A Message from the Headmaster

I am delighted to write briefly for this edition of the newsletter.  Firstly, thank you to parents for all the support given to Mr Morris as he has settled in to the new responsibility as Senior Boarding Master and as a member of the School executive.  Mr Morris certainly brings a great passion for boarding and a desire to create as strong a community as possible, and I am deeply grateful for the leadership he has displayed since the first day of the year.

Boarding is an opportunity rarely available for young people, and if done well can develop academic and cultural skills, independence, resilience and respect for others.  The School has a clear responsibility to set high expectations, provide good facilities and to staff boarding with the right people.  The atmosphere of the community needs to echo household values, rather than individualistic ones.  I think that Mr Morris and his team set out to do this very well.

In response, the onus on our students is to respect, appreciate and embrace the opportunity given them. This looks like: getting involved with the life of the School; being responsible in their relationships with others, that is to say positive, friendly and inclusive.  It also means putting other people first, living with consideration.

Shore has always depended disproportionately on its boarders to set the tone of the whole School.  Whether it be the singing in Chapel, the makeup of the AAGPS sports teams, playing the lead in the Smith auditorium or a host of other aspects, the boarding community punches well above its weight.  I think the new format of the newsletter helps communicate that clearly and I hope you enjoy the articles.

Dr Wright
Headmaster

Head of the River – Information

We wish our boarders the very best of luck as the Head of the River looms this weekend. The boats are full of boarders, and we all look forward to heading out to cheer them on. A full report will accompany the next issue.

Some details to consider are listed below:

1. Boarders will go separately on the first three buses from the front gate at 7.30am. Roll call will take place in boarding houses at 7.10 sharp. They do not need tickets and boarding Housemasters will supervise these boys and their buses.
2. It is compulsory for all Year 7 and 9 boys are to attend, although we encourage every boarder to be there to support our rowers. Those boarders staying in on Friday night must attend the rowing; exeats will only be granted by Housemasters for exceptional circumstances.
3. All boys must wear yard hats, take water and sunscreen. Saturday is tipped to be 30 degrees, and last year we had at least one fainting case, so it’s very important that boys are well-prepared.

Year 12 Boarders

Recently, we seized the opportunity to snap the Year 12 boarders on the steps of School House, where it all began for many of them.  It was wonderful to see the camaraderie that was so obvious between them.  The ride is picking up speed and they will be pulling into the station before they know it.

Shore Boarding Tutoring

The last couple of weeks have seen assessments ramping up, and so many of our boarders have taken the opportunity to seek out extra help with our highly-skilled Tutors every Monday to Thursday night from 7-9pm in the boarding House. In addition to the School Study Centre that is open to all Shore boys before and after school every week day, Shore Boarding has its own academic tutoring schedule, please click here for a copy.  Consisting of 6-7 academic tutors, usually Old Boys and all high academic achievers, boarders are able to visit, free of charge, a tutor to help them with help across a wide range of subjects. The Study Centre and Boarding schedules can be found on the Lampada site (under Libraries and Boarding), and they have also been included here for you in this newsletter.

Year 7 Meet the Chaplains

On Wednesday 13^th March, Rev Dudley and Rev Benn invited the year 7 boarders to their Chaplains meeting room for pizza and juice.  Rev Dudley explain to us how he made pizzas half pepperoni and half BBQ meat lovers.  While we shared pizza and drank juice Rev Dudley introduced himself in special way.  He told three statements about his life but each one of them was either true, or not completely true. 

The first was: “My dad was a poor man and he lived in the alleyways of Newtown with 5 sisters, he was the only boy.  When my dad moved to Bathurst he lived on a farm with me and my 4 sisters, and now I live with my wife a son and 3 daughters. True or false?”  The majority of the people there, even Mr Junee, believed it was true… and it was!  He went on talking more about his life and how he became a Christian.  He also mentioned how he wanted to be in an Olympic hockey team and how Rev Benn entered to be in the hurdles in the 2000 Olympics.  We were sceptical at first but again the majority believed him, and he did go to the Olympics to spectate not to compete.  Rev Dudley then called on Mr Junee, the house master of School House, to say one.  Mr Junee said,  “As you all may know I went to St Joeys and when I was in year 7 back in 1982 there was a book-a-thon where the whole year was competing to read a certain number of pages to win a book voucher, I won that book-a-thon by reading the Bourne series by Robert Ludlum. True or false? We believed most of the story but many of us knew the Bourne series didn’t come out then and we ended up catching Mr Junee in a lie.

