Last week, education ministers from around the country unanimously agreed to implement an holistic and age-appropriate consent curriculum that will be mandatory across Australia. This is a huge sign that what our boys learn through their Veritas classes, the Character Education Program of the College, is a curriculum well and truly leading the way in educating about respectful relations and consent. We are always on the look out for new ways to engage our young men in meaningful discussions and discernment around these interrelated matters, news of this Australia wide approach will further fuel our commitment in this regard. In recognition of this, we provide a throwback photo of the delegation of students from Aquinas who represented the College at the WA Department of Communities launch of the ‘Stand Up for White Ribbon Campaign’ in 2019 alongside the Hon Simone McGurk MLA, Minister for Child Protection; Women's Interests; Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence; Community Services. We were invited because they had heard about our efforts in educating boys around gender-based violence and going way beyond teaching about consent, to exploring and promoting respectful relationships in our Veritas Program.

Farewell to the Old Aquinians and Friends Reunion Tour Group

After 15 tours to iconic WA locations between 2006 and 2022 (missing 2020 only due to Covid), the end of the line has come for the Old Aquinians and Friends Reunion Tour Group. The original group of travellers was comprised of Aquinas graduates from the 1950’s, with ‘friends’ added along the way as numbers dwindled. Fast forward to 2022 and many of the original group have passed away or now find touring too difficult due to illness or incapacity.

As reported in the December 2021 issue of Fish Magazine, the 15^th tour to Margaret River in November last year was the group’s swansong tour. Since their first tour to New Norcia and Wongan Hills in 2006 - the brainchild of Bill Boekeman (’54) - the group has covered key locations between Kalbarri in the north, Albany in the south and Kalgoorlie to the east, savouring the local attractions at every stop while raising more than $60,000 for Aquinas College Bursaries along the way.

Each tour was arranged and conducted with military precision, thanks mostly to the organisational efforts of Jack (’54) and Ronda Bana. Each year a tour booklet was produced, incorporating the full tour itinerary – dates and times - the names and contact details of all the tour participants, details of all previous tours, details of all previous Foundation contributions and Helpful hints for a happy trip.

Each tour included a special dinner with a live auction of various goods donated by members of the tour group, with the proceeds of the auction - and any leftover tour fees or donations - forming the basis of the annual contribution to the Foundation.

On Thursday 20 January 2022, the College and the Foundation welcomed more than 40 past members of the group for a final, annual Foundation thank you luncheon. The event afforded the group an opportunity to come together for a formal windup that included presentations to key tour group players, speeches and the handing over of their final Foundation cheque for $4,915.

On accepting the cheque - along with a special commemorative plaque - Principal David McFadden thanked the group for their tremendous contributions to Aquinas College Bursaries over many years, contributions that have directly supported the mission of the College to educate boys who would otherwise not be able to attend Aquinas.

Although there was a feeling of great sadness at the closing of an era, there was an overwhelming sense of gratitude for the fun and the camaraderie shared by all who took part in the tours over 15 years, as well as a great sense of pride in helping many young boys to receive an Aquinas education.

From the College, a big thank you to everyone involved. Your generosity has provided many bright and deserving boys with the opportunity to realise their dreams and change their lives for the better. We wish you all good health and look forward to other opportunities to welcome you back to the College.

Louise Symonds
Executive Officer | Aquinas College Foundation

Auspire Australia Day Citizen of the Year Awards 2022

At the Australia Day Citizenship and Volunteer Awards ceremony held at Sir James Mitchell Park, the City of South Perth recognised some of the outstanding efforts in several volunteer categories including youth, adult, senior citizen and teams.

It was a thrill to see Kurtis Tanna and Jack Johnston receive their nominations for Youth of the Year.

Jack went on to receive Junior Citizen of the Year for 2021. In his citation, he was recognised for the many hours he has given to the Red Cross Soup Patrol, Aged Care, myFutures Castlereagh Special Needs, Bushcare and Environment and After-School Mentoring. He was the recipient of the John Beekink Award 2021 and has achieved Service Colours and Honours. Kurtis had already received Junior Volunteer of the Year for the City of South Perth in December 2021 for is work with Capes for Kids, Edmund Rice Camps and various other projects. Both of these young men are amazing role models and ambassadors for Aquinas College.

The Aquinas Outreach Program was also nominated for the Teams award. This program involves the monthly Cooking Roster for the Doorways Street Outreach as well as the Weekend Breakfast Patrol. Representing the program was Lisa Kennedy, Hans op den Dries and John Richards. The group was formed in early 2020 in response to a need to feed the homeless that wasn’t being met because of the impact of lockdowns and social distancing. Every weekend, food is prepared and served to an average of thirty people each morning. Every month, three cooks prepare a tray of food to feed clients on Friday-Sunday nights.

On Thursday 2 December, Kurtis Tanna was awarded the Young Volunteer of the Year by the City of South Perth. For many years, Kurtis has been active with Capes for Kids and has made over 50 capes. He is now collaborating with Santa Maria College which will take the production to a whole new level. But Kurtis does much more than this. He has also volunteered his time for Edmund Rice Camps for Kids, After-School Environment, Homework Club, Peer Support, Ocean Heroes, Leeuwin Volunteer Program and let's go Surfing

for the Disabled. His generosity of spirit and commitment is inspiring. Well done Kurtis!

