Friday, 15 June Issue 12/17 THE RECTOR - St Aloysius

It is necessary to suppose that every good Christian is more ready to put a good interpretation on
Friday, 15 June Issue 12/17
another’s statement than to condemn it. - St Ignatius Loyola SJ, Spiritual Exercises, 22
THE RECTOR
Two of our alumni, Bernard Foley (SAC 2007) and Pat McCabe
(SAC 2005) have been selected in the Wallabies squad - it is a great
achievement for them. I recently read Openside, a book by the new
captain of the Wallabies David Pocock, which chronicles the journey
to the Rugby World Cup and his team‟s fortunes, including the
dramatic win over South Africa in the quarter finals. David also talks
of his life in Zimbabwe, his relationship with his wife Emma
Palandri, his aid work with EightyTwenty Vision and his company
Heroes Boots. At only 23 years of age, he has a story to tell and all
royalties from the sale of the book go to
Heroes Boots and EightyTwenty Vision. He writes
humbly of the role he played in the World
Cup campaign; discusses his love of art and
crafts, especially painting, screen printing and
collaging; and speaks candidly about a stress
related eating disorder which he still manages
today. He is psychologically insightful in
writing about the power of the shadow self, and
the significance of his relationship with
Emma in helping him to love with a deep spiritual freedom.
David was fourteen when his family migrated to Australia in 2002
having fled Zimbabwe after their farm was confiscated during
Mugabe‟s violent land distribution program. He began his rugby
career when at the Anglican Church Grammar School in Brisbane,
playing inside centre in the First XV alongside Quade Cooper. In
2005 he played for the Australian Schoolboys rugby side and made
his Wallabies debut in Hong Kong in late 2008. Wallabies coach
Robbie Deans recently hailed Pocock as the „best ruck warrior ever‟.
However, in so many ways, it is Pocock‟s efforts off the field that
have inspired others. Blessed with strong family support, much of his
motivation comes from a strong faith. On reading the story of Jesus, I
realised how much he cared for people who were oppressed and forgotten, and how
much he stood with the poor.
On a visit, with his wife Emma, to a hospital in Zimbabwe where
there was no electricity or running water, and patients had to cook
their own food, they were struck by the fact that even though the
patients had few resources, they were able to utilise these limited
resources. They are not helpless victims of poverty … the average Zimbabwean
is just incredible; so resourceful and so resilient. With close friend Luke
O‟Keefe, he established EightyTwenty Vision in 2009, a non-profit
organisation that assists communities in Zimbabwe to become selfsufficient:
This is about opening our eyes to see how other people are living,
realising that the majority of the world face a very bleak reality, and then look for
ways to partner with them to bring change. EightyTwenty Vision decided to
focus on the simple things that work: training in conservation
farming – so people can feed themselves, drilling and maintaining
bore holes – so people have access to clean drinking water,
refurbishing mothers‟ waiting shelters – so mothers can give birth in
safer environments, school refurbishments – so children can safely
attend school, and human rights - specifically the rights of female
children. EightyTwenty Vision has given me the opportunity to partner with
people to help improve their lives. One in seven people on our planet live in
extreme poverty. Not by choice but by necessity. It‟s hard to imagine what that
must be like and at times impossible to see how we can change it. But it starts
with walking in someone else‟s shoes and consciously thinking how it could be
different. People don‟t choose poverty, but they will choose to step out of it if they
can. David doesn‟t want EightyTwenty Vision to just be a charity where
you make a one off donation or attend a fundraising dinner - paying off
our consciences and then getting on with our everyday lives. Rather he sees it as
re-thinking the way we live and how we can be more community minded and
inclusive, as well as more generous to others. He quotes Ghandi: I like your
Christ, but I do not like some of your Christians. Some of your Christians are so
unlike your Christ. And goes on to say: It is sometimes cringeworthy to see
what some people justify by their Christian faith and their claims to follow Jesus,
a non-violent person who spent most of his time with the poor. If Christ was about
„good news for the poor‟, then surely in today‟s world that means first and foremost
food, shelter and dignity. David‟s humanitarian efforts have brought hope
to disadvantaged communities.
Aware of the exploitation of workers in the sports apparel industry,
David had taken to painting his boots black - to hide the logos - and
rejecting financial incentives to wear branded products realising that
the manufacturing process was connected to the exploitation of
workers. He found it abhorrent to think that the financial gain for the
endorsement of a product would be greater than the wages of so
many factory workers labouring in poor conditions: To accept money to
wear boots when the people who are making them can hardly afford to feed their
families or send their children to school, I just decided I couldn‟t do that. He
began to research how to design quality boots (football boots and
running shoes) and clothing that could be made in workers cooperatives
or fair-trade factories which could directly affect another
person positively. In 2011 Heroes Boots was launched. It has been a
challenge: It‟s proving hard to get things made ethically, yet still be able to
compete with companies that produce their boots wherever they can as cheaply as
they can.
