2023, Term 4, Edition 14 - Chaplain

The Blessing of Neighbours

I was fortunate to grow up with the same neighbours living next to us for the majority of my childhood. When we looked for our own home with the Real Estate agent, our current neighbour popped out to say hello. When you buy a house, you don’t know who your neighbours are and what they will be like, but we were fortunate to hit a jackpot. The past five years we have benefited enormously from the local knowledge and care from our neighbours. In fact, despite our home sometimes feeling a bit small for us all now, we are not sure we could move because we know that we could not be this lucky twice! Sharing the ups and downs of life over the fence is a little ritual for us now, and we know that should we ever need them, Mick and Cindy would be there in a heartbeat.

The Salvation Army are our neighbours here at school. They have been here since before we were, and we have had various connections at different times. The Salvation Army helped us start the school 30 years ago and have enabled us to gain land to build on. One of our houses is named after their founder, William Booth. Earlier this year, many of you would be aware that they have had a fire, although most would not realise that our chapel is temporarily being used as a location for their services on a Sunday.

Later this term, the Junior School will begin collecting items for their ‘Booth Baskets’ — Christmas baskets distributed to families who are in need, right here in our local area. It is always wonderful to see the generosity and kindness of our community to those in need. It is not too early to start collecting things, especially when you see a good special at your local supermarket! This way, when we launch the appeal, families may already have a small collection of items they have collected over a number of weeks that can be donated.

The Next Chapter Begins

On Tuesday 17 October, we had our Valedictory Day with our Year 12 students, celebrating the young adults they are today and remembering the children they were 13 years ago. Over the past seven years it has been a privilege to watch them grow, to pray for them at various key events and to witness their contributions to our school community. Tuesday was such a special day for all involved. Enormous thanks to Mme Morgan and Ms Knoll, as well as their team, for their tireless work to make it such a success. Their work and attention to detail has not gone unnoticed.

There is something very profound about watching the images of the students in Prep, Year 7 and Year 12; 13 years of growth and development before our eyes. Years passing in seconds on a slideshow. The passing of time happens quickly, and it was a joy to come together to celebrate the achievements, learning and experiences of their time with us. During the assembly, all students are gifted with a Bible — a representation of the values our school is built upon.

These Bibles are generously gifted by the PFC, which has been led by Kim Bordett. Fittingly, we also honoured Kim’s work within the assembly. She has given countless hours over years and years to support our school community. With her son graduating, this time will also come to a close. However, we are extremely grateful for the faithfulness to the wider school community she has demonstrated during her time as a parent.

We pray God’s blessing on the Year 12s and their families as they prepare for the next stage of their lives.