This year’s Christmas Appeal remained focused on the needs of the poor and homeless who arrive at the various ‘Drop-In’ Centres in Perth as well as those who are sleeping rough. These Centres rely on donations of items to assist people with their personal needs as well as non-perishable food. This year our Junior School was extremely generous in providing a large variety of items that included food, toiletries, and toys.

With less short-term accommodation available due to the growing number of abandoned people, there is a need to look after those who suddenly find themselves with nothing. An increase in those with mental illnesses is also adding pressure to housing and emergency services.

All donations have now been collected by Vinnies allowing the season of Advent for distribution.

Thank you very much to families who got into the spirit of giving and generously supported the Christmas Appeal and to the Junior School Leaders who promoted and collected for this event. Thank you also to Mrs Bevan and Mrs Rive for assisting and monitoring the safe storage of items throughout the term.

Another group of Aquinas students are participating in a program providing a rare learning space for young people from different parts of the world to connect and get to know each other. This group of students are in discussions with peers from The Abbey School in Tipperary, Ireland. While this might seem a long way away, it is less than 100kms down the road from Waterford, where Edmund Rice opened the first Edmund Rice School in 1802 – in so doing he sparked a global movement to bring young people an education that liberates, delivered in the context of a formation for life that transforms their capacity to live life to the full.

We are blessed to have two groups of enthusiastic, open-minded young men who are excited to learn about Edmund Rice Education globally, develop their cross-cultural knowledge and communication skills. There are no set expectations about where these connections ‘beyond borders’ will lead us, instead, we are open to what may arise. Stay tuned for more updates in the future.

(The Global Classroom Partners Program is an initiative of Edmund Rice Education Beyond Borders and coordinated through Edmund Rice Education Australia (EREA) and Edmund Rice England.)

Congratulations to the following boys on their results at the All Schools Athletics Competition.

Samuel Brennan

• Boys 1500 Metre Under 18 - 2nd place (4:03.48)
• Boys 800 Metre Under 18 - 2nd place (1:58.48)

Tom Brennan

• Boys 100 Metre Under 18 - 3rd place (11.20s)
• Boys 200 Metre Under 18 - 2nd place (22.22s)

Caleb Di Toro

• Boys 1500 Metre Under 16 - 7th place (4:15.16)
• Boys 3000 Metre Under 16 - 6th place (9:19.56)

Luca Di Toro

• Boys 1500 Metre Under 18 - 1st place (3:56.97)
• Boys 3000 Metre Under 18 - 1st place (8:53.45)

Ethan Dixon

• Boys 3000 Metre Under 16 - 5th place (9:15.68)

Tre Healy

• Boys Triple Jump Under 16 - 2nd place (12.48m)

Cooper Horsfall

• Boys 100 Metre Under 18 - 15th place (11.68s)
• Boys Long Jump Under 18 - 8th place (5.90m)
• Boys 200 Metre Under 18 - 8th place (22.91s)

Oscar Hymus

• Boys 100 Metre Under 18 - 9th place (11.47s)
• Boys 200 Metre Under 18 - 3rd place (22.63s)

Tom Millard

• Boys 3000 Metre Under 18 - 3rd place (9:00.67)
• Boys 2000m Steeplechase Under 18 - 1st place (6:30.98)

Oliver Perkins

• Boys 1500 Metre Under 14 - 9th place (1:07.10)

Tyler Skeggs

• Boys Shot Put Under 18 - 4th place (11.80m)

Ethan Wyatt Smith

• Boys 1500 Metre Under 20 - 2nd place (3:57.25)
• Boys 800 Metre Under 20 - 1st place (1:56.22)

A few years ago, inspired by the vision of connecting ‘Beyond Borders’ across the global Edmund Rice movement, our peers in Arusha, Tanzania invited Aquinas College to visit and get to know what the Edmund Rice vision looks like in a different context. During a wonderful few weeks there in January 2020, invisible barriers were dissolved, friendships were formed and hopes were raised for future connections. Obviously, the last 18 months have not been conducive to travel, and schools have often been closed for long periods – however, the sense of connection and desire to share stories has never faded.

Recently, Edmund Rice Secondary School Sinon has been in contact with us again, as part of the EREBB ‘Global Classroom partners’ program. On Tuesday 9^th November a small group of students from each school spent an hour connected via Zoom. As we navigated language and internet hurdles, there was the familiar warmth, openness and sense of unity.

While we don’t know where exactly these kinds of connections can lead us, it is not about a predetermined destination – rather it is about being open to a journey together, come what may. Each time we connect we stumble upon glimpses of cultural common ground and also some beautiful differences. We are united by our shared charism and the youthful exuberance that students bring to these kinds of encounters. As time goes by, we hope a rhythm between the groups can develop as they connect online. EREBB GCP will provide some structure and support along the way, the rest is up to the small groups of Edmund Rice students to remain open to whatever may emerge. These images show a glimpse of both our time together last year and this week’s Zoom discussion.