David is not a holier-than-thou person. He says: I think it was
St Francis of Assisi who said “preach at all times and sometimes use words”. I‟ve
always been a believer in just letting your actions do the preaching. His wife
Emma has been a powerful influence in his life. She has helped me to
see how history is largely written by men, generally from a male perspective,
recording their own efforts. An important part of the feminist movement is to
reclaim the history of women, to honour women and affirm their worth. The same
applies to any marginalised, dispossessed or oppressed group. He and Emma,
who married in a wedding ceremony in 2010, have declined to seal
their relationship legally until their homosexual friends have the same
freedom. David concludes his book with a most profound paragraph:
“Munhu munhu ngevanhu” is a proverb of the Shona people of Zimbabwe
meaning “a person is a person because of other people”. It is this shared humanity
and care for our fellow humans that I believe is so important. A life lived for
others is a life worth living and we can find fulfilment – not by accumulating more
possessions or earning more money, but by having meaningful relationships with
the divine and the people around us and reconnecting with the earth and the rest of
humanity – giving of ourselves and working towards a world that is built on love,
fairness and equality.
Peter Hosking SJ

THE PRINCIPAL
Two opinion polls early this month captured my attention – one
reflecting how Americans believe in evolution, and the other showing
the low opinions of the democratic system held by many young
Australians.
The Gallup poll found that about half of Americans (46%) believe in
creationism, namely, that God created humankind in a single day
about 10,000 years ago, as written in the Bible‟s book of Genesis.
About 32 percent believe that human beings evolved with God
guiding the process, and only 15% believe in simple evolution.
Moreover, even one quarter of all Americans with postgraduate
degrees believe in creationism. The percentage believing in
creationism has actually risen in recent years.
While we should always be respectful of people‟s beliefs, it does
strike me that the American figures are disturbing, in that they posit a
fundamental class between faith and reason, and because they reflect
an understanding of the Bible that ultimately is rigid in its
fundamentalism. While presumably the majority of the Americans
who profess creationist beliefs come from Evangelical and
Pentecostal churches, it would seem that numbers of conservative
Catholics share their beliefs.
Over the years in the Gonzagan, I have pushed my conviction that the
Catholic faith does not hold that there is any fundamental conflict
between faith and reason, nor between religion and science. In a
school in which we encourage questioning and thinking, and where
we affirm human intelligence as a gift of God, the relation of faith
and reason is so important to the understanding of faith. To identify
Christianity with a creationist viewpoint is, to my mind, ultimately to
undermine the possibility of faith for many. It goes against our Jesuit
tradition which has accorded such respect for science. It also risks
destroying a mature faith understanding of the Bible, by reducing its
authority to a literalist reading, which could not be reasonably
sustained by many of us. Creationism reflects/creates a rigidity to
faith that leaves it so vulnerable to the critiques of the Richard
Hawkins of our world.
I am a little confused as to why so many Christians are made so
uncomfortable by the idea of evolution. As a Catholic and a Jesuit, I
see no necessary contradiction between evolution and my faith. In
part, this stems from the influence of the Jesuit paleontologist and
mystic, Teilhard de Chardin, whose writing opened up a connection
between the science of evolution and a spirituality of a God to be
found in all things.
I do believe that God plays the creative role in guiding the process,
though the exact detail about how God may guide the process is
different for many people. The view that the universe as a whole
displays a profound intelligibility through which one might argue
philosophically that the existence of God is manifest, is a view
scientists and people of faith could share. The Australian physicist,
Paul Davies, in The Mind of God, appears to argue in this direction. So
would Francis Collins, the Director of the Human Genome Project,
who can write, as a believer: “I see DNA, the information molecule of all
living things, as God‟s language, and the elegance and complexity of our own
bodies and the rest of nature as a reflection of God‟s plan”. This is a long way
away from holding to a belief that Adam and Eve walked the Garden
of Eden ten thousand years ago (and presumably that the fossil
record was created by God to test our faith!).
Reading Teilhard de Chardin on evolution, or watching a nature
documentary, or considering the billions of stars that make up
billions of galaxies, or pondering the ocean breaking on rocks on a
beach, or reading the first two chapters of the book of Genesis, all
point for me to the wonder of a God who is the author of life, whose
creativity defies any understanding, and who bestows the great gift of
freedom on the universe. I am more than happy to leave the
mechanics of how this occurs to science.
Evolution, however, becomes a threat to some Christians because it
threatens their basic understanding of their relationship with God, a
relationship shaped by a fundamentalist understanding of the Bible as
literally God‟s Word that has an absolute authority for them.
Anything that appears to contradict the Bible is dismissed as of the
evil spirit. Catholics and many other Christians, share a more
complex understanding of the Bible. We see it as a library of books,
with varying literary forms, that needs to be interpreted according to
those forms. It is to be understood within the tradition of the
community for which it was compiled. We understand God to
communicate through our use of the Word in prayer and worship.
I get frustrated at the attitude still found among Catholics that
everything in the Bible must be literally true or otherwise everything
is called in doubt. When David is described as “having the heart of a
lion” the writer of Second Samuel is not proposing a literal truth but
he is indeed recording a truth about courage. On a much bigger scale,
the Bible needs to be read in terms of its form, as history, as poetry,
as apocalyptic literature, as wisdom sayings etc. The word of God is
addressed to thinking beings, and our response to the Word includes
our ability to reason.
