owners and some families within our community have struggled during these trying times. Looking ahead, we need to reflect on the lessons learned – and ensure we look after each other.

The winners were as follows:

A warm welcome to the Class of 2020 who joined the SJOCA as life members. Congratulations on completing your secondary education at St Joseph’s College, we hope you made many lifelong friendships through your journey and that you can continue your connection for many years to come through the Old Collegians Association. Unfortunately the class of 2020 have had to endure what most would say will be the toughest year of their education. The 2020 class have had many obstacles thrown at them during the year. They have gone through many adversities together during this tough year. It is important to understand that your experience facing and overcoming adversity will be one of your biggest advantages in the future.

It was disappointing that we were not able to hold our Annual Reunions in 2020, including our boarder’s reunion, which many Old Collegians look forward to.

We were saddened last year when Tony Honner, one of our committee members, lost his beloved wife Katrina.

We wish Tony and his family our condolences and our prayers are with you.

On Friday 12 March the Annual Associated Cold Tread Tyres SJC Golf Day was held at 13th Beach Golf Links Barwon Heads. We had fantastic support with the event being sold out. 260 players took part in the day to raise money for the College Bursary program. The conditions on the day were ideal.

We thank all our generous sponsors for their wonderful support once again. To our major sponsor David Bowles and his team at Associated Cold Tread Tyres, we thank you for your outstanding support over many years. It was great to see so many new players and sponsors supporting the school. The change to a Friday afternoon proved to be a winner with player numbers up more than 100 on the previous year. The increase in players resulted in us achieving our highest profit for the golf day with just over $30,000 raised. We look forward to seeing many of you again at the 2022 event.

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Beach Course - IDAWS Felice Male, Paul Bourke, Michael Noonan, John Bantow & Chad Rivett - NETT 50 Creek Course - Anthony Costa Foundation Lachie Devine, Max Hungerford, Alex Hickey, James Allen & Spencer Davies - NETT 51.55

We hope to welcome many of you back in October to celebrate your reunion for this year and last year’s milestone groups. We encourage you to use this opportunity to catch up or reconnect with your classmates from SJC, especially after being locked down for much of 2020.

The SJOCA again donated $20,000 to the College bursary program, which assists families in need with the opportunity to send their boy to St Joseph’s College. The overwhelming response to the ‘A Step Towards his Future’ campaign in June, raising over $100,000 towards the bursary program, is testament to the fantastic support of the wider College Community. We hope many of you are able to continue your support of College activities.

A contribution of $12,500 was made for a new electronic screen on Zampatti Oval, that will be used for many purposes as the College requires throughout the year and for the St Joseph’s Cricket Club. How good is it to see the condition of the magnificent grounds at the College, in particular the improvement of O’Driscol Oval from our contribution towards the irrigation system in 2019.

Thank you to all committee members for their dedicated commitment to the Association and to St Joseph’s.

Justin O ,Brien President

Old Collegians Association Committee President Senior Vice President Junior Vice President Treasurer Administration Officer Committee Members

Justin O’Brien Sam Hopgood Rob Hennessy Sam O’Dwyer Nick Jahnecke Joe Virgona Greg Thompson Tony Honner Simon Bryant Rhys Hegyesi Andy McNeel Liam Jelley Nathan Fox

1988 2009 2001 2000 2009 1969 1981 1983 1994 2016 2017 2017 2019

Keeping Connected Tom Gurrie (SJOCA 1938)

Barry Hill (SJOCA 1950)

Tom Gurrie celebrated his 99th birthday at the start of this year. Tom’s 99th was a low key affair given COVID-19 restrictions back in January. But as evident he was pretty bright and happy to have his favourite girls, daughtersin-law Zarinan and Glenis Gurrie fussing over him. The wonderful event was also shared with Tom’s son, Max, who joked about wondering what Tom thought of having kids in their 70s!

St Joseph’s newest applied learning initiative, “St Mow-seph’s” was launched on Tuesday 24 November.

The program involves VCAL students grabbing there hivis, PPE, gardening tools and heading out into the St Joseph’s community to assist the St Joeys Old Boys in need of a hand in the garden.

Sadly, Tom passed away on Thursday 13 May 2021. On behalf of the St Joseph’s Old Collegians community we wish to extend our deepest condolences to Tom’s family at this very sad time.

John Bohan (SJOCA 1940) Another 99th birthday milestone was celebrated in March with Johan Bohan marking the occasion with a nice morning tea and birthday cake! He was joined by fellow SJC alumni Des Podbury to share stories with the Community Development team of their old St Joeys days.

Barry Hill, class of 1950, was the first old boy to receive a nature strip blitz. Barry was very grateful and appreciative of the service.

The program allows current students to pay respect saying thank you to those who have laid the foundation of the current Joey’s tradition and culture of helping the most vulnerable.

VCAL will be running this service throughout 2021 If you know of any old boys like Barry in the Geelong region who would appreciate a backyard blitz please contact Petera@sjc.vic.edu.au to arrange a time and date.

SJOCA Anthony Smith (1944) and SJOCA Anthony Wynd (1975)

Tom Gurrie (1938) celebrating his 99th birthday with his son, Max.

John Bohan (1940) celebrating his 99th birthday with fellow Old Collegian and good friend Des Podbury (1944), Fiona Podbury, Cameron Ling and Kristen Gleeson.

Barry Hill with St Joseph’s newest applied learning initiative, St Mow-seph’s.

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ST JOSEPH’S COLLEGE GEELONG

F O U N D AT I O N

College Foundation 2020 marked the 25th anniversary of the Foundation while at the same time the College celebrated its 85th year.

On behalf of its members the Foundation made a contribution toward the electronic scoreboard located on Zampatti Oval. Importantly this is not only for the utilisation of the students but also for use by the broader Joeys community.

In this regard and without understating the enormous efforts of all the Foundation members who have assisted in our growth and development over the years, a special note of gratitude goes to the then 1995 Principal, Peter Cannon and the inaugural Foundation Chair, Dennis McGrath.

Throughout 2020 we continued to support the school’s music students to pursue their passion through the provision of music scholarships. This assists these students with the cost of continuing their studies where they may otherwise have been unable to do so.

While the concept of establishing a Foundation had been discussed at various levels over several years, it was Peter and Dennis who placed it firmly on the action item list, making the very straightforward case that, to continue to invest in the future delivery of the best Catholic education for boys in the Geelong region, St Joseph’s College must have its own Foundation. The rest, as they say, is history.

Through the hard work of the school’s Development team, the College Foundation is now well recognised throughout the school community. With such a solid base from which to build upon, we have the opportunity to grow and become a substantial philanthropic body over the next decade.

While we have just only started a multi-generation journey to help ensure that St Joseph’s lives on in perpetuity, I can say, with some pride, that we have come a long way over these past 25 years. Through the generosity of its members the Foundation has played a significant role in supporting the financial needs of the College, be they traditional bricks and mortar projects or contributions to student bursaries.

An exceptional community exists around Joeys that can be relied upon to support the boys whenever there is a need to do so. There was no greater example than in June 2019 where The Every Boy Every Dream campaign (the first for over 10 years at the school) saw the Joeys community raise $500K through around 1000 donors toward the construction of the gymnasium at the Westcourt Campus and the extension to the Performing Arts Centre at the Edmund Rice Campus. This was an extraordinary response by everyone to a need of the school for the boys.

More recently during 2020, which was a challenging year for many, the community rallied to raise $100K for our Bursary Appeal “A step toward his future” and the Foundation was able to contribute a further $30K to

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support those families impacted by the global COVID-19 pandemic.

The Foundation Committee members have a range of diverse skills derived from a variety of business and life experiences and they use these to formulate strategies and initiatives to build upon the outstanding work of past committees. The common objective of all members is to contribute to the provision of the best possible Catholic education to boys of Geelong and its surrounding regions.

Of course, as I write, we all find ourselves, one way or another, amid a global health and economic crisis.

However, as the fog clears and normal life resumes, take a moment to consider the following: The Foundation, through your generosity, may well have funded the education of a future epidemiologist or immunologist who prevents or tackles another world crisis such as a viral pandemic. That is the true power of educational philanthropy.

In the meantime, as Chair of the Foundation, I would like to extend our best wishes to you and your family for the year ahead.

Foundation Chair

Philanthropy at St Joseph’s College is shaping the present and future The power of the Foundation comes through the College Community.

The St Joseph’s College Foundation, established in 1995, is a significant stakeholder in the College and is proud to make regular contributions to quality facility upgrades and further learning opportunities for its students. Our goal is to implement a range of successful initiatives to generate ongoing income and grow a diversified portfolio of investments to provide long-term financial growth.

The Foundation acknowledges the diversity of current families and past students, that add to the rich tapestry of our College Community.

Our Mission To provide ongoing financial support to St Joseph’s College to ensure its initiatives can deliver the best Catholic education for boys in Geelong.

Every gift, no matter the size, has a positive influence on our boys’ learning environment. It gives every boy

the opportunity to fulfil his personal potential, benefiting from the College’s staff, learning environment and programs to “Strive for the Highest”.

Foundation Committee Chairperson Treasurer Secretary General Committee General Committee General Committee General Committee General Committee General Committee General Committee General Committee

Paul McNamara Steve Madden Kristen Gleeson Warick Brown Kevin Costa Lucy Dripps Trent Duffield Roland Mrak Kylie Oliver Joe Virgona Maureen Zampatti

ANNUAL GIFTING make a difference at St Joseph’s College?

In 2020, how did

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Bursaries

$130,165

Bursaries provide an opportunity for disadvantaged students who would otherwise be unable to afford a St Joseph’s education.

240

Money Raised

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Donors

New Foundation MEMBERS

New McNeill Society MEMBERS

225

Foundation MEMBERS

27

McNeill Society MEMBERS

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Building Works In October 2020, the College completed the construction of the extension to the Peter Cannon Performing Arts Centre (PAC). After officially having the building handed back, the space was unfortunately only used sparingly and at a much-reduced capacity during the latter part of the year due to COVID-19 restrictions. As restrictions slowly ease we now look forward to showcasing our larger and beautifully finished space much more in the 2021 school year.

