Dear Members of the St Gregory’s College family,  

Welcome to the end of Term 2. It’s hard to believe that we are already halfway through the year. What is that saying again? ‘Time flies when you are having fun’. It is extremely rewarding to be able to look back on another successful term at the College. As I reflect on the ‘term that was’, I wonder why so many of us are a little weary... there has been so much packed into 9 weeks of school that has kept us engaged, inspired and motivated to make this College the best place it could be.

Our Weekly Blessings

At the commencement of each week, as a staff we have the opportunity to meet at our regular Staff Prayer and Briefing. Along with the other staff, we use this time to reflect on the successes and highlights of the previous week, always stopping to applaud our teachers, students and families on the wonderful achievements which occur across the weeks. We also use this opportunity to encourage and congratulate our staff, students and families on the upcoming events for the week ahead. What I really love is the spontaneous applause and heartfelt best wishes that our staff show for each other and for our students and families. Br Ernest often has a reflective story to tell which always brings a smile.

We also use our Monday ‘Line Up’ opportunities with the students to emphasise the high standards we set and to congratulate our students on achievements from the past week. These opportunities with our staff and students set the tone for the week ahead. I am blessed to lead within this fine College and to watch it grow in stature. I am blessed to work with outstanding colleagues who really do care about their work as educators. I am blessed to work with students who want to learn and see the College as an ideal place to build their base as young men and women.

Push Up Challenge

Over the past few weeks, from 5 to 25 June, over 216 000 Australians have participated in the Push Up Challenge. The aim from our students and staff has been to improve their physical and mental fitness whilst raising funds for mental health in Australia. I want to take this opportunity to thank Anthony Zappia, our Year 12 Wellbeing Leader, who has motivated and inspired many staff and students within our community to get involved in this worthy cause. Anthony has set up Year Groups to complete the challenge and even wrangled 22 staff who have completed the challenge. As a collective, we have raised over $6275 and this figure is rising. Congratulations to our top 3 students who have raised around $1K each in Anthony Zappia, Cody Weekes and Harrison Collins. Also, a big congratulations to Year 11 who were our most engaged Year Group with 39 students who participated in the challenge. 

Congratulations to all the boys who participated in this challenge – you are all amazing!

Student Leadership 2025

‘Leadership is a verb. Leadership is something that you do’.

This year I have had the privilege, alongside Mrs Clarke, to work alongside 7 of our Year 12 elected leaders. These boys have really lived the College motto ‘You will reap what you sow’. The boys individually and as a group actioned and led their leadership portfolios by making this College a better place to be alongside their leadership mentor.

Next term, we look forward to going through the process with our current Year 11 students who look to seek student leadership in 2024/2025. Early next term, I look forward to our current leaders having the opportunity to speak with the Year 11 group on what leadership has looked like for them and why being a leader in this fine College is something to be so proud of.

Over the three-week break, I wish you God’s blessings always. May Mary, our Good Mother, Saint Marcellin Champagnat and Saint Gregory continue to guide us and inspire us on our journey.

As our St Gregory’s College motto states, ‘You will reap what you sow’.  

Joel Weekes  

Assistant Principal/Head of Senior School

Dear Parents and Carers,

As we are at the end of Term 2, it is a wonderful opportunity to reflect on how much your child has learnt over the past semester. There has been great growth amongst all students, especially Kindergarten! It is exciting and rewarding to watch our young people develop independent habits and a love of learning.

Building Independent Young People

A large part of the PYP framework is to teach students skills to be capable and active citizens. We know as educators of our young people, that we need to “teach them to fish, not fish for them.”

Last week, Paul from Ascent Shoes ran shoelace tying lessons for Kindergarten and Year 1. This is a skill that our youngest students are capable of, with continuous practise. It can be much quicker for parents to do their child’s laces up for them, but are we taking the opportunity away from our children to learn this lifelong skill themselves?

As parents, it's natural to want to swoop in and rescue our children when they forget something important, like a hat on a sunny day or their homework. Experiencing the natural consequences of their actions is one of the most effective ways for children to learn. These experiences can be powerful motivators for remembering next time. Natural consequences teach accountability in a way that lectures or reminders often cannot.

Constantly running forgotten items to school can be stressful and time-consuming for parents. By setting the expectation that children need to remember their own things, parents can reduce their own stress.

Practical Tips for Parents

While it’s beneficial to let children handle the consequences of their forgetfulness, parents can still support them in developing better habits:

Create Checklists:

Encourage your child to use checklists to ensure they have everything they need before leaving the house.