Catholic theology traditionally sees no fundamental conflict between
faith and reason. St Anselm wrote a millennium ago “that Faith seeks
understanding”. Even earlier St Augustine wrote “I believe, in order to
understand; and I understand, the better to believe.” Questioning,
philosophical enquiry, searching, these can all be part of our response
in faith. We are not called to wipe our minds to be believers, but we
give love the primacy, and at times trust in love to carry us onwards
when our understanding may fail us.
For me, therefore, there is no conflict between science and religion,
between evolution and faith. There have been times of course, when
the Church has allowed itself to be fearful of scientific investigation,
as happened with Galileo, or, for many Christians, with Darwin. But
just as surely the Church has been patron of science through much of
its history, and indeed Galileo himself came under its patronage.
The history of Science cannot be taught without any
acknowledgement of that debt to faith. To take a few examples:
Roger Bacon, one of the earliest advocates of modern scientific
method was a Franciscan, Copernicus was a cleric, Gregor Mendel,
who laid the foundations for modern genetics was a monk. Blaise
Pascal, a theologian, has a law in Physics and a theorem in
Mathematics. Fr Georges Lemaitre first proposed the „big bang
theory‟ and Roger Boscovich, who devised an atomic theory that was
to influence John Dalton (himself a devout Quaker), was a Jesuit
scientist. Or it could be put another way: how many science books
describe Louis Pasteur, the pioneering microbiologist, a devout
Catholic? Today, Fr Michael Heller writes on relativistic physics and
non-commutative geometry. The Jesuits run a world class astronomy
facility for the Vatican. Then, and now, many scientists have been
able to combine deep faith with great scientific contributions.
The other poll that caught my attention was one conducted for the
Lowy Institute here in Australia. According to this research, only
39% of young Australians (18 to 29) believe democracy is better than
other forms of government. 23%, by contrast, believe that “for someone
like me, it doesn‟t matter what kind of government we have”, while another
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37% say non-democratic rule can be best. It is understandable that, in
a country where we have never had to really fight for democratic
freedoms (though Aboriginal Australians could take issue with this),
young Australians might not value the democratic process. But at a
time when the Arab spring has released passions in the Middle East,
and when many in China risk all in the name of democracy and when
Aung San Suu Kyi has been released in Burma, it is surprising how
little perspective young Australians seem to have.
Australians are generally a fairly sceptical group regarding politics and
politicians, and Federal Parliament, with the Slipper and Thompson
scandals, a minority government and unpopular political leaders, does
not present a particularly appealing face. The lack of respect for
democracy might stem in part from this „image‟. Yet, I believe, the
argument can be fairly easily made that the Australian political system
is, by world standards, remarkably healthy and responsible. There is
very little by way of political corruption in the story of Australian
politics – minor peccadillos certainly, but who can name an Australian
politician who benefitted significantly from corruption, or who
accepted personal bribes to influence policy or sold favours etc? The
Australian political system is quite disciplined, thanks to the strength of
the political parties, and fairly transparent, thanks to a media that has a
fairly ferocious reputation, and is largely honourable because of the
quality of politicians that we have. We should be careful of allowing
„the grass is greener‟ syndrome to go unchallenged.
The Church, itself, historically, has not had a great record with
democracy. The rise of modern democracy was associated with the
French Revolution, which was violently anti-clerical and which
culminated in the Terror, and with British democracy, which had
persecuted the Catholic community. Thus, Catholicism as a whole
was suspicious of the democratic age. Democracy was also associated
with free-thinking and a certain suspicion of authority and tradition,
which were so much part of the Catholic ethos. Kings seemed more
reliable, or so it seemed.
It was in the new countries where a new and deeper appreciation of
democracy in religious circles developed. The Church in the United
States flourished in the most unexpected way, and theologians, such as
John Courtenay Murray, reflected a new Catholic understanding of the
potentialities of democracy and the religious freedom that came with it.
Here in Australia, figures such as Cardinal Moran, were able to utilise
democracy to nurture the Catholic community, and consequently
played an important role in the early history of the Australian Labour
Party. And in recent decades a more substantial recognition of the
values of democracy as expressing that which is best in human values
has come to have a central place in Catholic thinking. While there are
undoubtedly tensions around moral issues in a pluralist and democratic
state, it is difficult to imagine any respected Church figure denying the
advantages of the democratic system.
Here at the school we seek to encourage the boys to put their views
forward, to be able to articulate and defend them, while at the same
time respecting and seeking to understand those with differing views.
The SRC is one mechanism by which student views can be expressed.
At a recent forum on whether Year 10 students should be allowed to
wear the blue blazer, almost two hundred students participated in a
vigorous exchange of ideas with the Principal – it would seem that
the sense of democratic process has some support amongst our
students by the appeals to the numbers at that discussion. When
balancing the faults and limitations of the workings of democracy,
and there are many, it is hard to go past the assessment of that great
democratic warhorse, Winston Churchill, who observed that
“Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all
those other forms that have been tried from time to time.”