Overall all of the year 7 boarders had an amazing time learning and spending time with Mr Junee, Rev Benn and Rev Dudley.

Strength and Conditioning

One of the beauties of living on-site is the chance for boys to get to the gym or up to the oval for a game of touch, spend some time in the cricket nets or get to early morning training. The Barry House boys will often walk together to play a casual game up at school or attend organised sessions in the gym or with development squads.

Unlikely Roommates

Rishad and Ryan’s backgrounds could not be more different.  Rishad is from Horn Island with a population of 540, Ryan is from Hong Kong, population of 7.4 million.  The opportunities at Shore has brought these boys together.  Here both boys interview each other to learn more about the background and experiences.

Ryan’s Perspective of Rishad Cook-Sabatino

Rishad has been in Shore since Year 7, and he has been a valuable and prominent basketball and rugby player for Shore.  Rishad is from the Torres Strait Islands, a beautiful group of islands off the coast of Cape York Queensland. Throughout his time at Shore, he has made many friends, and this is mainly due to the friendliness of the Shore students.  During his time as a boarder, he has not faced any problems at all, but this is only because of how the Shore boarding community has been treating him, with open arms.

Ryan’s Questions to Rishad

Have you experienced any difficulties regarding school life?

No, I haven’t experience any difficulties for school.

Why did you come to Shore?

I applied for an indigenous scholarship and was able to choose up to three schools.  I chose three schools in Queensland but the scholarship couldn’t put me in those schools so they asked my parents if I wanted to come to Shore and my parents said yes.

How have the students been treating you?

When I came to Shore because I played basketball I made a lot of friends from older years who play basketball, they made me feel welcome.  It took me awhile to talk to the rest of the boys in my dorm but I ended up making friends with all of them and them treated me like a brother.

Rishad’s Perspective of Ryan Wong

Ryan is from Hong Kong, and he is a new student to this school, and so he has only recently joined the Hodges community.  Ryan has been enjoying every second of it.  With new friends and opportunities, Ryan feels as though he is really welcomed because of the friendliness coming from all the students he has met so far.

Rishad’s Question to Ryan

Why did you come to school in Australia?

I wanted to try learning overseas and Shore seemed to be an outstanding school because of its all-roundedness.

Have you experienced Homesickness?

Not yet so far.

How often do you speak to your family?

Not very often, there is so much to do.

How have the students been treating you?

They have been very nice.

By Rishad Cook-Sabatino (9HS) and Ryan Wong (9HS)

Robson House Summer Sport Wrap Up

Robson House Boys had a great 2018/2019 season of summer sport, with some fantastic results and achievements made by all.

In Year 8, James McCreery took the most wickets (14B’s cricket), Bill Retallack was best defence player (14H’s basketball), Atip Natbean continued to show new skills every week (development squad tennis), Alex Mingay was most improved (14A/B’s basketball) and Zac got the best UEG time (Year 8 5^th boat, rowing).

In Year 9,  Archie Jackson scored 17 points (basketball), Ed Brennan made multiple points per game (basketball), Will Garnock scored 13 points in basketball, George Bishop won 8 races in the Year Nine Quads, Ramiyah Tamu got 12 points 8 rebounds and 3 assists in one game (basketball), Max Suttor was undefeated all-season scoring top of 33 runs (cricket) and Andrew Ding won every game (15D’s basketball).

In Year 10, Tom Lalak scored 12 points (16C’s basketball), Alex Robinson got a 3 for 20 (16A’s cricket), Lachie Grieg got 17 points (16D’s basketball), Archer Nugan best score was 60 runs (16A’s cricket), Derrick Yang got 10 points (16G’s basketball), Charles Dight got a new 2km erg PB of 6:58 (2^nd Junior Eights), Will Kemp received an award for best patroller (surf lifesaving), Wallace Natbean showed tremendous improvement (development squad tennis) and Ollie Wilson won over 15 races (first junior eight rowing).