The actual works involved an extension to the existing cantilever section over the quadrangle. The seating capacity of the PAC was increased from 260 to 350, thus enabling full year level assemblies to be staged in the facility. The cost of the project was approximately $1.3M and a portion of the costs were supported by the highly successful Every Boy, Every Dream capital fundraising appeal.

During 2020 a much-needed display screen/scoreboard was also fitted to the Joseph’s Centre for use on Zampatti oval. Originally costs were to be shared between the College, St Joseph’s Cricket Club and our Old Collegians.

However, thanks to the generosity of the College Foundation who were seeking a project to support linked to their 25th Year celebrations, the project costs were actually split between the Foundation, our Old Collegians and St Joseph’s Cricket Club.

the College. The design also incorporates a kitchenette and classroom learning space. The cost of the project is anticipated to be approximately $1.3M which will be assisted in part by the St Joseph’s Cricket Club who were successful in obtaining a $350K grant from the City of Greater Geelong (COGG) towards the project build.

The second major project set for completion in 2021 will be classrooms on the bottom floor of the Peter Chanel Centre.

These will include general classrooms and a purpose-built STEM area to support the teaching of science, technology, engineering and maths. This project is due to go to tender in the early part of 2021 with completion of the project expected in the latter half of the year in readiness for the 2022 school year. The anticipated cost of the project is $2.5M and the completion of this building then plays a vital role in providing spaces necessary to assist us to move through the next stages of our Master Plan. An updated Master Plan was presented to and approved by the College Advisory Council in May 2020.

Andrew Dowd Business Manager

The large screen gives the College a highly visible display and scoreboard capabilities perfect for school sports days as well as school cricket and football matches. It also offers flexibility in providing another option of a large scale meeting space for student and/or parent gatherings.

Designs were finalized for the building of a Pavilion on Carey Oval in 2020 however a VCAT hearing was required.

The hearing, initially set for March, was also impacted by COVID-19 and postponed to November.

After a successful hearing decision in favor of the College, a building permit has been granted and this project will commence in 2021. The project will provide much-needed male and female changeroom facilities in this area of

Carey Oval Pavilion Elevations.

Carey Oval Pavilion Floorplan.

New electronic screen on Zampatti Oval.

Perspective drawing of looking at the Pavilion from on the oval.

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McNeill Cup Winner Freddie Dripps When John McNeill started school, I doubt very much that the end goal was to eventually have an award named after him. Instead, John, like so many other young men then and now, embraced the opportunities in front of him – academic, sporting, cultural, the arts, and unfamiliar to men/boys of our generation, the call to serve his country. Paying the ultimate sacrifice in 1942 at the age of 23.

I’m humbled to be the winner of this award and stand alongside so many other proud Joeys boys who also made the most of every opportunity during their schooling by embracing the gift of education that their families have provided them. Don’t squander this gift.

We are privileged to be here, and we are obliged to make the most of this privilege.

I would like to take this opportunity to mention a few little pieces of ‘wisdom’ from my years of schooling.

Joey’s offers so incredibly much to help you reach your full potential and enable you to grow into the remarkable young men that you are. Get around the opportunities.

I’m not saying that you have to do everything, but with what you do bring a sense of purpose and meaning to it.

Freddie receiving the McNeill Cup from Principal, Tony Paatsch.

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Love your mates. Tell them you love them and appreciate them. Make it ring in their ears. We have become so much more emotionally intelligent through our adversity.

Love is the strongest thing we have, and with it comes an abundance of happiness.

Take time to reflect. Consider what is most important and what you are grateful for. Be more informed, more passionate and help shape the future you want to be part of.

John McNeill’s life was so short, he had dreams and aspirations for the future just like we do, he had much left to accomplish. So today I ask you to honor his life by being the best version of yourself. By living your best life NOW and living it with kindness and love and with pride in being a Joeys boy.

I wish you all the best for a successful 2021.

Thank you

Freddie Dripps

Freddie with parents, Lucy and Marcus Dripps at the Mt Sion Awards Ceremony.

College Dux Clancy Hehir If I have learnt anything about this school in the last six years, it would be that it truly lives up to its motto; Ad Alta Virtute, to strive for the highest. When I think of St Joseph’s, I think of a place where all students are supported and encouraged to create a vision for who they want to be, whether that be in the classroom, in workplace training, on the sporting field or in the arts.

Being a year 12 student last year was certainly no easy journey. Many of us came into the year with a preconceived understanding of the work ethic we would need to employ to achieve our goals, but also with a sense of sentimentality as to what this final year of schooling represented. Yet, after a few weeks into the first lockdown, it was increasingly clear that St Joseph’s wasn’t necessarily a physical location, but a community, a connection of staff, students and parents looking out for one another. I mention this as I believe it crucial that when one recognizes their success, they must also acknowledge the role that others played in manufacturing that success. Firstly, to the staff, I think I speak for the whole of my cohort when I thank you for your endless dedication to your students.

Throughout COVID, you had to adjust our schedules and adapt to altered study designs, and facilitate ways for assessments to be completed online. All of this amongst the constant feedback you provided throughout the year.

I can’t thank you enough. Secondly, to the rest of my Year 12 cohort. Though we may have been separated at times throughout the year, our achievements were at least partly a collective effort. Learning from others is a vital factor in education, so we found ways to maintain contact online, discuss ideas, and help each other.

Finally, I’d like to thank my parents, who supported and encouraged me throughout the year.

Many of you might assume that in order to achieve the score I did, I undertook endless hours of study, stayed up late into the night glued to my desk with no time to enjoy

Clancy accepting his certificate as Dux of the College from Principal, Tony Paatsch.

non-study related activities. But this would be false – in fact, I found that I was most productive when I had given myself some time out rather than studying for hours on end with no break. Finding the right balance between school work and leisure is, I believe, the key to success.

Always set aside some time to catch up with family and friends, exercise, or do something that allows you to regain energy and motivation. You’ve probably heard the mantra “study smart, not hard” an endless number of times before, but it’s something that you should always be reminding yourself to do. How this can be achieved is a harder thing to explain, as there is no “one size fits all” technique when it comes to studying. So the best piece of advice I could give would be to do some trial and error and discover what works best for you. Moreover, I found that by setting myself small goals throughout the year, I was able to keep myself on track to complete my work to the best of my ability. Getting home from school, outlining what I wanted to achieve that night, and then successfully completing those tasks was crucial in maintaining my motivation. Most achievements are made from smaller achievements, so it’s important to recognise that every piece of effort you put in is moving you closer towards your goals.

If I could give any advice to the younger students, or even those in senior year levels, it would be to not limit yourself. Try something new, whether that be a school subject, a sport or a musical instrument, and take advantage of the opportunities that are available to you. Don’t box yourself into a particular category, but rather seek out to be the best version of you that you can imagine. To be a Joey’s Boy is to strive for the highest, and utilize the resources that are presented to you, whether that be your teacher, your textbook or your classmate.

Clancy Hehir

Clancy with parents, Leo and Veronica Hehir at the Mt Sion Awards Ceremony.

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Where are they now?

Lyndon Watts (SJOC 2011) Former student Lyndon Watts (SJOC 2011) is wowing Sydney audiences as Aaron Burr in the smash hit musical Hamilton. He spoke to KYLIE OLIVER about his lifechanging starring role and the journey that led him to it.

When Lyndon Watts thinks back to the biggest influences on his future career direction there is one name that immediately comes to mind.

“Miss McLean,” he says, without hesitation.

Lyndon, who is currently starring in the mega hit musical Hamilton, has nothing but glowing reviews of Janine McLean who was his drama teacher at St Joseph’s College.

“I moved to Joeys in Year 9 and friendships had already been made so I struggled fitting in at first but I instantly found a home in the drama and music department,” he recalls.

“Janine was a really big part of that, I think she was excited to see a young man so passionate about creative arts and drama.

“She had a passion for acting and a sense of joy with it as well which I always really liked.

She put on fabulous productions which she has an absolute gift for … she would have helped a lot of kids tap into their creative side.”

Lyndon says it was Janine who helped with his audition for a place at the prestigious Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA).

He was accepted into the world-class performing arts academy and spent three years studying musical theatre.

His career has flourished from there.

The 27-year-old has performed in musicals such as Aladdin, West Side Story and A Chorus Line. He was also a finalist for a Rob Guest Endowment award in 2018.

But securing a lead role in Hamilton has proven to be beyond anything he could have imagined.

It has been a defining moment for the talented performer who is from a Caribbean/Australian family, with his dad originally from Trinidad and Tobago and his mum hailing from Colac.

He was hand-picked for his role by Lin-Manuel Miranda,

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the award-winning writer and creator of Hamilton which tells the story of American founding father Alexander Hamilton and features a score which blends hip-hop, jazz, R&B and Broadway.

Lyndon plays to the soon-to-be vice president of the United States, Aaron Burr, but he did not have a specific role in mind when auditioning because it was the show itself that captivated him.

“I saw the original Broadway cast in New York in 2015 and it was pretty important to me because not often, at that point, had I seen that many people who looked like me, my family and my loved ones, telling stories and singing – it’s quite rare to see an ensemble of actors represent what our streets actually looked like,” he says.

“That was one of the first times I saw myself truly represented in a contemporary sense in the art I was pursuing.

Normally with people of colour or the black experience, sometimes it can be limiting and there might not be more than one role in a musical you think you have a chance at getting.

You might have one supporting role you think you might have a shot at.

But with Hamilton there were so many opportunities that I just wanted to give it my best shot and see where I landed because I could see myself in so many of these characters.”

Lyndon says not being able to perform due to the pandemic also elevated the experience of being cast in the show.

“It’s wonderful, the response has been incredible,” he says.

“I hadn’t quite prepared for what the audience response was going to be.

I knew they would enjoy it because Hamilton the musical

Lyndon performing at the school production, Seussical the Musical, whilst at SJC in 2008.