Congratulations to those selected to represent the CAS at the CIS
Cross Country Championships this week: Anthony Slaven,
Brendan Suffield, Tim Robinson, Joe Whelan, Chris Munoz,
Christian Breslin, Joel Vozzo, Luke Gorman, Matthew McKeon,
Lucas Anderson, Leo Pucci, Gus Whelan and Hugo Whelan.
Congratulations to the Gordon U16 team which won the State Rugby
Championship on the weekend, and to its Aloysian members, James
Dainton, James Fraser, Nick Slaven, Ben Wilkinson and Rory
Vevers.
From time to time, it is our great pleasure to congratulate boys who
have achieved at the highest level in sports not offered by the school.
It is our policy to encourage boys to compete in such sports where
they are not offered by the school and where they are performed at a
high level. In recent years we have had boys perform at
representative level in sports such as Rowing, Hockey, Yachting, AFL
and American Football. Our congratulations go to the Tafft boys
who competed at the National Judo Titles over the long weekend.
Kiernan Tafft won the bronze medal in the Senior Boys U40kg
division. Xavier Tafft won the national title and gold medal in the
Junior Boys U42kg division.
Congratulations to Fabijan Krslovic on his selection in the Australian
U17 Basketball team to compete at the world championships in
Lithuania.
Chris Middleton SJ
Oremus
Let us pray
For the sick:
Sharon Rorke, wife of Gordon Rorke (SAC 1955)
Margie Smith, wife of Peter Smith (SAC 1955)
For those who have died:
Yvonne Borzi, grandmother of Jordan (SAC 2011), Paddy
(Year 11) and Braden (Year 8)
Sheila Larkin, grandmother of Thomas (Year 6)
Pina Sindone, mother of Mario (past parent) and Andrew
(current parent), grandmother of Mark (SAC 2009), Paul
(SAC 2011) and James (Year 10), and aunt of Antony
(SAC staff)
Sanny Morrison, father of Alex (SAC 1974), Ian (SAC 1975),
Greg (SAC 1978) and Luke (dec) (SAC 1982), and
grandfather of Hugh (SAC 2017), Sam (SAC 2009) and Jim
(Year 12)
Justin Lenehan, son of Pam and Paul Lenehan (SAC 1955)
Ask and you shall receive … knock and the door
will be opened unto you.” (Matt 7:7)
If you would like someone to be prayed for by the College community
(even anonymously), please pass the details to the Rector
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WHAT‟S COMING UP
16 June Year 7 Parent Function
17 June Cadet Ceremonial Parade & Dining-in Night
18-22 June Jesuit Vocations Week
19 June String Showcase
20 June HSC Drama Showcase
21 June St Aloysius‟ Day Mass & Celebrations
22 June Term 2 concludes
SACOBU Annual Dinner & Mass
23 June-14 July Philippines Immersion
23-27 June Cadet Promotion Courses
25-28 June Kairos Retreat
1-3 July Jesuit Debating
1-5 July Jesuit Football
17 July Term 3 commences
THE HEAD OF JUNIOR SCHOOL
At the 2000 “millennium
games” in Sydney, all eyes
were on native daughter Cathy
Freeman, an Australian of
Aboriginal descent, who lit the
Olympic torch in the opening
ceremony. As the first
Aboriginal-Australian athlete
to compete in the Olympics,
Freeman, a sprinter, was under intense pressure to perform big in the
400 metres in her home country. She had won the silver four years
earlier in Atlanta, and she was now determined to prove her status as
the “Queen of the Track”. And Freeman did not disappoint. Cathy
Freeman was the only Australian athlete to win gold in athletics at the
Sydney Olympics.
In taking her victory lap after clinching gold, Freeman draped the
Aboriginal and Australian flags around her neck, to the delight of her
countrymen. Her commitment to her country, her heritage, and her
sport has enabled fans to appreciate all that drives athletes.
Next week being the final week, there will be an end-of-term
assembly in the Chapel at 9.00am on Friday. As always, we would
love to see as many parents as possible come and join us at this
celebration. On 19 June, as per the dairy, the Boys‟ Chapel will be
venue for the Strings Showcase event, featuring all Year 3 and 4 boys
and a number of Junior and Senior string ensembles. Please note
the slightly delayed starting time of 6.15pm as per the note sent
home last week. On 21 June, we celebrate the feast our young Patron
Saint, Aloysius Gonzaga. Aloysius is great role model to our boys, a
young man who chose to follow God‟s call and serve the plaguestricken
people of Rome, having just joined the Jesuits against his
father‟s wishes for him continue the family‟s noble tradition, fame
and fortune. This is one occasion when the whole school comes
together for a Eucharistic celebration in the Great Hall at 9.00am.
Unfortunately, as we can only accommodate the students and staff
(only just!), we are not in a position to invite parents to join us for
this service. Boys will have a wonderful time during the day, with a
special morning tea (supplied by school), entertainment and games
galore following the Mass when they will join their Senior
counterparts for most of the day. Boys are asked to come to school
in their sports uniform on Thursday, as well as Friday, next week.
It‟s hard to believe that we are already approaching the end if Term 2.
