The Leeuwin adventure was an experience of a lifetime. It was filled with hard work, determination, character building and lots of fun. My favourite activity was climbing up the mast and then going along the yard to untie and drop the sails. This was very scary and took a lot of courage. One thing l didn’t like was having to get up at 2 am to do the night shift, everyone got an hour to do throughout the night. On the night shift, you need to do a series of checks, this includes checking the anchor, checking the engine room for fire and making sure the fridge is still turned on. Going on the Leeuwin is an experience l will cherish forever.

Timothy Kania was recently awarded the Gold Medal for the National History Challenge of 2021, for the category of Research in Primary Sources in History - one of the most competitive of all the categories listed. His entry, entitled – ‘The Legacy’ was an investigation into the Life and Sacrifice of Lindsay Gordon Glowrey.

The prize was judged by the Chief Archivist of the National Archives of Australia. Timothy’s entry was submitted both as a script and as a six-minute AV Documentary. Tim delivered a speech to a large audience after receiving the award, on what he had gained from researching Glowrey’s life, and scouring through the online archives. He commented about how being an Aquinas College student made him feel close to Glowrey. He also spoke about Aquinas College’s rich legacy in Service of Country and gratefully accepted the prize on behalf of the memory of Lindsay Glowrey.

A special word of thanks to Lachlan Bowyer who, when Tim requested that he could work on this project as part of his schoolwork, allowed him to do so.

For his award – Tim received a Gold Medal for his research from the History Teachers Association of Australia and the History Teachers Association of Western Australia; a certificate and a cash prize.

Tim’s one regret – he had to miss the Firsts Tennis in order to receive his award.

As part of their Personal Finance elective class, Yr 9 students, Liam Sannell and Liam O'Keefe, recently competed in the ASX Schools Sharemarket Game competition. The boys ended up placing 5th in the country and 1st in the state!

Their strategy?

The main goal when investing in the ASX share market game was to protect the money invested against fluctuations caused by COVID-19 conditions. This strategy provided a simple ‘blueprint’ for selecting shares. An aversion to buying BIG mining companies specialising in iron ore extraction was the focus, as the syndicate felt that the capital growth the big miners had experienced in 2021 was more than likely to go down rather than continue to rise over the course of the game.

The companies that provided the greatest capital gain were A2 Milk, Reliance Worldwide Corporation and Beach Energy Limited. The first two companies listed were identified as benefiting from COVID conditions. First of all, A2 milk produces powdered milk and baby formula, and it was felt that as the world was ‘stockpiling’ and ‘panic-buying' milk products and thus there was a real chance that these company’s shares would be in high demand. Reliance Worldwide Corporation specialises in high-quality plumbing and heating products, and it was felt that, due to COVID lockdowns and a rise in home maintenance and improvements, that the demand for their products would rise - thereby increasing the company’s overall profit levels and demand for their shares.

Finally, it must be said that the syndicate decided that they would not ride their luck and bank on share prices continuing to rise over extended periods. This ‘mindset’ saw the syndicate sell at the top of a price spike on two occasions for companies that had had share prices rise sharply. All the above being said there was a real element of good luck and timing as on more than one occasion the syndicate sold shares hours before a large price drop.

Last Friday the year 8 and 9 boys at Aquinas College took part in the Relay4Life event with Santa Maria. During this event, we were given the opportunity to dress up in a themed costume with our fellow classmates from our tutor group and walk laps around the oval to raise money for the cancer council. One of the best experiences was the dance challenge for the Year 9s, where we had limited time to come up with a routine with a corresponding Santa Maria House and perform it in front of everyone. Not only was this a great social but also served as a learning experience where we were informed about how the money we have raised will help support those with cancer.

AC TV has been striving in leaps and bounds in 2021, producing more shows and at a higher quality than previously. Being a part of AC TV is amazing with everyone working as a group towards an end goal of producing an episode. Sometimes that is very challenging with an intense conversation on the Microsoft Teams Page leading to throwing all plans for the current episode in the bin. These setbacks, however, make the episodes better as we strive to produce a higher quality show every time.

Through the help of Mr Lachlan Bowyer, Mrs Virginia Eastman and Ms Ashayla Ramsey we have been able to learn new things about videography including framing and video editing. Using their wealth of experience, it has enabled us to think outside the box and to be more creative in how we produce our stories. I have been able to learn lots about videography and I am doing it while enjoying myself, doing something that I am passionate about.

Being a part of AC TV is very fun, producing a story on something at the college with friends is very enjoyable and rewarding!

The Derby Immersion is an experience that I will treasure for the rest of my days. The trip started with a detour to Port Hedland and this diversion was to foreshadow the schedule of the trip. Covid-19, the heat and several bus breakdowns wreaked havoc on our itinerary, however, the flexible and variable nature of our schedule actually layered the adventure.

The opportunity to experience the colours and landscapes of Broome and Derby and the vastness of the region really is an opportunity of a lifetime. Windjana Gorge is a sight that will be etched in my mind forever. The grandeur of the natural scenery was breathtaking, yet the experience would not be the same if I didn’t have a great group of mates to share the journey with. The sense of community shared with the local people was a particular highlight of this trip for me. Talking and interacting with some of the local kids, swimming in gorges, sliding down mud banks and hiking mountains with the kids on our backs or in our shadows are certainly memorable moments.

Adversity often reveals interesting and unforgettable moments. The bus broke down, it was 35+ degrees and the realisation that we might be there for a while finally began to set in. The hour passed slowly, however, we were elated to hear the rumbling sound of rescue. The looming anticipation of air-conditioning approaching our rescue bus caused us to break out in song. These incidental moments can’t be scripted into an itinerary, yet they are some of the moments I will remember forever.

