The College by the Harbour - St Aloysius

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Cadet Report ‘jumped’ at this chance given to us by an Old Boy, Captain Andrew George (SAC 1993). Regular military personnel were also involved in the activity, including a couple of members of the Australian and Canadian Special Forces. The five of us kitted up and were briefed by other military personal. A short elevator trip took us nervous boys to a wire walkway just under the road level of the bridge. As trains rushed passed overhead the walkway moved from side to side - which didn't do much for our confidence. Watching others leap before us brimming with confidence and with kind words of comfort from those around us we climbed over the edge. It was a 110-metre abseil from there with an occasional stop to admire the view. The activity ended with a 10 metre free fall into Sydney Harbour. The feeling of cold, seedy water on our adrenalin pumped faces convinced us we were alive. But the challenge was not over. Struggling to stay afloat, we paddled to shore and climbed out. After the five of us reunited with Captain George (SAC 1993), we said our goodbyes and departed back to the College, knowing we had done something that most people will never have the chance to experience. We would like to take this opportunity to thank Captain George (SAC 1993) and the members of the Australian Defence Force for giving us the opportunity to take part in such a rare privilege. The memory and thrill of the day will remain with us forever. Tom Grace and Grant Donald abseiling off the Harbour Bridge and plunging into the water Jumping From the Harbour Bridge The following contribution is from the four boys that took up a recent opportunity to ‘jump’ from the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It began as an ordinary Cadet parade day, until when around mid-day a group of Year 11 senior cadets were approached with a offer for a once in a lifetime opportunity: the opportunity to jump off the Sydney Harbour Bridge! Obviously the five, James Boyers, Tom Grace, Luke Marshall, Grant Donald and Alex Romans (all Year 11) New Recruits 2002 has seen a record intake of new cadets into the Unit. In excess of 100 boys have ‘signed up’. As you would expect the majority of these are in Year 8, however it has been pleasing to have a number of older boys renew their association with the Cadet Unit. In addition, a few new boys to the College have joined in more senior years. Our new recruits have all been ‘kitted out’ with their uniforms and field equipment. This has been achieved through two dedicated weekend issue days - one in December and the other in February. There remain only a few boys with a few items requiring issue. This is a marvellous effort by our Quartermaster Staff and Officers of Cadets, namely Lt Paul Tame, Captain David Clancy (Past Parent) and Captain Anthony Chandler (Past Parent) – with able assistance from a band of dedicated senior cadets. This bulk approach to kitting out the new cadets has produced enormous benefit by freeing up our valuable Friday Parade times for lessons on the various skills and knowledge needed prior to deployment into the field on Annual Camp. It is vital that our younger members gain an insight into what is expected of them in the field prior to the Units deployment on Camp. 18
Annual Camp All Staff and Students associated with the St Aloysius’ College Cadet Unit have had to ‘hit the ground running’ this year. In a departure from previous years the Annual Camp has been moved to Week Six of Term One, whereas in previous years it has been in the last week of Term One. All is going well however, with preparations for Camp now well advanced. Preparation for the Camp has been greatly assisted by the (ever growing) loyal bunch of parents that meet several times prior to going on the Camp in order to plan and then execute the mammoth task of feeding the 270+ Camp participants. This is an enormous logistical undertaking, which has been further complicated by the need to pre-pack ration packs for the cadets. These ration packs allow the cadets to operate in the field without having to return to a central location for meals. This enables the cadets to operate independently and hence develop their leadership and team skills. This years’ Camp promises to be a great experience for all those involved. Again, in a departure from past years, we are heading into new territory. The Camp will be held on State Forest land in the Moss Vale region of the Southern Highlands. The format of the Camp will be very different to previous years as well. The central three days of the Camp will see the three Companies operate quite independently within a well-developed Exercise Scenario. Each Company will be given specific objectives to achieve. Through application of knowledge, skills and leadership of cadets in their charge our more senior cadets will be vital participants, ensuring that newer members of the Unit develop and test their bushcraft skills. The new structure of the Unit (ie: three companies each of which is a vertical cross section of the Cadet Unit) will be exercised during the Camp. The basic idea is that Cadets who have been in the Unit for more than one year will be charged with responsibility at a level appropriate to their training. Within this environment the new recruits will, hopefully, gain maximum exposure to the experience of our senior boys. As a secondary aim we will be encouraging our cadets to learn to operate as a cohesive unit, be it at section, platoon or company level. Friday Parades To date two Friday parades have been held. On both occasions we have concentrated on preparing the boys for their ‘bush camp’ coming up in March. A particularly pleasing aspect of these Parades has been the shift in emphasis onto our senior cadets as instructors. The senior boys are gaining valuable experience in teaching group sizes of 20 or more – a challenge of the highest order! To their credit the lessons have been of a high calibre and have been well received by the students. Staff Involvement and Our ‘Young’ Old Boys Return Of particular note has been the increase in interest in the Cadet Unit amongst College Staff and recent College students. Mr Frank Clarke (RE Department) has taken up the challenge to undergo the process of selection and training to become an Officer of Cadets. Mr Clarke is now well progressed in this endeavour. We hope to see his Cadet Commission taking effect by the end of Term One. Similarly we have a ‘swag’ of recent College graduates who have entered into the Officer of Cadet selection and qualification process. This augurs well for the future leadership of the Unit. Enhancement of SACCU Communications Capability SACCU has recently had its communications capability significantly enhanced. Due to a most generous donation by Mr Roger Ellis (father of Sergeant Tim Ellis, Year 11 and Robert Ellis Year 10) the Unit has been able to purchase six new handheld UHF radio units. These units are state-of-the-art and have technical capabilities far in excess of the radios currently in our inventory. Roger Ellis presents one of the six new radios he purchased for the Cadet Unit to Lt. Col. Laurie Newton The new radios were handed over by Roger Ellis at a recent meeting of the Cadet Unit Parent Support Group. In planning Cadet activities there is an increasing emphasis on ensuring safety/risk minimisation for our cadets while still maintaining the challenge of undertaking adventurous activities. The new radios will provide us with far more reliable communication – hence enabling the Unit to conduct activities in terrain which would not have been possible previously. Lieutenant Colonel Laurie Newton Commanding Officer, St Aloysius’ College Cadet Unit 19
Page 1 and 2: Autumn 2002 ALOYSIAD The Magazine o
Page 3 and 4: St. Aloysius’ College 47 UPPER PI
Page 5 and 6: Ad Majora Society Following the pub
Page 7 and 8: The completed Visual Arts Centre Th
Page 9 and 10: Mr J Edstein Mr & Mrs D Effeney Mr
Page 11 and 12: New Academic Staff For 2002 we welc
Page 13 and 14: Parents & Friends Parents and Frien
Page 15 and 16: Junior School Junior School Wrap Up
Page 17: CAS Swimming Championships Aloys go
Page 21 and 22: Jesuit Cricket Week During the last
Page 23 and 24: The next two days were packed with
Page 25 and 26: Before School Activities Swimming:
Page 27 and 28: School is located. It is a chance t
Page 29 and 30: Senior School Sport Cricket This se
Page 31 and 32: Honour the past … Invest in the f
Page 33 and 34: But their best bat was still there.
Page 35 and 36: March 2001 Sean has been working in

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