Lyndon enjoying the moments before heading onstage in his role as Aaron Burr in Hamilton.

was loved worldwide but I’ve never experienced anything like it.”

He says the energy and emotion of opening night is something that will stay with him as a standout career moment.

“It was surreal because not only had it been a while since any of us had been on stage performing for an audience after last year,” he explains.

“It just seemed like we were so far away from being able to do this safely but thanks to the diligence of the company and the city of Sydney, with everyone working together to do the right thing … it got us there to opening night.

It makes me so grateful to do what I do - it’s not just my job anymore.

At the time this was one of the only musicals performing in the world and the only production of Hamilton in the world, so it had so many layers of meaning and so much weight and joy to it.

It’s much bigger than just me being in a musical, it represents much more, so every time I walk on stage, I walk with that and it’s beautiful.”

Lyndon says the show has changed his outlook on what once would have been his bucket list of dream roles.

“Last year I might have had some very specific answers but this year it has changed, I think everything has changed after last year and everything has also changed after Hamilton for me,” he says.

“In creating my version of Aaron Burr I got to put in a lot of myself which I never gave myself permission to do before.

I really want to keep doing that as much as I can which is tricky because I would have to re-evaluate old dream roles I’ve had since I was a kid.

I’ve done a lot of musicals from the golden age, a lot of historic musicals and now I would love to do some

modern musicals – that would be really fun.”

But for now, Lyndon is relishing being back on stage while keeping himself fit enough to maintain a hectic sixday schedule of performances.

“I spend my one day off doing lots of recovery stuff – it’s like athlete recovery – with acupuncture, physio, water therapy, some heat stuff and rest, rest, rest to let the body recover from the week,” he says.

More than ever before, Lyndon appreciates where he is at and the people who supported him to get there.

“The best thing about moving to Geelong from Melbourne as a teenager was the opportunities it gave me,” he says.

“You might think coming from a big city there’d be more opportunities to do singing and acting and dance training but the thing about Geelong is that the communities around theatres and arts are condensed, focused and very diligent and it’s just really potent.”

He says both St Joeys and Sacred Heart, where he studied VCE dance, were integral to the journey.

“It’s a really beautiful community at Joeys with that setup where they say ‘we don’t offer dance but we have this amazing contact school down the road where you can do it’,” he says.

“It was amazing, the teachers are incredible and I wouldn’t have been able to do it had I gone to a different school so I’m very grateful.”

Starring as the Cat in the Hat in the 2008 school production.

Lyndon and the cast of Hamilton: An American Musical. He is pictured third from the right. (Photo: Daniel Boud)

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Where are they now?

Brian Weston (SJOC 1962) My father had his schooling disrupted when he had 75 mm of his femur removed at the age of seven. He was lucky to survive, eventually commencing work as an apprentice storeman before completing Year 8. My mother completed Year 8 with distinction, earning a scholarship to Intermediate (Year 10). But with her father out of work in the Great Depression she declined the scholarship and went to work in a factory.

backed by the financial help of the Commonwealth Scholarship.’

My parents moved to Queenscliff in 1955 where my mother, adamant her three sons would matriculate, enrolled me at St Joseph’s College in 1956, in Grade 6. Middle brother Terry followed in 1958 (Grade 4) and youngest brother Denis in 1961 (Grade 3). We all matriculated and over those years, clocked up thousands of kilometres with Geelong Associated Buslines which should have earned us equity in the company.

‘these results are quite outstanding and the teachers concerned deserve special congratulations.’

Br F.H. Molloy tutored Grade 6 in a class of 56 boys. He was a man of gravitas and, despite his 69 years, a man of relentless energy. Further memorable tutors, such as Br B.A. Verdon, Br D.M. McCabe and Br B.D. Irvin, built on the base established by Molloy.

In 1959, Br J.R. O’Keane assumed the stewardship of St Joseph’s College and immediately viewed the results of the matriculation class - a class of 18 of which only 12 matriculated - as inadequate. Br O’Keane exhorted parents to aspire to greater things, stating at the annual presentation evening, and in Virtus 1960: ‘I must register my great disappointment at the unflattering small number of Catholic students in the Matriculation class … I could quote smaller, lessimportant country cities and towns with three times that number … make the sacrifice and encourage your sons to stay … until they matriculate … so they may enter the competitive life of university, commerce or research,

Flying Officer Weston and his RAAF Sabre Jet Fighter.

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In the next three years, assisted by dedicated academic tutors such as Br J.C. Woodruff, 24 young men in the class of 1962 matriculated, the largest number of St Joseph’s matriculants to date. The Principal was clearly pleased, reflecting in Virtus 1963, when he declared to parents:

High praise indeed from a stern and demanding O’Keane in an age, and in an institution, where praise was bestowed infrequently and only when definitely warranted.

I left St Joseph’s, fortunate in knowing what I wanted, to fly the Sabre jet fighters of Australia’s air force. It was a long-standing passion which started in 1953, with a viewing of the film ‘Sound Barrier’. I joined the RAAF Academy at Point Cook, an institution which had recently become a campus of the University of Melbourne, involving study for a BSc – a double major in physics and a fourth year of post-graduate study in engineering, aerodynamics, meteorology, history of war, electronics, statistics, psychology and air power.

Pilot training followed and with the Vietnam War causing a shortage of pilots, a lucky few were sent to be trained in Britain which involved flying the Hawker Hunter - a jet fighter now considered an aviation ‘classic’. On return to Australia, conversion to the Sabre followed, then to the French Mirage IIIO - a most elegant fighter with its designer, Marcel Dassault, reputedly explaining, ‘if it looks nice, it flies nice’, a quote which sounds much more eloquent in French than English!

Wing Commander Weston leading six No 75 Squadron Mirages.

Somewhere along the way, marriage. Frequently, I am asked why it took some seven years after meeting Renate on the school bus? All I can do is quote the air force adage, ‘if you were meant to marry, the air force would have issued you with a wife!’

Nine years of flying the Mirage followed, including graduating from the 20 week RAAF fighter-combatinstructor course. My piloting experience with the Mirage concluded with the command of No 75 Squadron responsible for 19 fighters and some 230 personnel - at Butterworth, Malaysia. It was a privilege and honour to follow in the paths of so many distinguished commanding officers of that squadron.

Later I served as commanding officer RAAF Base Richmond, oversighting the 660 personnel (25 per cent of whom were women) who ran Australia’s largest, and 24/7, air transport base. A return to fighters followed, flying the F/A-18A Hornet as Commander, Tactical Fighter Group – a new organisational entity comprising over 100 aircraft, 4 radar stations and 2,300 personnel spread across six locations in Australia.

When doors slam in your face, take up the challenge of finding alternatives - from which you will gain a better perspective of life and learn a lot more about yourself in how to rebound from disappointments.

Invest time and effort in further education, vocational training and personal development - you will never know it all.

Retain your sense of humour, take time out to recharge your enthusiasm and do not be afraid to seek the advice of trusted mentors. In later life, when appropriate, return the favour to another generation.

Finally, when it is all ‘done-and-dusted’ remember, the only thing that matters is what sort of a father you have been to your children.

Brian Weston

All this would not have been possible without the educational foundation gained at St Joseph’s College and in joining an air force that invested heavily in education, vocational training and personnel development, such as: attendance at the US Air War College, Alabama and at the Royal College of Defence Studies, London. While in the US, I took time out to complete an MBA which later, assisted my post-air force life working in Australia’s defence industry.

So, what have I learnt, sometimes painfully, over the years and what can I offer young alumni of St Joseph’s?

If you already have a passion of substance, value it and pursue it. If you are unsure of your aims in life, spend time and effort searching far and wide in finding something of substance and satisfaction (remember, we do not need to be all brain surgeons).

When doors open in life, value and grasp the opportunity, including showing some humility as you simply may have been in the right place at the right time.

“The reason I have for making a bequest and joining the McNeill Society is simple. I believe every boy should have the opportunity of a St Joseph’s education and I want to continue to be part of that story going forward”

- Kevin Costa, Foundation Member & College Alumni 1961.

Air Commodore Weston inflight refuels from a RAAF Boeing 707.

Co Compassion Community Co Co Commitment 14

Where are they now?

Damian Armour (SJOC 1987) Pigdons Rd in Waurn Ponds was a road I had travelled many times before - the pathway to the frequently visited Bunnings Warehouse. However, this day in April 2014 was different because I had cause to stop halfway and take a walk around a 10-hectare paddock adjacent to Deakin University. The week prior I had just been appointed CEO of Epworth Geelong Hospital and I stopped to walk around the vacant paddock to imagine what the site would become when, after a two year construction, the new Epworth Geelong Hospital would open and we would treat our first patient.

The task of overseeing the commissioning of a new hospital was daunting enough but undertaking this in the region where you had spent your entire life added an extra dimension. One day a friend or family member would require treatment in that hospital for which you were responsible. Failure had significant personal and professional consequences.

Fast forward six years and within Epworth Geelong Hospital, nephews were born, family members treated for cancer, friends’ lives are saved and some sadly pass away. That sense of burden replaced by one of pride in the

team of incredible healthcare professionals and support staff, who together created an amazing environment for patient care. The risk was certainly one worth taking as this was a career experience that I will never surpass.

I often reflect on the things from my past that helped to shape my career path. It’s certainly never one single thing but some of the themes that have helped me along the way included: • The importance of continual education throughout my career; • The role of sport in personal wellbeing and career development; and • The sense of obligation and fulfilment gained by giving back.

The foundation of my working career was initially shaped during my six years at SJC followed by three years at Deakin University. Clearly my time at both these institutions provided a fantastic education, however, they also provided a broad range of life experiences, built resilience and created lifelong bonds.

Continuing education throughout my working career has been an important layer in achieving my career goals.

In many respects the education that you undertake after you have commenced your working life is more impactful than secondary school and undergraduate education because you are able to apply real life working experiences to the theory. I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have had employers that have been prepared to invest in my development. The opportunities I have had at overseas educational institutions like the London Business School have provided incredibly impactful learning experiences and helped foster new professional relationships and networks.