Set Routines:

Establishing a consistent routine can help children remember important items. For example, packing their school bag the night before can prevent last-minute forgetfulness.

Praise Efforts:

Recognise and praise your child when they successfully remember everything on their own. Positive reinforcement can be a powerful motivator.

By resisting the urge to deliver forgotten items to school, you’re not just letting your child suffer unnecessarily. You’re providing them with valuable life lessons that will help them become more responsible, independent, and capable individuals. Embracing this approach can ultimately lead to more confident and self-reliant children.

I wish you all a relaxing mid-year holiday break and look forward to a wonderful Semester 2.

Diana Ivancic

Head of Junior School

High potential students are those whose potential exceeds that of students of the same age.  They may benefit from an enriched or extended curriculum and learning opportunities beyond the typical level of their age peers.

So, what has been happening in the High Potential Learning space at Greg’s?

Impactify Hackathon

Have you ever wondered what the future of housing would look like? Have you ever tried to simultaneously solve housing affordability, sustainability and wellbeing in one day? Have you ever asked a room full of our brightest and best youth what they would do?

Well at the first Impactify Hackathon held at the innovative new learning hub at Oakhill College the answer to all of these questions was a resounding “yes”!

The Hackathon is a relative new name for what is a modern day ‘Think Tank’. And think they did. The problem: to imagine a future where everyone can live a good life. The solution: well that’s where it gets a little more complicated. 

The amazing St Greg’s team consisting of Joseph Bradley, James Atkin, Rhys Parmeter, Cody Danjoux, Cameron Newell, Justin Susnjara, Eamon Callaghan, Ethan Kenney and Giles Consunji joined intellectual forces after Brother Steven set the challenge for the to ‘Aspire to Inspire’. They worked throughout the day to solve not just the broad global issues but the local and personally relevant issues of the South-Western Sydney Airport Corridor Urban Sprawl. 

As proud St Greg’s members, the ever-increasing over- development of our green spaces and the aspiration to own their own home one day are near and dear to the hearts of our students, and, with this firmly in their sights, the team collaboratively journeyed through the design process to create practical, viable and sustainable housing solution for our Macarthur area as a flagship community. 

First step was to engage in ideationally fluid thinking, creating several answers to the same questions. The flurried scribbling on butcher’s paper soon transformed from the scrawl of infant brain sparks into a walking, toddling infant of a solution. This little idea became a multi-faceted concept home that the boys fondly named: HIVE. Based on the honeycomb structure of the hive of the socially connected honey bee. This concept of modular, hexagonal housing that utilises underground architecture aims to minimise the visual monotony of suburban low-cost housing and allow important ecosystems in and around the South West Catchment area to flourish. HIVES would be 3D printed using cutting edge liquid wood technology, incorporate sustainable features like kinetic flooring and solar panels and would have one level underground to help with heating and cooling. Built on a double hexagon footprint, the large internal communal area allows for interconnected communal green spaces that encourage dialogue and shared experiences between neighbours; reigniting the sense of belonging so important to long term happiness. 

Other teams on the day pitched amazing ideas that ranged from reforming zoning laws to create multi purpose spaces more affordable, eco-villages, multi-generational housing and even a shift to a future grounded back on traditional ways of living, however it was our winning team from St Greg’s that took out the top spot as the Inaugural Impactify Champions for 2024.

The real winner of the day, however, was the experience of developing design-thinking solutions to real-world problems. A Hackathon, by nature, calls upon competitors to develop shortcuts, solutions and reframe roadblocks into avenues. The ability for young minds to think beyond current problems of today and aspire to inspire new solutions and blue-sky thinking is why these young men of Greg’s will be our hope for a sustainable and connected future for all Aussies. 

Dear Students, Staff, and Families of St. Gregory's College,

I hope this newsletter finds you all well and thriving. As we conclude an amazing first half of 2024, I am excited to share some of the fantastic initiatives and updates happening within our vibrant community. Your continued commitment and enthusiasm are what make St. Greg’s a place of growth, achievement, and well-being.

2024 Push up Challenge: Strengthening Bodies and Minds

3,249 push-ups. 5-28 June.

The Push-Up Challenge is a free mental health and fitness event focused on pushing for better mental health for all Australians. Participants complete 3,249 push-ups (or alternative exercises) over 24 days, representing the 3,249 lives lost to suicide in Australia in 2022.