Teachers are currently gathering data from ongoing assessments and
their observations of your boys, in relation to their participation and
application throughout the Semester, that would form the basis of
the progress report that will be mailed out at the conclusion of this
term. Please feel free to discuss these reports with your son‟s
teacher/teachers at the start of next term. At next week‟s assembly
we will acknowledge five boys from each class who have been
nominated by their teachers for a merit award, based on their
exemplary application and effort during Term 2. We congratulate the
following boys and urge those not featured in this group to give their
best during next term:
Year 3.1 Year 3.2 Year 4.1
Finn Hremaiko Martin Law Jonathan Vo
Louis Pribula Leroy Park John L‟Estrange
Daniel Walsh Samson Hyland Andre de Mestre
Alessandro Fotea Gilbert Tong Edward Conlon
Benjamin Squires Cameron Ingle Francis Bolster
Year 4.2 Year 5.1 Year 5.2
Brinn Noble Lachlan Burke Dominic Nissen
Sebastian Adams Finn Crawford Samuel Potter
Kieran Gorman Christian Kyle James Walbank
Tobi Thomes Patrick O‟Connell Brendan Lee
Jaden Walsh Lachlan Sanderson Connor Gum Gee
Year 5.3 Year 5.4 Year 6.1
Matias Benitez Angus Allen Michael Sywak
Rafael Colinares Mitchell Rae William Crellin
Luke Denvir George Van Den Bos Tallon Zahra
Rory Martin David Vucic Benjamin Pollack
Joseph Mayer Max Walburn Kieran Dean
Year 6.2 Year 6.3 Year 6.4
Simon Geary Christopher Curulli Julian Batongbacal
Alexander Rozenauers Max Mazaraki Mason French
Murray Peh Callum Tonuri Declan Irving
William Greenland Fintan O‟Shea Finnian Kelleher
Flynn Jowitt Thomas Larkin Oliver Menzagopian
On Thursday this week, we celebrate the feast of the Sacred Heart
with the traditional Poor Man‟s Mass. Thank you to all the boys and
their families who have donated a variety of toiletries for the
„Canice‟s Kitchen‟ a shelter in the city for the derelict men. The Feast
of the Scared Heart is symbolic of the preferential love that Jesus has
for the poor, and it‟s our way of sharing a little of what we may have
in abundance with those that have little or nothing. Mrs Cobb‟s class,
6.3, have prepared this liturgy. As it‟s often said that “Charity begins
at home”, we will have introduced at this Mass an initiative that
encourages staff and students to acknowledge our good deeds and
gestures towards one another. Each Junior School Class Teacher has
been issued with a “THANK YOU, you‟ve made my day” card with
their name on the back. The teacher, in turn, will pass that on to a
student whom he or she sees fit as deserving of such a compliment
and explain to the student why he deserves that compliment. It could
be a kind deed, comforting words to another boy in distress, or going
out of their way to include another boy in their game. The boy who
receives this cards peels the teacher‟s name off the back and inserts
his own name, before passing it on to another boy (someone other
than his close friends or classmates) if he notices such kind deeds.
Each time a boy receives this complimentary card, the boy receiving
the card will report to me and, once a week, there will be a special
mention made of one student whose action stands out as
exceptionally exemplary. This is not a competition, but an
opportunity for the boys to acknowledge the positives they see in
each other.
National Judo Champion 2012: We have a National champion in
our midst in Xavier Tafft (6.1) who was awarded a Gold Medal,
having won all his fights in the 42kg Division at the National
Championships held on the weekend in Wollongong. What an
outstanding effort and well-deserved reward for Xavier for his
commitment and dedication (not to mention that of his parents) over
the years. Please watch this space, and many other spaces with wider
circulation, in years to come. Congratulations, Xavier.
Our congratulations this week go to the following boys who are
celebrating their birthdays:
11 June Daniel Walsh
14 June Fintan O‟Shea
16 June Hunter Meaney, Leon Rebecchi
17 June Brinn Noble, Benjamin Squires
Martin Lobo
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CURRICULUM NEWS
CAREERS
PwC Cadetship: PwC is currently offering cadetships open to all
Year 12 students intending to study a Commerce/Business degree at
university. The program offers students two years‟ full-time work in
the Tax & Legal, Assurance or Private Clients divisions, whilst
completing their degree. Applications for the program close 24 June.
Deirdre Agnew
Careers Counsellor (deirdre.agnew@staloysius.nsw.edu.au)
My usual days at the College are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday
MATHS CHALLENGE CORNER
Last week‟s solution: 50
Explanation: Angle ACB is 25 (reflection), therefor b is 25
(alternate angles in parallel lines)
Thus x = 25 + 25 = 50 (exterior angle of a triangle)
A
B
Maths Challenge Corner will return in Term 3 with more puzzles to
stimulate interest.
Stella Robinson
Head of Maths
b
B’
THE COLLEGE COMMUNITY
THE PARENTS‟ & FRIENDS‟ ASSOCIATION
x
As we roll on to the end of Term 2, we thought it was time to reflect
on some of the great activities that have been held around the School
as part of our “friend raising” work. Obvious highlights include the
Mothers‟ Day Dinner, along with the Mother & Son Mass with
morning tea which followed. However, there have also been a
number of Year functions and other events which have gone a long
way toward enhancing your experience as a parent in the College
community. In that regard, my apologies to Year 7 whose Class
Function is on 16 June at the Northbridge Golf Club (no you can‟t
bring your clubs). So if you have not booked, contact Jacinta Walsh
as soon as you can for arrangements.