Sport has been extremely important to me and, perhaps unexpectedly, something that has had a profound impact on my working career. Athletics was my chosen sport at a very young age, however, through a SJC friendship I found the YMCA basketball club and a genuine passion

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for the sport begun. Team sport created an environment where I learnt about culture, teamwork and leadership.

Experiences that certainly served me well throughout my working career. It also introduced me to people who have subsequently been lifelong friends and others who have become my most influential mentors.

Being involved in basketball also gifted me several incredible experiences. My most memorable was in 1998, the last time I represented the Geelong Supercats.

At the conclusion of the SEABL season that year we were fortunate to have been given the opportunity to tour the USA and play exhibition matches against four US College teams, the last game against NCAA powerhouse Kansas University.

Now the fact that we played in Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse, with Wilt Chamberlin’s jersey hanging from the rafters, against the Kansas University Jayhawks coached by future hall of fame coach Roy Williams may not mean much to most people. However, for me it felt like I was walking back through basketball history when we walked into that stadium. Game time arrived and we ran out for the warmups. The stadium was packed with passionate fans, the court overflowing with cheerleaders and mascots, the school band was playing at one end of the court and the vibrant student section at the other. The team introductions are undertaken, anthems played and it’s time for the tip off. The game starts and ends and in between we are taught a basketball lesson by one of

the top teams in the American college system. However, sitting in the changeroom afterwards the numbers on the scoreboard paled into insignificance compared to the experience had by the 10 players and coaching staff over the prior two hours – a lifelong memory created.

It’s these sorts of experiences that has given me a sense of obligation to give back in some way when my time playing the game was up. Volunteering in an administrative or coaching capacity does require a significant commitment, but beyond the sense of obligation I felt to make this contribution, the volunteering itself is incredibly satisfying. That sense of obligation has also extended to my working career where the investment of time into the development of the people around me as an increasingly important and satisfying career goal.

In March 2020 I started a new chapter of my career by recommencing with KPMG, my very first employer in 1990, as a Partner in Management Consulting. Starting the new role in March 2020 when COVID began to escalate in Australia was certainly a new and unexpected challenge and, like us all, tested my resilience levels. A time that has again made me reflect on the past and feel very grateful for the numerous influences, including my time at SJC that helped me get through it all.

Damian Armour

Representing the Geelong Supercats in an exhibition match against US College team Kansas University.

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Where are they now?

Jarryd Wood (SJOC 2020) With my brother James attending College before me, I had a little insight into what is required to be recruited into a good College with both a great baseball program and a good academic reputation. As much as I love my sport, it has always been my plan to pursue a great education hopefully resulting in a good degree and great future work prospects.

American education results use the Grade Point Average (GPA) calculation process which is calculated over the four years from Year 9 – 12. Therefore, I knew I needed to have good school results from Year 9 onwards to acquire an academic and athletic scholarship at a NCAA Division 1 College in the USA. From experience, talking to coaches and other athletes, good academic grades are essential for players looking to become University athletes straight out of high school. Many players choose to go to Junior College before they transfer to a four-year university if their grades do not help them acquire an academic aid package. I considered this route seriously, as it has had previous success in helping players mature and secure a position at a university later on.

In Year 10 I joined a recruitment program which selected players to attend a baseball tour in Phoenix Arizona. The focus of this invitation-only tour was to identify talented players from around Australia and to provide exposure

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Jarryd Wood signing a scholarship to play baseball for the University of the Pacific in California.

for these players to College coaches in the US. My aim was to be offered an athletic scholarship in a US Division 1 After four years of college after I completed Year 12 in Australia, I came away from this tour with contacts from Colleges throughout the USA but no firm offer.

In October of Year 11, I again went on the tour and showcased for College baseball recruiters. I was invited to attend the All Academic tryout at the Arizona Fall Classic in Phoenix for students who received over 1200 in their SATs. As a result, I had interest from the University of the Pacific in California. They invited me to return on a “recruitment tour” in the November of my Year 11 – equivalent to the American Junior year. They are a high academic school and they ultimately offered both an Athletic scholarship to play baseball plus an Academic scholarship as I have achieved more than a 3.5 GPA in my studies. My recruiting tour resulted in my acceptance of the offer and “verbally committing” to attend College in 2021.

NCAA Division 1 rules dictate that no student athlete can “sign” their Letter of Intent until National signing day of the year before attendance. I signed my NLI on 11 November 2020.

Jarryd Wood

Where are they now?

Lelo Sejean (SJOC 2007) I attended St Joeys from 2003-2007 and have very happy memories of my time there. I send my best regards to all the teachers who taught me, in particular the wonderful P.E staff who encouraged me to pursue my passions.

After leaving school I have played football extensively across South America, based for the majority of my career in Paraguay. I began my professional career in Argentina with Barracas Central before moving to Paraguay.

I have played across five clubs in Paraguay and am currently playing for Tacuary in the Paraguayan División Intermedia, like so many sporting codes across the world we have been severely impacted by the COVID pandemic but I am looking forward to the opportunity of resuming the game I love.

Throughout this time I have also competed at elite level athletics in the Javelin Throw and Long Jump for the Sol de América – Asunción club in the National Track and Field Athletics competitions.

The focus of my studies throughout the years since I finished at St Joeys has been in Health, Nutrition and Fitness. Another big focus has been on my language skills to complement my English and I am currently fluent in Spanish, Intermediate in Guarani, Arabic and Portuguese, and Basic in French, Japanese and German.

In South America, I was faced with adversity – experiencing poverty, hunger, living in very third-world conditions, receiving very little financial sustenance in my profession, facing social abuse and harsh critics by the football public, and still having and intensifying my hunger and desire to win and fulfil my objectives.

My future professional goals are to play in the Primera Division Paraguaya (currently ranked 8th best league in the world by the IFFHS), become the most successful Australian footballer that has played in South America and make history here, and also play for the Socceroos at the 2021 Copa America and the 2022 FIFA World Cup. I wanted to leave my last thoughts for the current students at St Joseph’s … life is about converting your objectives into reality, no matter what it takes, no matter how many times you fail.

Decide definitely what you want from life; then create a plan for attaining it and be willing to sacrifice everything else, if necessary, rather than accept permanent defeat.

Believe in yourself and in your ability to make life provide you with whatever you demand of it. Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.

Lelo Sejean

Over the years I have learnt many important things, especially from my time at Joeys. Among them: having a definite objective and purpose, then being met with adversity but most importantly; learning from the adversities that other people experienced in the past before attaining noteworthy success.

Embarking on another season for Tacuary in the Paraguayan Division Intermedia.

Lelo honing his skills for Tacuary.

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Where are they now?

Joel Starcevic (SJOC 1998) I started university straight after SJC but hated my commerce course so pulled out after 18 months.

Probably not the best words of wisdom!

Through a family friend I got a job running water for the Geelong FC in 1997 and entering stats for the VFL and AFL teams. Got to travel with the senior team and thought it was as good as life gets! Didn’t get paid a cent but knew the experience was unbelievable and met some great people.

When uni ended, I rang Paul Armstrong and Dean Schultz who had both recently left the Cats to work at the Bulldogs, and they had a job available doing the video editing. Again, I knew nothing about this but taught myself on the job and worked my backside off for two years, ridiculous hours, but gained invaluable experience and connections. It was during this time I sent some demo tapes to TV networks and got work at AFL Films as an editor.

Once again, I was prepared to work extremely hard in the early days to gain experience and respect and eventually got an opportunity to start producing AFL games for Channel 10. I was fortunate enough to produce AFL for Channel 10 for six years including two Grand Finals, before they lost the AFL rights, from there I went to work for Fox Footy, producing their football coverage for two years and then to Channel 7 Sport, where I’ve been working since 2015. Over that time frame I have also enjoyed working on three AFL Grand Finals, the Winter Olympics, Commonwealth Games, horse racing’s Spring Carnival, NBL Basketball and Australian Netball League.

Over my career journey, my favourite photo is with Bruce McAvaney and Cameron Ling. It was a Friday night ritual in high school for Lingy and our other mates to come around to my house and watch Friday night footy. We both worshipped Bruce as an AFL caller. Fast forward 17 years, and the three of us are working together on an AFL Grand Final coverage. Me as the producer, Bruce as the host, and Lingy as the three times premiership player and AFL expert. Surreal to say the least!

Having worked in footy for 20 years, I’ve recently moved onto other sports. Cricket is now my main job – I have done Big Bash cricket for eight years and produced Seven’s Test match coverage for the last two summers and loved that. I enjoy working on different sports as it always keeps it interesting and fresh challenges take me out of my comfort zone. I’m having a crack at motorsport this year, making my first sports documentary and, hopefully, producing my first Olympic Games. In the coming years I will be involved in the production of an Ashes series. I would like to keep producing sport for the next few years, then at some stage it will be time to move into a management-type role. But that can wait a bit!

I wanted to finish with a small message to the current Year 12s … don’t stress if you don’t know what you want to do with your life yet. Be prepared to try things, take risks, and when you find something you are good at, and

The best piece of advice I ever got was “the harder you work, the luckier you get”. There really couldn’t be truer words spoken. David Barham has easily been the biggest influence on me for almost 20 years now. He has been an innovative leader in the broadcasting of live sport for a long time but more importantly, a great friend and mentor. He has taught me so much about what’s important in TV production, live sport and life in general.

Joel producing Friday Night Football with the great Dennis Cometti.

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Joel producing the AFL Grand Final with legendary sports broadcaster Bruce McAvaney and Cameron Ling (1998).

enjoy doing, do whatever it takes to make it work – even if it means working for free in the early days, putting in extra hours, etc. You mightn’t realise it at the time, but people do notice when you go to extra lengths to be better.

Also, learn as many life lessons as you can, as early as you can. How to manage your finances, how to invest money, how to apply for a home loan, how to change a tyre, how to cook food, etc. Don’t underestimate how important these things will be in your life sooner than you expect it.

And travel as often as you can. It’s a big world out there.