We are thrilled to announce our participation in the 2024 Push up Challenge! This initiative is designed to promote physical fitness, mental resilience, and community spirit among our students and staff. Participants will aim to complete a set number of push ups daily, with goals tailored to different fitness levels. 

The College invited all students and staff to be a part of the challenge. 

With over 100 students and 22 staff, the College made a real effort to raise awareness to mental health support like Headspace and the possibility to raise funds for this super important issue.

St. Greg's Rewards Merit System 

As we conclude semester 1, I would like to acknowledge and congratulate the following top ten students:

 A special mention to Sebastian Rodway of Year 7 who has achieved a massive 115 points in the first semester. 

Mr Baldino Vetrano

Director of Students.

Dear Parents and Friends,

Term 2 has flown by extremely quickly with so many events and activities to engage our families and your sons. We are at the end of Semester 1 and reports and Semester Awards are currently being finalised, with only a handful of assessment tasks still to be completed.

Thank you for all of your support as we have navigated this term and supported your sons on their boarding journey. It has been a few weeks since I have written to you, so there is a lot to cover.

Important Announcement

An important communication was sent recently by  The College Principal, Mr Brennan, to all community members on Monday outlining the following:

‘Recently you received a letter from Dr Frank Malloy regarding my appointment to a short-term position within Marist Schools Australia and Mr Joel Weekes taking the position as Acting College Principal for Term 3, 2024.

I write to advise you that Mr Luke Morrissey has been appointed as Acting Deputy Principal for Term 3, 2024. Mr Prateek Kripal will take on the role of Acting Director of Boarding for this period.’

I am fortunate to be able to act in this position during Term 3. Please be aware that I will still be living onsite, and I will remain involved in the overseeing of the day to day running of the Boarding School. I congratulate Mr Kripal for taking on the position of Acting Director of Boarding and ask that your questions and concerns go through to him throughout next term as appropriate. Mr Kripal will continue to act as the Senior Boarding Coordinator for Term 3 with some additional assistance from the Assistant Boarding Coordinator, Mr Kenny Singh.

Tree Scarring at St Patrick's.

On Monday 3 June, 2024, our First Nations girls did our school proud by representing the group at St Patrick's College. They joined the older First Nations girls and worked in collaboration regarding the designs they wanted to have scarred on the tree. This enriching opportunity assists the younger girls, as many of them will transition to St Patrick's for their senior education. This pathway gives a strong connection to the story of the newly scarred tree.  

Once we arrived back at school, we assembled in our Indigenous Garden to sketch and talk about the symbols. 

The event was wonderful.  To see the girls learning about the importance of their culture and heritage and having that sense of pride and belonging was inspiring.

Well done girls!

Reconciliation week morning tea.

Our Junior school First Nations students were joined this year by some of our Senior leaders for Morning Tea. This year they got to, not only experience the making of Johnny Cakes,  but also enjoy consuming their works. Thanks toMrs Hackett, the Johnny cakes were flavour enhanced with Lemon Myrtle grown from our Wiritjiribin Garden in the senior college. An enjoyable time was had by all during the cook up as well as the special time  taken to remember and reflect on the stolen generations and recognition of Reconciliation Week. Thank you to Mr Edwards for his support of the students who attended the gathering.

On a sun-kissed morning, St. Gregory’s College opened its doors to over 400 grandparents and their grandsons, creating a tapestry of love, laughter, and cherished memories. Year 7 Grandparents Day was a celebration of family ties, intergenerational bonds, and the unique spirit that defines our school community.

Grandparents’ Journey

From distant towns to nearby suburbs, grandparents journeyed to be part of this special day. Some travelled up to 24 hours and as they stepped onto the campus, they were greeted by the vibrant energy of their grandchildren, many eager to return to the College as we welcomed families in attendance with three generations of “Old Boys” 

Liturgy and Classroom Visits

The day began with a beautiful liturgy, where grandparents and students joined in prayer. Afterward, grandparents visited classrooms, marvelling at the young minds at work. They shared stories, answered math quizzes, and explored geography and literature alongside their grandsons.

The St. Gregory’s Spirit

St. Gregory’s College embodies a unique spirit—a blend of faith, family, and education. Grandparents play an essential role in nurturing this spirit. Their wisdom, love, and presence enrich our community. As one grandmother (with an impressive 34 grandchildren!) put it, “This place feels like home.”

Praises and Memories

We had the privilege of hosting a 97-year-old grandfather, attending the College for the first time. His eyes sparkled as he admired the impressive grounds and the care shown by our staff. Another grandmother, equally thrilled, shared stories of her travels and marveled at the engaging classroom activities.