The trip's success can certainly be attributed to the teachers who navigated the journey with us. Their efforts were very much appreciated by all the boys on the trip. I know I speak on behalf of the group when I offer all the teachers a sincere and heartfelt 'Thank you'.

What a spectacular and record-breaking Telethon weekend it was. The Aquinas Community raised $46,269.00 which contributed to the record-breaking Telethon total, which was a whopping $62 million. We donated ALL of the money towards Research & Development, extensive study towards rare conditions (of which one of our very own Ollie Lim has been suffering from his whole life) and finally more importantly for the charities across Western Australia that make it possible for all sick people, particularly children in WA to live a happy life while battling their medical conditions.

I personally enjoyed the Telethon weekend. It was a great privilege being by my best mates side (Ollie Lim)… and being on live television twice in one day (not a bad thing if you ask me!) I’m also grateful for taking up my time to fundraise for Telethon, raising over $200.

All the best Ollie with your life mate, you are an inspiration and talented young man!

Official party, Mr Warlters, Mr Dempsey, parents, staff and students, we are gathered here today to celebrate your efforts with ‘the Aquinas Middle School Service Learning program.

Before we celebrate the student’s who have made significant efforts with their service-learning commitments. I would like to take some time to reflect upon how privileged we all are - and unfortunately how entitled some of you are.

Please focus your attention on the following video, called ‘The Race of Life’.

Every student in this room would have moved off that line! Private school, access to homework club for free tutoring to name two. Most of you would have been out the very front! Being privileged is not your choice and it is not your doing, it has been given to you. It does not mean you are better than anybody else. It is up to you to make the most of what you have been given. To be entitled - is to NOT appreciate the opportunities you have been given here on the amazing grounds of Aquinas College and to NOT give back to others who aren’t as privileged as you are.

The Service-Learning Program encourages you to give to others! To act in deed OR by doing! I know some of you out there have done no service hours. Be privileged and get involved and TRY everything you can at Aquinas! Don't be entitled!

The young gentleman I am about to present to you are anything but entitled. They have given, in some cases, hundreds of hours to others. I challenge you to ask any one of them who benefits most from service. I guarantee they will say the giver.

The Winter Sleep Out was a new initiative this year and proved to be very successful.

80 students braved a very cold winters night to sleep rough on the College grounds. The aim was to give students an appreciation of what it would be like to sleep on the streets, we had a talk from St Vincent De Paul volunteers and the students were fed the food offered to the homeless at night in the city. It was very cold and the students didn’t get very much sleep. They left in the morning without any food, so they would be tired and hungry when they got home.

We raised over $11,000 on the night. I would like to highlight James Bergin and Cooper Hopkins who combined raised $2,400. One of them even managed to stream videos of his experience to the residents of his street, who had donated much of the money. A big thank you must go out to the staff, mentors and students involved in the night and I am already looking forward to next years event.

I will now get Mr Dempsey to award the 2021 Service awards.

The first awards are for students who have completed 30 hours of service within the last 3 years and of those 30 hours 15 are CORE hours where they are directly helping someone in need.

This year’s recipients are:

• David Acaro
• Joshua Acaro
• Tremaine Baxter-Edwards
• Zachary Bower
• Declan Connell
• Dillon Harris
• Cooper Hopkins
• Orlando Iacano
• Lynkon Kenna
• Dominic Lomen
• Nishok Nimalan
• Luke Patak
  
• Harry West

The second group of award winners are receiving service colours. To receive service colour’s, you must have completed 60 hours of service with at least 30 of those hours being CORE hours.

This year’s recipient is:

• Perth Otero

Finally, we have 4 recipients of Service honours. To receive service honour’s, you must have completed over 100 hours of service throughout your time at Aquinas. 50 of those hours must have been CORE hours. We rarely give these awards out in middle school as it means that these students must have completed over 33 hours per year, for 3 consecutive years. This is a significant and very generous amount of time to have dedicated to serving others.

This year’s recipients are:

• Charlie Backhouse

Charlie has been involved in the bush care program, Clean up Australia, The Red shield appeal, beach clean-ups, Aquinas Bushcare, Blue Gum Lake tree plantings, Legacy Appeal, winter sleep out and purple bra day Appeals.

• Max Backhouse

Max has been involved in the bush care program, Clean up Australia, The Red shield appeal, beach clean-ups, Aquinas Bushcare, Blue Gum Lake tree plantings, Legacy Appeal, winter sleep out and purple bra day Appeals.

• Johnathan Vinci

Homework club, Clean-up Australia Day, Motor Neuron Disease appeal, Alter serving, Academy of Combative Martial Arts -where Johnathan assists other young adolescence to develop self-confidence and belief in themselves, not to mention self-defence skills.

• Edmond Whyte

St Pius Churchyard clean up, Aquinas Bush care, Aged Care - Bingo and Anzac Services, National Tree Day South Perth Council, Altar Serving, Clean-up Australia – River clean-ups

Thank you for paying attention and please remember:

The 2021 Middle School Music Night was like no other as it coincided with Telethon. Our very own Oliver Lim, who is heavily involved in the music program, was one of the telethon kids so we had to make it big!

From the concert band to the classical guitar, the Schola choir to the jazz combo, it was a night to remember. There was a balance of musical ensembles, choral music and individual performances but the highlight of the night was when the music students came together to sing ‘Oh Happy Day’ lead by Oliver. We were surprised when the staff, dressed in choristers gowns, joined us on stage with the singing.

Oliver gave a heartwarming speech about what he’s been through and you could tell he was truly grateful for all the support Aquinas has given him. As this was my last Middle School Music Night l could not have thought of a better way to have spent it.

Thanks to Oliver and all the talented students, it was definitely a night to remember.