My time at Joeys was great. Nothing but good memories.

First thing that comes to mind is the good times you have with mates. Some of these friendships last a long time, but not all do. One thing I’ll say about this – try to make as many SJC reunions as you can. Even if you haven’t seen many guys for five years, you won’t regret going.

SuperBowl Sunday watching his favourite team the New England Patriots win a thrilling game against the Seattle Seahawks.

Joel Starcevic

“FUNERALS YOUR WAY” MICHAEL KING

Producing the Boxing Day Test at the MCG with former Australian Captain, Ricky Ponting.

03 5248 3444 kingsfunerals.com.au GREATER GEELONG BELLARINE PENINSULA SURF COAST

65+ YEARS

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Where are they now?

Mick McGrath (SJOC 1965) I left St Joseph’s at the end of 1965 and with the aid of a Commonwealth Scholarship studied mathematics and science at the University of Melbourne, where I was resident in Newman College for the duration of my undergraduate degree. I was awarded a BSc in 1969 and joined the Postmaster General’s Department (later called Telecom and, then, Telstra). After completing a computer programming training course I was transferred to the organisation’s Information Systems Department, NSW, where I worked in a variety of operational and systems’ development roles, including stints as manager, National Applications Development and manager Information Architecture. Whilst with Telecom I was awarded an internal scholarship to pursue a masters research degree investigating the application of artificial intelligence languages and techniques to verylarge databases. I was awarded my masters qualification in 1982. I left Telecom at the end of 1990 in order to further pursue my research interest in artificial intelligence and graduated with a PhD from Macquarie University in 1993.

I joined the Computer Science Department at Macquarie after my PhD studies and remained with them until the end of 2001, when I moved back to Melbourne as the inaugural Professor of Information Systems at Victoria University (VU). I retired at the end of 2019 but remain actively involved with my research and hold both an Honorary Professor’s position at VU and a position as a member of the College of Eminent Professors at William Angliss Institute. I have won a number of large government research grants and have authored over 300 journal and conference articles and book chapters.

I married Lesley O’Neill (ex-Sacred Heart College) in 1970 and we live today in Kensington Banks (a short bike ride from VU’s Footscray Park campus).

1970 Commonwealth Games triple jump at Edinburgh, Scotland. I won the Australian triple jump championship on five occasions between 1970-1978 and a total of 11 Vic and NSW long and triple jump championships between 1969-1983. I also won the British triple jump championship in 1975. At various points I held Australian, Vic and NSW open and residential triple jump records, as well as the Australian junior triple jump and decathlon records. I competed for the University of Melbourne in the Australian Intervarsity carnival between 1966-1968 and won a total of six events in the high, long and tripe jumps, as well as the 4x100m relay. I was awarded a University full-blue in 1966.

At St Joseph’s, I was open athletics champion in 1964 and also 1965 (where I won all running and jumping events: 100, 220, 440, 880 yards, mile, HJ, LJ and TJ, plus third in the 120H and shot put). Later in 1965, I won the 220y, HJ and LJ events at the Combined Country Catholic Colleges meeting at Olympic Park, Melbourne and the Vic All-Schools triple jump championship. I also won the School cross-country championship and Combined Geelong Schools cross-country title in 1965. I played CHF in the School’s 1965 GDFL U18 premiership team (undefeated).

My major influences at St Joseph’s were Brother Stewart, Brother Flaherty and Brother Howe. As school 1st-18 football coach, Br. Stewart was something of a legend among the boys and, while he took us for Year 11 Chemistry, football was pretty clearly his major priority.

He was extremely supportive of all of us who played under him. Br. Flaherty took all the school’s senior mathematics classes and displayed the ‘patience of Job’

I also competed for Australia in the long and triple jump between 1969 and 1977, including the Olympic Games (1972) and the Commonwealth Games (1970 and 1974). My best result was a silver medal in the

GDFL U18 premiers 1965 (McGrath is 4th from right, back row).

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Triple jumping to a silver medal at the 1970 Commonwealth Games (Edinburgh, Scotland).

in drilling the intricacies of the differential calculus into his charges thick skulls! Along with Br. Howe, he was the school athletics coach. Br. Howe was the senior Physics master and was held in some awe because of his ability to run up the Queens Park hill without stopping.

I am now semi-retired but, as noted, still hold an Hon. Professor’s position at VU and am a member of the College of Eminent Professors at William Angliss Institute, where I continue with my research activities. With a pair of shot knees, my track and field days are gone but I am a very keen bike rider and participate in community rides all over the country. I follow the professional. bike riding closely and am planning to attend the Giro d’Italia in the future. I am using that as an excuse to study Italian, which I am currently doing at the Centre for Italian Studies, Carlton.

Coming up from Eastern Beach during the Cadel Evans community ride, 2020.

Karen Shum SJC Careers Coordinator 2020 has been a year like no other, and for so many reasons. One in particular has been a highlight for me. This achievement also unexpectedly provided an opportunity for my community to learn about my more creative exploits. This year, one of my artworks was selected as a finalist for the Napier Waller Art Prize, at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra. My painting, “Sarbi”, was awarded Highly Commended, and will hang on the walls of the Australian War Memorial until May 2021. I have previously won the Fred Herd Rural Tribute Award, and this year was also selected as a finalist for the 2020 Biblio Art Prize. I draw and paint, when I can find the time, in watercolour, acrylics and oil. Not too many in the St Joseph’s College Community are aware that I paint nor that I spent the first 13 years of my working life in the Army. I was asked to share my story with you.

While my art work is a hobby and a passion, my occupation has always involved helping others. I have been the Careers Coordinator at St Joseph’s College for the past 10 years. This job is different everyday. It is challenging, busy and thoroughly enjoyable. My role involves talking to lots of students, and their families, as well as many other tasks. I also organise work experience, help students write resumes, cover letters and scholarship applications, work with employers to find apprentices, do work site visits, help students with pathway and subject selection, provide labour market and job information, organise career excursions, design the careers education program, as well as doing careers guidance and counselling. I provide the boys with support and advice, and most importantly, with hope. I am able to encourage students to discover

who they are, and to provide them with the knowledge and tools they need to continue their career journeys.

My connection to the college began before my employment.

My father began his schooling at St Joseph’s College after emigrating from Lithuania, post World War II. My father and his parents had to flee their homes and find refuge in another country. He had to learn the English language and adjust to life in Australia. St Joseph’s College supported my father’s education. From a young age he instilled in me the importance of being aware of the world around you, of politics, of world affairs and the important of learning and education. Books, music, art and reading were cherished.

I learnt to love learning.

Art was always my favourite subject at school, however, I was also driven to help others. I was heavily involved in non-curricular activities at school and in my community.

I joined the debating team to overcome a fear of talking in front of audiences. I participated in school swimming and athletics, was a Peer Support Leader, a member of our School Social Committee and Vice President of the Student Representative Council. I would volunteer at the library at lunchtimes to get first choice of new books.

Outside of school, I was involved in fundraising activities, in CORNET (Corio Network for Youth) and the 32 Regional Cadel Unit (32 RCU) which still operates today. It was this involvement with my school and community that shaped the person I became and my choice to join the Defence Forces. I wanted to pursue a career that gave me purpose and the chance to help others, and my time in the Army did just that. In Year 11, I was awarded the Australian Defence Force Academy scholarship in 1990.

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This guaranteed my entry to ADFA provided I achieved the score needed for University entry.

After completing Year 12, I achieved the marks to get into ADFA. At 17, I left home, with a suitcase and ironing board, to travel to Canberra to begin my Defence Force career. I graduated ADFA in 1994 with a Bachelor of Arts (majoring in Politics). In 1996, I transferred to the Royal Australian Educational Corps (RAAEC) and trained to become a secondary teacher at La Trobe University.

My initial employment in RAAEC involved teaching literacy and numeracy classes to soldiers on promotion courses for six weeks at a time. This role involved being sent to different Defence bases across Australia. It was both tough and extremely rewarding. On one of these deployments, I would meet my husband Drew, an officer in the Royal Australian Armoured Corps. We were married in Eltham in 1998.

Life in the military moves at pace. Members can be posted after one year in a role, and usually stay in a role for no longer than three years. With promotion came more responsibility, leading me away from teaching roles to coordination and management roles. Some of my postings included: Managing Editor of Doctrine Wing at Puckapunyal, the Officer in Charge of the School of Army Education Wing in Darwin, instructor at the Royal Military College Duntroon, Project Manager/Computer Based Instructional Designer at the Training Technology

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Centre in Enogerra, Training Development Manager at the Land Warfare Centre Canungra, and Staff Officer at 1st Armoured Regiment, Darwin.

While working in various roles, I was also given the opportunity to undertake further education and training.

I completed a Masters of Professional Studies, Graduate Diploma in Education (Computers in Education), Cert IV Training and Assessment, and a Diploma of Training Development. As an Educational Corps officer, my role also involved supporting officer and soldier education and career development, this and my other experiences provided a great foundation for my current job.

At times, when talking to the boys, I share some of my career experiences with them. My journey has taught me a lot. I have learnt how resilience is built from the toughest challenges and how important it is to have a go. It is an amazing feeling to overcome adversity. I have striven to do my best, worked hard, been courageous and stepped outside of my comfort zone. I have learnt that “knowledge is power”. As the careers coordinator at St Joseph’s College, I have the privilege of helping and supporting our next generation embarking on their own individual career journeys.

Karen Shum Careers Coordinator

Geelong Advertiser clipping from 1992, Karen was the only girl in Victoria to receive an Army Scholarship.

Being presented with a long service medal.

Careers excursion to the Avalon Airshow.

Karen (centre) spent the first 13 years of her working life in the Army.

Any St Joseph’s Old Collegians who would be interested in being a guest speaker at our 2022 Careers week, usually held in May each year, and sharing their career journey please contact Karen Shum or the Community & Development team at the College. Email kshum@sjc.vic.edu.au

Heritage Centre Last year was a challenging year for the St Joseph’s Community, for most of its 85th Anniversary year the buildings and grounds of St Joseph’s College were almost deserted.