This weekend, our team will be involved once again with the Cadet
passing out parade. The cadets start a practice early on Sunday
morning, at the end of which the P&F will provide a light breakfast.
We will be catering for about 250 boys, and will also provide tea and
coffee for waiting parents. If you are interested in getting involved in
P&F work, please don‟t be shy. We‟re always looking for volunteers.
Are you interested in buying an Entertainment Book? The
Entertainment Book is a very popular discount voucher book for a
whole range of entertainment options across Sydney. The P&F
receives a donation on the sale of each book, so if you would like to
do buy one, please do so through this link –
https://www.entertainmentbook.com.au/orderbooks/2002j52. Once
ordered, you will receive a receipt number which can be taken to the
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D
C
reception of either the Senior School (Merryn Stewart) or the Junior
School (Debbie Edwards) to receive your copy.
Something to ponder from the erudite Mr Henry Ward Beecher: “It‟s
easier to go down a hill than up it, but the view is much better at the
top.”
Bryan Jenkins
P&F President 2012
DIARY DATES
The following functions are scheduled shortly:
16 June Year 7 Parent Function: 7.00pm
17 June Cadet Ceremonial Parade: 8.00am [College Oval]
CONTACT DETAILS
Chairman Phillip Cornwell 0414 223 765
President Bryan Jenkins 0414 355 255
Vice-President Merin Boyd 0419 969 111
Vice-President/Pastoral Care Michael Morgan 0419 679 591
Secretaries Ann & Alex Paton 0412 250 551
Assistant Secretary Jacqui Stene 0408 969 766
Treasurers Cate & Greg Russell 0405 100 463
Assistant Treasurers Marie and Chris D‟Cruz 0413 255 400
Logistics Co-ordinator (JS) Jo Marchione 0488 230 198
Logistics Co-ordinator (SS) Catherine Verschuer 0404 050 673
Oval Canteen Co-ordinator Bruno Moscaritolo 0414 365 511
Prayer Group Co-ordinator Edwin Lapitan 0410 463 517
THE SENIOR SCHOOL CANTEEN
The following parents have kindly offered their services in the Senior
School Canteen for the week commencing 18 June:
Monday Kate Breslin, Barbara Goh, Elizabeth Porter, Kandy
Russo
Tuesday Theresa Tyacke, Caitlin Douglas, Margaret Wachnik
Wednesday Margaret Diamond, Margot Duncan, Margie
Gillespie, Sarah Janssen, Cathryn Thomson, Elizabeth
Laukka
Thursday St Aloysius‟ Day
Friday Jennifer Courtenay, Kathy Daly, Louise Jackson,
Catherine Williams
Nadia Lorenzutta
Canteen Manager
THE UNIFORM SHOP
The Uniform Shop operates Tuesday and Friday from 8:00am to
3:00pm during school term.
Bob Stewart Credit Accounts: I urge that, if you have not yet
opened a Credit Account with Bob Stewart, kindly please do so; as it
helps to process transactions much faster and gets the boys back to
their classes. For more information, please go on to the College
website, under Uniform Shop, to download the form. If you do not
wish to open a Credit Account, please obtain a form of payment for
your son to make a purchase.
* If you would like to send your son to the shop for a uniform
purchase, we are happy to fit him for your convenience. We accept
cash, cheques (payable to “Bob Stewart Pty Ltd”), credit cards,
EFTPOS or Bob Stewart Credit Account.*
Irene Lau
Supervisor (staloysius@bobstewart.com.au /9955 4193)
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CO-CURRICULAR NEWS
THE DIRECTOR OF CO-CURRICULA
In cross country, congratulations to the following boys who will be
representing CAS at the CIS Championships this week. They include
Anthony Slaven, Brendan Suffield, Tim Robinson, Joe Whelan, Chris
Munoz, Christian Breslin, Joel Vozzo, Luke Gorman, Matthew
McKeon, Lucas Anderson, Leo Pucci, Gus Whelan and Hugo Whelan.
CAS Rugby teams had great success over CHS teams last Thursday in
the annual fixtures at Hordern. CAS 1sts defeated CHS 1sts 28-0 in the
main game, whilst CAS 2nds had a more comprehensive victory 38-10
against CHS 2nds. Luke Vevers had a superb game at fly half in the
2nds match. In the U16‟s fixture, North Harbour beat South Harbour
60-15. Following that game, Nic Slaven, Rory Vevers and James
Dainton were selected in the CAS U16 team to play next week. CAS
Rugby teams play GPS next Tuesday at Riverview (2nds at 1.30pm,
1sts at 3.00pm) and ISA on Friday at Curagul (2nds at 12.05pm, 1sts at
2.25pm). CAS 16s play CCC on Saturday at Knox at 11.10am.