In Year 11, Jonah Edlington won 6 races (GPS fours rowing), Eddie Taylor recorded 13 wins (12^th basketball), Redmond O’Connor got 12 wins (4^th basketball), Ollie Brooks got 6 wins (4^th cricket), Ollie Bishop continued to improve (development squad tennis), Nick Spencer won five games (3^rd Water polo), Mikey Mingay got 13 wins (12^th basketball), Ben Broadley recorded a new 800m PB (summer athletics), Julius Andreas upgraded his serving technique (6^th tennis) and Josh Brice was extremely happy with the wins he recorded in his 2^nd year of the 1^st tennis.

In Year 12, Tom Nicholl scored 54 not out off 17 (5^th cricket), Josh Richardson showed intensity in every session (strength and conditioning), Will Nicholl bowled 2 for 0 off 1 over (5^th cricket), Deuchar Dight added some serious muscle (strength and conditioning), Tom Cruikshank won by 11 seconds last Saturday doing a 7:09 (GPS fours rowing), Maximo Siufi worked hard for the upcoming rugby season (strength and conditioning) and Angus Greig also worked showed great strength in preparing for the rugby season (strength and conditioning).

The Boys are now looking forward to starting off their winter sports programs next week, and we can’t wait to hear of each other’s achievements.

Flag Ceremony

Local MP, Mr Trent Zimmerman, presented flags to three boarders representing Shore in assembly on March 7. Ben Henchman, Rishad Cook-Sabatino (both Hodges House) and Hunter Lawson (Barry House) accepted the Australian, Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal flags on behalf of the school.  As soon as the flag poles are erected in the near future, the flags will be flown in the Hall Quad. 

Barry House Life Skills

Of the many lessons we try to teach the boys in Barry House, cooking is one of the favourites. It’s a skill that is very important as young men grow up, for many reasons. Firstly, it’s an opportunity to learn about good nutrition, and how to source the best foods. Secondly, as the boys move through life and out into the real world, independence is such an important prerequisite, especially as so many boarders leave home straight after school. Cooking at home beats takeaway any day! Thirdly, we hope that the Barry House boys can take these skills home with them and cook for their families on holidays and on weekends, maybe go a little way to paying back the many meals served up to them over the years.

The Master-on-Duty buys the ingredients, sets out the cooking utensils and prints off the recipes to follow. Boys split into two or three groups, and following the instructions, a little while later they have cooked up their own gastronomic delight (with the odd disaster at times). Usually, the boys are surprised at how easy it all is. Recently, Spaghetti Bolognese was on the menu; it brought the House together, there was some friendly MKR rivalry, and then it was outside, al fresco, to enjoy the spoils under a mild evening sky – perfect.

Serving at the Asylum Seekers Centre Newtown

Last year we (Leith Honor, Marlon Cayley, Harry Peadon & Mrs Fryda) were given to opportunity to cook at the Asylum Seekers Centre at Newtown (ASCN).  Having such a grounding experience last year, we jumped at the opportunity to do it again.

Last Thursday we headed back to ASCN with Mrs Fryda and proceeded to dish out salads, desserts and some chicken that we had prepared the day before.  There were about 40 – 50 people from all walks of life, many couldn’t speak English but they made it clear that they appreciated what we were doing.  We also had the pleasure of serving alongside some students and teachers from Chatswood High.  It was a fun and enjoyable experience for a good cause.

MAD Philippines Trip 2018

MAD Philippines is a 10-day trip to help the Christian charity International Care Ministries (ICM) who help the poorest of the poor in the Philippines.  A group of 14, Year 11 students went in November and spent the first few days visiting churches and communities.  Much of the trip was about understanding what a different place the Philippines is.  However, we also spent days doing hard labour eg. building toilet blocks for poor families.  The people we helped greatly benefit from ICM as the charity seeks to building facilities, open Pre-Schools and also teach families how to market garden and begin a business for themselves.  The charity works in real practical ways to change people’s lives for the better long term.

Charlie Gregson (12HS)