It was not a year for celebrating our 85th Anniversary, rather a year to pull back and deal with the trials of life in the time of COVID. The College did as it has always done accepted the difficulties and just got on with the task of educating and caring for the boys.

The Heritage Centre was shut for most of the year, and while I missed the visits from Old Collegians, I was able to tackle many tasks that had been on hold. One of the things I have been working on is researching information for the creation of a College Heritage Trail, the results of this research are now available on our webpage in the form of a PowerPoint.

I would like to thank the Old Collegians Association for their generosity in agreeing to pay for purchasing and installing the Heritage Trail Plaques. The plaques will be situated on or near current heritage buildings and in proximity to where buildings stood in the past. Each plaque will have a photograph, a brief history and a QR code. The QR code will allow for sharing the history in

greater depth and also allow for further development and for the inclusion of oral histories from past students and St Augustine’s orphans. I envisage using both the voices of old Collegians and current students to narrate stories relating to the College. I am hoping to involve students in the development of the QR Codes.

This year I am also re-establishing the Heritage Society, members will be involved in heritage projects such as the Heritage Trail. Please contact me if you are interested in being part of the Society.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Terry Phillips and Tom Gurrie for their donations of memorabilia, the items donated will form part of this year’s heritage displays.

Susan Belluzzo College Archivist Email: Susan.Belluzzo@sjc.vic.edu.au Phone: 03 5226 8100 The Heritage Centre is located on the Corner of Shannon Avenue and Lesley Street, and is open on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00am – 4:00pm.

1935 Opening Day Roll Call.

1927 Circa Aerial View of College.

1935 Geelong Advertiser 150 Anniversary Edition Cutting.

1935 SJC Frontage College Opening Day.

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SJOCA 2021 Golf Day Held on Friday 12 March, 260 players took part in a highly competitive and enjoyable Ambrose-style team competition. The sun was shining and the courses were in perfect condition.

We are thrilled to announce that the day raised $30,000 which directly supports the College Bursary Program and affords those boys who are most in need the opportunity of an education for life. This outstanding result would not have been possible if it were not for the tremendous support and generosity of our fantastic sponsors and participation of players. A big thank you once again to our major sponsor David Bowles from Associated Cold Tread Tyres for your loyalty and commitment over the past 26 years.

Beach Course Winners - IDAWS

SJOCA 2021 Golf Day Winners Beach Course IDAWS : Felice Male, Paul Bourke, Michael Noonan, John Bantow & Chad Rivett - NETT 50

Creek Course Anthony Costa Foundation : Lachie Devine, Max Hungerford, Alex Hickey, James Allen & Spencer Davies - NETT 51.55

Runners Up Beach Course Winchelsea Trading : Cameron Parke, Steve Cole, Tony Worland, Wade Vautier & Brett Castle - NETT 51

Creek Course Allied Geelong : Phillip Featherston, Sam Stoneley, Jason Landhaler, Scott Newling - NETT 53

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Creek Course Winners - Anthony Costa Foundation

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Class of 1970 catch up via Zoom in 2020.

Young Joey’s Connection Young Joey’s Connection is a new group which works in partnership with our Old Collegians Association.

Now, more than ever, connection is vitally important to people’s well being. The Young Joeys Connection (YJC) was founded to help our “young” Old Collegians to remain connected to the school and our wonderful community.

Within this SJC community lies a wealth of experience and knowledge, therefore we have been encouraging our Old Collegians who are one to four years out of school to tap into this opportunity through mentoring and networking opportunities.

As a result of Rhys remaining connected with SJC, he has recently gained his pilot licence in 2021 and is well on the way to achieving his dream as a commercial pilot.

Over the past 12 months we have had positive results from being able to facilitate mentoring in higher education pursuits and career opportunities. The YJC will be aiming to combine fun, social events with genuine networking opportunities to foster a greater sense of belonging within our wider school community.

One of the best examples of this working was featured in our 2019 Ad Alta Virtute magazine.

2016 College Captain and McNeill Cup winner - Rhys Hegyesi “It’s June 2018 and I find myself volunteering at a class reunion, as luck would have it, I struck up a conversation with an Old Collegian – Barry Diamond.

“We set out a program for myself and what once seemed like a financially insurmountable goal became a very real possibility – the road to becoming a commercial pilot”

Barry Diamond and Rhys Hegyesi, following Rhys’ successful flight test, Barwon Heads, January 2019.

The McNeill Society The McNeill Society has been established by the St Joseph’s College Foundation to recognise and honour those who remember the College in their will. It enables us to thank and recognise – privately or publicly – those for their generosity towards the College. Often St Joseph’s College is not able to thank a donor in his or her lifetime and the McNeill Society allows us to express our gratitude in the here and now.

Our hope is that it will also encourage others to include a gift to St Joseph’s College in their will.

The McNeill Society has been named after John McNeill (SJC 1935-1937). A foundation student during the first three years of the College’s existence, John was one of the original House Captains and took full part in all school activities.

Members will be listed in/ on the College’s Bequest Register/Honour Board and other publications, receive a membership pin and be invited to McNeill Society Functions. There are no membership fees or regulations. Membership can be anonymous if preferred.

For information contact: Cameron Ling - Manager - Alumni and Philanthropy.

03 5226 8149 cameron.ling@sjc.vic.edu.au 28

Past St Joseph’s Students In the Spotlight Cam Johnston (SJOC 2010) Big news coming out of the US with SJOCA member Cam Johnston signing a threeyear deal with the Houston Texans NFL team.

Cam has played for the Philadelphia Eagles for the past two years. Prior to that he won a national championship with the Ohio State University. Made all the more spectacular by the fact he suffered a fractured skull in an under 18 Joeys footy club match back in 2008.

The deal is worth $8M USD and would certainly place Cam up there as one of the highest paid Aussie sportsmen.

Jake Hogan (SJOC 2011) Jake Hogan (2011) is a photographer, mainly in weddings and elopements, shooting all over Victoria. He runs two businesses; a wedding photography business and an elopements business with a friend.

He has recently been back to the school to speak to students about his time at the school, running his own business and the importance of mental health and wellbeing. Focusing on a positive message of “Every action you take, in leadership and/or in life, reinforces the value behind that action into your character. Kindness reinforces a kind heart. Courage promotes courage. Empathy breeds connection” Liam Spence (SJOC 2016) Liam Spence didn’t waste any time taking advantage of his long-awaited first opportunity to play an SEC baseball game. Tennessee’s fourth-year junior shortstop led off Friday’s SEC opener by hammering the third pitch of the game over the leftcenter-field wall to ignite the volunteer dugout and set the tone for an emphatic 11-6 victory against Georgia. Spence wound up reaching safely in five of his six plate appearances, with two walks, a hard line-drive single to left, a liner double to right, four RBIs and three runs. How’s that for an SEC debut?

AFL Debutants 2021 Ollie Henry (2020) debut for Collingwood round 1 vs Western Bulldogs.

Tanner Bruhn (2020) debut for GWS Giants round 1 vs St Kilda Charlie Lazzaro (2020) debut for Nth Melbourne round 1 vs Port Adelaide

Walker Brothers (SJOC 1998, 2000 & 2002) St Joseph’s alumni have been handed the baton as custodians of a fourth generation family owned Geelong business. Chris (1998), Tim (2000) and Ryan (2002) Walker have taken over Walkers - Plaster, Tiles, Insulation & Cladding, the business founded by their Great Grandfather in 1906.

Chris, fills the role of Contract Director after gaining his Masters in Construction Management and extensive large-scale construction management experience in Australia and overseas. He has become a father recently, with the birth of his son, Ted. Tim is in charge of sales as the Sales Director, having began working for the company fresh out of Swinburne University almost 18 years ago, where he completed a Bachelor of Business degree. He is the father of two boys, Freddie and George.

Ryan is the Financial Director of the business. His studies and experience as a business systems analyst was combined with a passion for yacht racing. It was this passion that previously led him to work on a Super Yacht in France where the guests included NBA superstar LeBron James. He is a father to two children, Florence and Oliver.

They are overseeing Walkers expansion into Ballarat (opened 2017) and continue to love and value their staff, customers and their community.

Sharing the stories of our Past Students

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Do you know a past student’s story we can share? This magazine is for all of our past students, and as such, we would love to feature more stories from our Alumni. Some of your classmates may be too humble to put up their hand, we have found that some of our most inspiring and interesting stories come from friends and family members mentioning “hey, did you hear about.....”

We are proud to share the everyday stories of our “Joey’s Boys”. If you think you can help us or would like to include a story of your own, please get in contact with us at any time throughout the year.

ANZAC Day Ceremony at Westcourt Campus On behalf of the staff of Westcourt, Mr Mark Deverall was happy to once again be able to welcome parents, guests and Old Collegians to gather at Westcourt to celebrate the annual campus ANZAC ceremony.

Continuing a tradition developed since 2012 the Year 9 Westcourt student leaders coordinated a poignant tribute to our ANZACS. The Campus Captains, Michael Ahearn, Jude Payne, and Noah Caracella were wonderful as MC’s. Guest speaker Lieutenant Colonel Garrett Plunkett captivated the audience with his recollection of how as a Year 9 he had less understanding of the significance for the day. However, in linking his exploits as a modern military person he conveyed a strong sense of emotional connection. In part due to the sacrifice and loss of his colleagues, but also in gratitude for the mateship he was bestowed.

As the flag was raised the echo of “Lest We Forget” could be heard from around the Campus, before all present were perfectly quiet, in respect to the playing of the last post. Mark Wee, a Navy Cadet, and current Year 12 student, played a fantastic rendition that echoed to the sound of the breeze.

After conclusion of the official ceremony an energy was present in the reflection of the many guests, staff and students in the Waterford Centre. A very lovely morning tea was enjoyed by all. Thanks to the organization of the administration staff lead by Kristen Grant, Jo Rigoni and Selina Bruce.

The way the student leaders spoke was amazing. Every student in the Westcourt cohort remained quiet, listening intently, for the entire service. The service concluded at the entry to the Campus, where the wreath was laid under the flagpole, with a large attendance evident.