CAS Football teams played GPS last Tuesday at Weigall. In the 1sts
match, CAS snatched a 3-3 draw at the death, with Mason Yates
scoring a top goal to secure the draw. GPS was too strong in the
2nds and 3rds matches.
In chess news, our Seniors won all four matches in the Secondary
Schools‟ Competition last Friday. Juniors won their games by forfeit.
Intermediates won only half of their matches.
Good luck to our Intermediate Theatresports team that competes in
the Grand Final at the Enmore Theatre on Sunday at 2.00pm.
The Annual Cadet Passing Out Parade is on this Sunday at the
College Oval commencing at 10.30am. Cadets need to be at rehearsal
by 8.15am on the Sunday. This year, we will be farewelling twentyeight
Year 12 cadets.
For all ruby enthusiasts, a Rugby Lunch will be held on 10 August at
the Hilton Hotel Ballroom. Old Boys and current Super 15 players,
Tom Kingston and Patrick McCabe, have confirmed their attendance
and will be speaking. Cost is $125 per ticket which includes two
courses and three hours of drink. Like football, all funds raised will
be directed to the renovation of the pavilion at the College Oval and
to the sport itself. A flier on this function appears later in this issue.
This weekend, the College plays Trinity Grammar in all sports. 1sts
teams are playing away and would welcome any support. The Cross
Country is at Ewen Park, commencing at 9.00am. Tae Kwon Do is in
the gym at 8.30am.
Paul Rowland
THE JUNIOR SCHOOL SPORTSMASTER
CIS Football Report: On 28 May, I travelled up to Gosford for a
NSWPSSA football tournament. I was in the CIS (Combined
Independent Schools) team. On Monday we
didn‟t play any games but only had a light
training session to prepare us for the week.
On Tuesday we were meant to play three
games, but it began to rain so we had to
move fields. The time delay resulted in us
playing only two games which meant we had
to play four games on the next day.
There were two pools and to make it through
to the semis you had to finish in the top two places. Our first game was
against Sydney North. Three boys from my Rep team were a part of
this team and this gave me the desire to win. Our team played very well
and we won 1-0. Our second game was against the eventual finalist,
Sydney South West. We didn‟t play very well and had a loss.
On Wednesday we needed to win all four games to confirm our place
in the semis. We had great wins in all four, beating South Coast 2-nil,
North Coast 2-nil, Western Branch 2-1 and Barrier 11-nil. The next
day we were up bright an early for our semi- final against the eventual
winners Sydney West. We played well and held them to nil-all at half
time. Early in the second half they scored a well-constructed goal.
Our coach then took the risk and changed our formation so we had
less defenders and more attackers. Unfortunately for us, they scored
two more goals and beat us 3-0. We then had the third place final,
losing to MacKillop, 3-0. I wasn‟t named in the NSWPSSA team but
was very proud of my efforts and that CIS finished fourth out of 14
teams. (Tallon Zahra)
Football „Make Up‟ Clinic: This clinic is open to all the Junior
School boys who attended April‟s school clinic that was cancelled on
Days 2 & 3 due to wet weather. A small number of places is also
available for boys who did not attend the April school holiday camp.
It is an intensive clinic run by our newly appointed Director of Junior
School Football, Mr Eric Daly, along with Junior School coaches,
who will focus on skill development and overall game play. It is an
ideal environment for all players who want to improve skill and
overall football development. Passing, dribbling, shooting, goal
keeping, positional awareness game principles along with speed and
general fitness will be the focus over the two days.
The clinic will be held at the College Oval (for Years 3-6) on 12 &
13 July, from 8.30am-12.30pm. We will assume that your son will
attend if he was registered for the April clinic. If your son is not
available to attend, please let me know ASAP so his place can be
offered to another boy. No payment is required for those boys who
have paid previously for the April school holiday clinic. New boys are
required to pay $100 for the two days make up clinic. Cheques (made
payable to St Aloysius‟ College) or cash (in envelope along with
Medical and Registration forms) need to be returned to the Junior
School marked to my (Trevor Dunne) attention. Funds generated will
be used specifically to improve and develop Junior School football.
See me for registration forms. The camp contact will be Eric Daly
(Director of Junior School football).
Wet Weather Notifications: Can we crack the 200 mark? We are
nearly there. The feedback for the use of Twitter in the Junior School
has been very positive and currently we have 116 families following
for wet weather notifications. This has been used to notify for the
cancellation or amendments for both midweek sport training and
Saturday matches. Notice for ground closure by local councils for the
same day is usually communicated to me by 1.00pm where grounds
may be closed. When this is the case I will leave a „tweet‟ online and
may include ground changes if applicable. If training venues are
changed as a result of grounds being closed, and others open, I will
try to include all this info on the same „tweet‟. Also this information
will also be available through Debbie in reception.
Due to the nature of Junior School sport (where we play over 11
different schools in any one round), compared to Senior School sport
(one school per round in major sports), sportsmasters communicate
with each other at 6.00am on Saturday mornings. This is after we
hear from local council rangers in regards to their grounds being
open or closed. This timeframe, tied in with some games starting at
7.30am with travel time not included, does not allow for a large
window for all parties. A tweet will be placed online between 6.30am
and 6.45am regarding all games. Please note that Junior School policy
is that, if games are cancelled at this time and the weather improves,
games are not rescheduled. For example, if you read on twitter at
6.30am that all cricket games are cancelled, and even if your sons
cricket game is scheduled for 11.00am and the weather improves, his
game will still remain cancelled.