Mr Parsons, the Assistant Director, read a piece prepared by the 2012 cohort explaining the origins of the Ode, before conveying a lovely version. Mr Harmon, the Westcourt Head of Learning, then conveyed the introduction and meaning behind the last post.

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Vale Len Alford Written by SJC Staff member, Shane Dawson.

Lenny Alford was a true gentleman. He was a kind old soul who did not have a bad word to say about anyone.

He was loved by all and had a great number of friends throughout the Geelong Football League family.

Lenny was made an Inaugural Legend of Newtown Football Club for his service them over 50 years or more.

He was involved with SJC 1st 18, Year 10 and Year 9 football sides for many years and also helped out with the SJC First XI for many years as well. He knew a lot of the boys through his football connections and they all loved him for his sharp wit and caring nature.

He loved helping the kids out and loved going to Melbourne with them, living for the obligatory stop at Werribee on the way home and his serve of Chinese dim sims, and in later years, KFC. He spent many a football game on the opposite wing, making sure that boys who had injuries were safe and looked after, and kept the scoreboard accurately for the cricket side.

He delighted in turning up to Newtown training after our games with his SJC kit on, with Noel Dwyer telling him off for helping the Catholics and to get that gear off. Lenny was always at our home games hours early, opening up the Newtown footy rooms, making sure they were clean and getting the scoreboard ready for us to use.

He helped me out with the strapping of the boys and then would go and sit on his chair down near the opposition box and help them out as well when needed.

There are so many stories I could tell you about Lenny, like the time he blew up a can of mushrooms in his kitchen, to the number of times he ‘washed’ his kitchen floor by forgetting to turn the tap off, to the conversations we would have on the bus to and from Melbourne, to him falling asleep on the Mazenod wing as he sat in the sun.

I am surprised his lawn grew at all as he seemed to be mowing it every second day. He was very proud of his garden, and kept it tidy at all times. He also made use of his son Glenn, when he was staying there, to make it more user-friendly for him by getting Glenn to plant shrubs and plants that were more low maintenance.

He was involved with Parents Without Partners for 50 years or so, after he lost his much beloved Dawn at an early stage of his married life, bring up his three kids, Glenn,

David and Gayle, on his own. He was also a proud grandfather of Riley and Joel, and kept me up-to-date with what they were doing.

I would take him for drives around Geelong and the country and he would have a tale to tell about where he worked and what he did at every place we went to. He had numerous jobs throughout his life starting with working with his father cutting the grass reserves along the railway lines and driving the truck at 14 years of age.

He loved going to the café for a cuppa, until COVID stopped us from doing that, but I managed to catch up with Lenny most weeks for a cuppa and a biscuit and a chat.

He lived for his beloved Newtown and was always there, cleaning the rooms, strapping players, both female and male, and then supporting them during games.

He was also a stalwart of the Murgheboluc Cricket Club and would do the scoreboard for them each Saturday, often being used to settle disputes about the scorebook irregularities. He had his own scoreboard that he would use, carrying it in his car to both Murgheboluc and our games. He even managed to get his head around the new SJC scoring system and thought it was fantastic that he just had to push a button.

In his later years he got a cart to drive around in and terrorised Newtown and Geelong West, doing his shopping, or going to training, not always on the footpath, but getting to wherever he had to go. I remember a story of him driving along Church Street when a police car pulled him up, and when they realised who it was, just told him to get straight home and stay safe.

He had a lot of friends who used to look after him, from the lady across the road at the footy club who used to bring him a cuppa to the girls in the office who used to make sure he got a cuppa and a biscuit at training.

My sympathies go out to his family, and all of his friends.

Lenny will be sorely missed by everyone who had contact with him. He was great mate and life will not be the same without him.

In Remembrance We mourn the loss of the following Old Collegians in the past 12 months. Our hearts go out to you all as we pray “That God will welcome these faithfully departed into his loving arms. And that precious memories will be a comfort to those left behind, knowing that their love will live on in their hearts forever.”

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Tom Barnett (SJOC 2021) Terence Beggs (SJOC 1969) Hugh Bloink (SJOC 1950) Graham Callan (SJOC 1951) James Carew (SJOC 1951) Lawrence Craven (SJOC 1941)

Joe Gale (SJOC 1954) Tom Gurrie (SJOC 1938) Frank Hogan (SJOC 1940) John Hyland (SJOC 1946) Leo Kennedy(SJOC 1953) Abraham Knox (SJOC 2023)

Fr Ian Mackintosh (SJOC 1957) Allan Panozza (SJOC 1951) Hamish Parke (SJOC 1999) Richard Schmeiszl (SJOC 1961) Louie Shearman (SJOC 2021) Wray Taylor (SJOC 1952)

St Joseph’s College Team of Champions – 1935–2020 WALKING into St Joseph’s as a 12-year-old, you had a fair idea of the history of Jimmy Bartel, Cameron Ling and Matthew Scarlett from years gone by.

And to see their names on various honour boards in different corners of the school, plus hear them speak so highly of their time at Joey’s, always made you feel like you were in esteemed company.

As a football-obsessed student (2006-2011), the dream of one day following in their footsteps drove most kicks, marks and handballs at lunchtime.

Hopefully the class of 2045 can say the same about Sam Walsh, Tom Stewart and Darcy Gardiner as their stars continue to rise in the AFL. All six players were named in the Team of Champions unveiled in September last year.

It was a brilliant concept to mark the school’s 85-year history with names like Turner, Mansfield, Maxwell, Stoneham, Bourke and Higgins all picked in the same line-up.

It included four AFL/VFL captains, eight All-Australians and a Brownlow medallist – an extremely tough task for the selection panel of Ling (class of 1998), twotime Geelong flag winner Bill McMaster (1946), former Western Bulldogs coach Brendan McCartney (1977) and Cats AFLW coach Paul Hood (1994).

SJC VFL /AFL Team Of

Celebrating

Champions 1935-2020 ST JOSEPH’S COLLEGE GEELONG

B

Tim Darcy Michael Mansfield

HB

Leo Turner

C

Luke Dahlhaus

HF

F

Allen Christensen

FOLLOWERS Damian Bourke Cameron Ling (C) Shaun Higgins COACH Brendan McCartney

Matthew Scarlett

Nick Maxwell Jimmy Bartel

John Scarlett Tom Stewart Sam Walsh

Barry Stoneham

Bill McMaster

Kevin Higgins

Unfortunately, my football ability (or lack thereof) never saw me progress beyond one solitary First XVIII game in 2011, so I thought the next best thing was to try and cover the game at the highest level.

I’ve been lucky enough to work with Bartel and Ling in the media and meet a host of other fellow alumni – including some named in the 85-year team. A constant thread always comes back to memories at school, but one player stands out above the rest.

At a function at the end of 2019, I shared a conversation with Sam Walsh off the back of his outstanding debut AFL season.

By that stage I hadn’t had a great deal to do with the No.1 pick from the 2018 NAB AFL Draft, but that didn’t stop him chatting school, local footy in Geelong and various former teammates. Not many other AFL players go out of their way to do that.

He’s already one of the most highly-respected leaders at the Carlton Football Club and will no doubt one day be skipper of the Blues. Everyone who had anything to do with Sam in his time at Joey’s should wear it as a badge of honour as to the role model he’s become.

It’s been fantastic to watch from afar the extra energy the school has put into the pathways leading up to the First XVIII side from Year 7 onwards in recent years – especially considering we don’t hand out scholarships like some others.

Walsh won a Year 10 ACC premiership with a stack of young guns in 2016 – including his good mate Tom McCartin who is proving a rock in defence for Sydney this year.

Other beneficiaries of the system have been Tom Doedee, who could one day be captain of Adelaide, Sam Simpson, who showed his worth to the Cats in last year’s finals and Brayden Ham, who has jumped out of the blocks for Essendon to start 2021.

And already this year we’ve seen Ollie Henry, Charlie Lazzaro (2015-2017) and Tanner Bruhn (2015-2017) debut with Cam Fleeton to come from the 2020 NAB AFL Draft.

It’s going to be fun to watch these guys continue to develop in years to come, and who knows, maybe try and force their way into the Team of Champions when it’s reselected for 100 years in 2035.

Fraser Murphy

INTERCHANGE Terry Callan Jim Fitzgerald Darcy Gardiner Michael Woolnough

Mitch Cleary is an AFL journalist and appears on AFL.com.au on programs such as The Round So Far, Trade Radio and AFL Exchange and can be heard on weekends on ABC Radio.

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Josephines Autumn Dinner In March we were very excited to once again host our annual Josephines Dinner at Truffleduck. Over 140 mums of former and current students enjoyed a fun night that raised valuable money for the school’s Education Support program and the Paul Tobias needsbased scholarship fund.

The highlight of the night was hearing from Lisa Jones, and her son Zane, about their time at St Joeys and their appreciation for the education support team at the school. Lisa kindly shared the family’s thoughts for this year’s Ad Alta Virtute magazine: Zane’s inclusion at Joey’s has meant a chance for him to be part of something just like the other boys his age and given him access to experiences other boys have, all whilst giving the boys an opportunity to be around Zane who just like them loves basketball and chocolate but unlike them has to navigate life with disabilities.

Joeys and the amazing Education Support Team helped create an environment that allowed both the boys and Zane to learn from each other without even realising, and he finished Year 12 in 2020 emerging with skills we never thought possible. He has found a love of cooking

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and is a social butterfly which is a huge achievement for anyone on the Autism Spectrum, he can be involved in a group and is confident amongst his peers. Zane has commenced multiple community programs since finishing at Joeys including the Resale Shed in Anglesea, Kair Country Farm in Queenscliff and Student Leaver Work placement at a cafe.

Thank you, Joeys, for being a voice for Zane and other young boys with disabilities. We will look back on Joeys with wonderful memories, you have given him amazing opportunities and we could never convey how grateful we are, you truly do live and act by the Joeys’ mantra Compassion, Innovation and Integrity!