Coming into Athletics season and finishing off winter sport, where all
boys are in teams and most Athletics carnivals start quite early, let‟s
see if we can crack the 200 or even the 250 mark for „Junior School
followers‟ on line. The use of twitter is open to new possibilities
regarding updates from the various school carnivals we have, updates
on achievements in sport, along with general notices that need to go
out instantly. The following is the link to our Junior School wet
weather notification: http://twitter.com/SacJuniorSport
Rugby Luncheon: Join us on 10 August at 12noon for 12.30pm in
the Hilton Hotel Ballroom, Sydney to find out why St Aloysius‟
College is the new nursery for Australian Rugby. Cost for the event is
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$125, which includes two courses and three hours of drinks. Funds
raised at the event will be directed to the development of Rugby at
the College and the renovation of the Pavilion at The College Oval.
RSVP Online at www.trybooking.com/BLWW by 3 August at
5.30pm. Any enquiries should be directed to the SAC Development
Office (9936 5568). See the flyer later in this issue.
CIS Rugby Trials: On 4 June, boys in the Prep 1sts Rugby – Alex
Di Sano, Miles Branagan, Darcy Hampton and Luke Ryan –
participated in the 2012 CIS Rugby Trials to represent St Aloysius‟
College at Bressington Park Homebush. Over 100 boys trialed for the
CIS team that would tour Armidale. There were boys from schools
like Trinity, Barker, Knox, Waverley, St Pius‟ and Riverview, and
from Coogee Prep, Oxford Falls and Tudor House. The trials were
separated into two – morning and afternoon. All of us went in the
afternoon. It was a hot day after weekend of rain. To our luck the
oval was dry and we could play. The trial started at 12.00pm and
finished at 2.30pm. We played six 15-minute games with only a fiveminute
break in between. Unfortunately, Alex Di Sano and Darcy
Hampton didn‟t make the next trial but Miles Branagan and Luke
Ryan made it through for a another trial, which would determine
whether they would make the NSW CIS team. There was a lot of
competition and it was a very tough trial, but we all had fun and
fought our hearts out for the top spots.
Miles Branagan – Back Row Alex Di Sano – Scrumhalf
Luke Ryan – Hooker
Darcy Hampton – Flyhalf
On the Wednesday trial, Luke and Miles had an even tougher test.
Unlike the Monday trial, it was only forty people competing for
twenty-two spots in the NSW CIS rugby team, and it was wet and
cold. Everyone was very nervous and many claiming representative
experience. At the end of the day we found out if we made it through
to the team. Unfortunately, Luke Ryan was competing for a very
tough spot and did not make the team. Miles, on the other hand,
made the team for the back row. Over the days, we learnt more in
rugby and had a great time. (Miles Branagan)
Trevor Dunne
MUSIC
From our College Organist, Mr Peter Kneeshaw: A quote from
an article in the Sydney Organ Journal Vol 43 No 3 Winter 2012 – “The
Theatre Organ Society of Australia, NSW
Division, recently held a fund-raising
show to assist with its current project of
restoring a Christie Theatre Organ.
The show, a concert, was at Marrickville Town Hall on 22 April using
the Society‟s wonderful Wurlitzer theatre organ. There was a special
guest artist, John Murray (SAC Year 8). John confidently stepped up
to the console and played the Toccata in D minor by J S Bach. John‟s
opening phrases and subsequent playing wowed the audience of 120
and he received a rousing recognition of his performance.”
Congratulations, John!
Congratulations, also, to the following boys who were recently
awarded their AMEB (Australian Music Board Examination)
certificates:
Flute
Brendan Doyle – Grade 1
Travis Raheb-Mol – Grade 2
Sebastian Judge – Grade 2
Clarinet
Patrick Doyle (Year 9) – Grade 5
Piano
Tom Smelt – Preliminary
Liam Fardy – Grade 2
Piano
Joseph Knox – Grade 6 (Distinction)
Dylan Ferguson – Grade 6 (Distinction)
Saxophone
Sam Carmichael (Year 9) – Grade 5
Michael Garnon (Year 11) – Grade 6
Tim Hughes (Year 10) – Grade 7 (High Distinction)
A special thank you to their teachers, who have nurtured them along
the way. Well done!
Tim Chung
Head of Music (Performance)
SNOWSPORTS
2012 Interschools‟ Snowsports: Racing Registration closes 20 June
– LAST CHANCE TO REGISTER
11 July Snowboard
12 July Moguls & Primary SkierX
13 July Primary Alpine & Secondary SkierX
14 July Secondary Alpine
Held in Perisher. Primary – Years 3-6; Secondary – Years 7-12. Please
email me with your son‟s name, year and race event.
Rose Bartolotta (roseb@royalelimousines.com.au)
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SENIOR SCHOOL SPORTS FIXTURES & RESULTS
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