John, Lisa & Zane Jones We look forward to seeing everyone at our next Josephines event in October.

Any mums of former or current SJC students who would like more information or to attend one of our events please contact: Natasha Solczaniuk – Events and Community Engagement Coordinator – 5226 8122 natasha.solczaniuk@sjc.vic.edu.au

Contact our Community & Development Office: Phone: (03) 5226 8120 Kristen Gleeson - Director of Community & Development. kristen.gleeson@sjc.vic.edu.au Cameron Ling - Manager - Alumni and Philanthropy. cameron.ling@sjc.vic.edu.au Lauren Sedgman - Publications Officer & Website Manager. laurens@sjc.vic.edu.au Natasha Solczaniuk - Events and Community Engagement Coordinator. natasha.solczaniuk@sjc.vic.edu.au Susan Belluzzo - College Archivist. susan.belluzzo@sjc.vic.edu.au

Thank you for supporting the St Joseph’s College Foundation in 2020 Anoynmous 8 Mukhles Habash & Sundry Abba Rodney & Leanne Adams Carmen Ahearn Andrijana Atanasovski Rolf Audrins & Simone Kucina Adam Bampfield Peter & Rebecca Barker Jillian Barker Sam & Colleen Bernardo John & Regina Bindokas Michael & Danni Birthisel Michelle Bishop Denny & Diana Bortoletto David & Jody Bourke Michelle & Ric Brodrick Warick Brown Claire Brown Selina Bruce Alan Bruce Adrian & Nicole Bryan Greg & Maureen Bryant John & Geraldine Burgess Chris & Jacinta Burke Carmody Foundation Stephen & Jennifer Carter Bernerdene Carthew Thomas Cashin Adam & Rebecca Chalmers Joanne Chappell Annette Christensen David & Fiona Clark Jeff & Julie Cole Peter & Donna Cone Cassandra Coogan Laird Cormack Kevin & Lorraine Costa David & Karen Costa Ashley Crook Justin & Catherine Crooks John Darcy Brendan & Michelle Davie Shane Dawson John Day Damian & Lee De Grandi Geoffrey & Maria Dean Mark Deverall John & Tracy Diamond Susan Dickinson Lachlan Doak Ben Dormer Scott & Judy Dower John Harmon Kerry Drever Marcus & Lucy Dripps Matthew & Jodi Dunell Vlado & Lydia Dzajkic Bradley & Marlene Eggleton

Rob & Monika Ercoli Johanna Evertsen-Mostert Emilio & Maria Filiti Paul & Fiona FitzGerald Kevin & Kathryn Flanders Dom Flanders Liam Flanders Scott & Carolyn Fleeton Lauren Flint Fr Peter Foley John & Rhonda Forbes Samuel Ford Terry Fowler Martin & Michelle Fox Salvatore Gandolfo Frank & Carolyn Gasperic Victor Gigliotti Cassandra Gleeson Kristen & Lauren Gleeson Michael Goss Jason & Kristen Grant Peter Grant Dominic & Giovanna Greco Aaron & Cheryl Green Andrew & Sharon Gribble James & Catherine Gulli Jon & Tracey Gunby Dan Hale Craig & Kellie Hanley Mhano & Kerry Harkness Dean & Heather Harris Gregory & Maree Hayes Ivan & Gordana Herceg Jeremy & Pam Hibberd Eamon & Angela Hickey Barry Hill Mick Hinds Gary Hogan Julie & Jono Holt Kelwyn & Lee Hough Anna Hudson Adrian & Gillian Hume David Hunt Leah Irving Brad & Marika Johnson Nick Jones Gary & Sharon Jones Bradley & Sharon Jones Simon & Renee Jovic Anton & Anna Juric Danielle Kavanagh Glenn & Carolyn Keast John & Lisa Kelly Stephen & Erin Kent Geoff & Bernadette Killury Gavin & Sue King Bronwyn Lawson Richard Lawysz

Barnaby & Joanne Lee Andrew Loughnan Quentin Lydall Christopher Lynch Anthony & Patricia Maas Di Makings Mary Malone Jane Malone Daryl & Margaret Martini Kirsty Maselli Peter Matheson Adel Mawson Daniel & Angie McCarthy Liam & Louise McCloskey Julie Kaye Lisa McDine Ken McDonald McHarrys Buslines Holly McIntosh Kate McLaren Janine McLean Paul & Cathy McNamara Robert & Rosa Mecanovic John Mildren Grant & Shirley Mills Denis & Libby Moorfoot Matthew & Yvette Morgan Chris & Shelley Morton Roland and Melinda Mrak Sean & Malinda Muir Lynne Mullins Angelo Natoli John Near & Kylie Smith-Near Matthew & Carey Neate Justin & Jo Nelson David O’Brien David & Jessica O’Brien Peter O’Connor Daniel O’Farrell Jennifer O’Keeffe Kylie Oliver Ann O’Neill Tony & Louise Paatsch Arthur & Linda Pape Catherine Papke Nilton Martins & Yvonne Parente Mark & Belinda Pedretti Andrew & Erin Penton Thomas Perrett Simon Piasente Jason Pile & Leanne Rivett Geoffrey & Danielle Powe Bryan Power Andrew Puskas Samuel Querella Rachael Raby Keelly Rae Andrew & Kathleen Rawson

Mark Rayson Brendan & Michelle Reed Rachel Roche Malcolm Neil & Susan Ross Tony & Anne Ross Tony Rotiroti Kevin & Rachael Russell Damien & Jennifer Ryan John Sabljak Lauren Salcombe Natasha Scanlon Russell Schostak Janet Sgambaro Kevin Shannon Karen Sherman Karen Shum Sebastijan & Emy Simsic Bradley Smith Natasha Solczaniuk Jacob Spolding Craig & Louise Stanton Syliva Stefano John Stephensen Matthew & Vittoria Stevens Matthew Stokes Ante & Cindy Stosic Ian & Maura Sweet Simon Taylor Stephen & Jane Toohey Tom Trupkovic Mark Turner Rod & KarenVan Der Chys Tim & Joanne Van Slageren John & Susan Vaughan Bradley & Michelle Verfurth Gary Vigor & Marion Smith Steven & Jasmyne Walker Matthew Walsh Paul & Carolynne Walsh Jerome & Heidi Warakea Scott & Sharon Watkins Adele Watt Natalie Welsh Philip Tribe & Jacqueline White Trevor Whiteley Joy Whiteside Christopher & Samantha Whiting Tania Willard Harry Wilson John & Inez Woods Adam & Joanne Worsley Michael & Claire Wrigley Meleah Zanos Goran & Stefanie Zekic Wei Zhang Mark Zyppel

*All care has been taken to ensure accuracy of this list. You may have chosen to remain anonymous at the time of making your donation.

If an unfortunate error has occurred, please accept our apologies and notify the Community and Development Office so we can amend our records.

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We would like to acknowledge and sincerely thank the many local businesses and companies who have generously supported our fundraising efforts throughout the year.

13th Beach Golf Club

Cotton On

Kelly & Associates

Quirk Collective

63 Degrees

DeGrandi Cycle & Sport

Kennedy King

Rip Curl

AGM Construction Supplies

Ebb And Flow

Kieser

Ross River Resort

Eddy Elias

Kings Funerals

Ruby and Leo

Element Stone

Lanae

Salon Ge Jay

Elm Lifestyle

Lauren Barton Art

Sanitex

Lipari Espresso Bar

Sawyers Arms Tavern

AQtive Business Consulting

Flagstaff Museum Warrnambool

Little Kickers

Shojun Concrete

Gartland Property

Livewire Park

Sip Sip by 63

Arthur Reed Photos

Geelong Arts Centre

Lorne Hotel

Smellies

Associated Cold Tread Tyres

Geelong Cats

Louise King

Smooth And Tan

Geelong Confectionery

Barwon Club

Madison Browne

Specsavers

Geelong Gallery

McDonalds Lara

Stage Two

Barwon Edge Boathouse

McHarry’s Buslines

Steigen

Barwon Foods

Geelong Lyric Theatre Society Ghanda Clothing

MD Dolder Builders

St Goliath

Basketball Geelong

Gold Diggers Arms Hotel

Merv Jennings Signs

T & M Cabinetry

Bellarine Uniform Supplies

The Ark Clothing Co

Belmont Hotel

Good Things Concept Store

Medical Centre Pharmacy

All About Eve Annie Clifforth Millinery Anthony Costa Foundation

Bindokas Plumbing Blush Bar

Hello World Ocean Grove

Boost Juice Geelong

Hogans Axle Correction

Callaway Golf

Hop Inn Mt Duneed

Carpet House

IDAWS

Cellar Door Coles Coaches Collections for Women Community Care Chemist Corio Bay Health Group Waurn Ponds

IST Auto Shop

The Ponds Hotel

Mitre 10 Moorabool Street

Times News Group

Mt Duneed Estate

Tourism Greater Geelong & Bellarine

Oxley Garages Paul Hood from AFLW Paywise Salary Packaging

Jovic Accounting

The Valley Inn

Movida Lorne Nest Seven

Innovative Splashbacks Intimo

The Laboratory

Minerva Road Grocer

Higher Level Joinery

Boom Gallery

The Gordon

Mind, Body, Salt

Pearls & Roses

K Mac Powerheads

Pioneer Family Chiropractic

K Rock

Plan Group

Trak Constructions Village Cinemas Geelong Villawood Properties Walkers – Plaster, Tiles, Insulation & Cladding West Carr & Harvey Westcoast Hair & Beauty Supplies Winchelsea Trading

St Joseph’s College Geelong 135 Aphrasia Street, Newtown VICTORIA 3220 / Email: sjcoffice@sjc.vic.edu.au Ph: 03 5226 8100 / ABN: 74 114 857 147 / CRICOS Provider Code 02670A

We are proud to be a part of:

www.sjc.vic.edu.au We acknowledge that we are educating on the traditional land of the Wadawurrung people and honour and pay our respects to their Elders past and present.

Compassion

Innovation

Integrity