A Legacy of Love

Year 7 Grandparents Day reminds us that family connections are timeless. The memories created on this day will ripple through generations. As the College motto says, “You reap what you sow.” Our grandparents sow love, and we reap a legacy of warmth and togetherness.

We look forward to many more Grandparents Days, celebrating the ties that bind us and the joy of sharing traditions across ages.

I Gotta Crow about the pure magic and adventure that was brought to life on stage during our performances on Thursday 20th, Friday 21st and Saturday 22nd June with our Combined College Musical, "Peter Pan". This production was hosted St Gregory’s College in association with St Patrick’s College.

What a fantastic weekend of fun and flying to Neverland. On Thursday night, we kicked off the show with much anticipation. The energy was infectious. There were a few minor glitches, but the show went on and it was fabulous. Each night developed in refinement, and we ended with a stellar Saturday night performance!

Collectively, the boys and girls of the colleges did an amazing job. The leads deserve recognition for their professionalism and pure dedication. These included William C playing Peter, Ebony P as Wendy and Joshua H starring as Hook. The Darling Family was made up by William D as Mr Darling, Adele L as Mrs Darling, Hunter E as John and Harrison M as Michael. Other leads included Victoria S as Tiger Lily, Grace Q as Liza and Cody D as Smee. From the Junior School, our “Tink Tink” Tinker Bells, Imogen Mahony and Emily Scott-Glassock, were a delight. Our animated animals, Kieran Foran as the Crocodile and Nana "woof, woof!" Isaiah Hardwick. Finally, Allegra Macron as Grown-Up Wendy and Jane played by Bree M rounded out the talented cast. 

It takes many hours for the cast to learn, run and perfect their lines and lyrics. The cast attended multiple Sunday rehearsals and dedicated many hours of their own time to reach this outstanding level.

However, a production is never complete without an ensemble. We had three excellent ensembles groups, our Lost Boys who built a house for Wendy, the beautiful Braves that Ugh-A-Wug and dance their way on stage and the passionate, plundering Pirates. They brought much enthusiasm and embraced their roles. Many individuals had their own "big moments”, and everyone should proud of their contribution and performance. It is experiences like these that are offered at the colleges that stay’ with the students forever. Hopefully, they will grow up but always remember this experience. 

Well done to our first ever group of Junior School students to join the cast, our lovely little lost boys and beautiful braves. They did such a great job! Thank you to Hayleigh Campbell, Ben Fuser, Simon Edwards and Cheryl Gajda for their support. We know our connection will continue to grow in this space. 

To our energetic Year 7s that danced and sang I Won’t Grow Up. Thank you for adding even more joy and energy to the production.

Special recognition goes to our ever reliable and dedicated St Patrick's Production Team Members - Assistant Directors and Choreographer - Emma Randell and Catherine McLaren. 

The production would not have come to life without the exceptional teamwork of our St Gregory’s Production Team:

• Costumes by Tammy Dooner and Adrienne Phillips

• All things props created, sourced and moved by Kathryn Wray, Elissa Ferenc and Riley Coghlan. The epic pirate ship created by Andrew Profilio and Peter Smith. 

• Music by Laurence Malaesilia, Bernard Malone and Kathryn Wray (again!)

• Joshua Redmayne for assisting and overseeing Year 7. 

• Alison Buckley and Cathy Zappia; you and your parent volunteer team are a well-oiled machine.

Thank you to the staff that stepped up and contributed in various capacities; Terezija Quinn, Julie Porteous, Steve Bullock, Mel Shoemark, Bec Burke, the cleaning team, IT Department and Gerard Fetterplace and the Maintenance Staff.

Oh, My Mysterious Lady...it has been an absolute joy and privilege to work with fellow Producer Kristy Falas and Director Lauren Armbruster. Our terrific trio worked to embrace our strengths to become a truly unified team, and we are overjoyed with the final production. 

Finally, thank you to all the cast's families for their ever-present support, the staff and their families, and everyone that came along to watch the performances. We had a few first timers in the audience and their feedback was positive and much appreciated. We hope you enjoyed dancing to the tunes of Hook's Tango, Tarantella and Waltz and never want to grow up!

Warmest Regards, 

Natasha Patao

Producer

On the evening of 27 June, our Year 10 cohort 'graduated' from our 18 month pastoral care program, The Rite Journey.  It was wonderful to see their physical, spiritual and emotional growth over the program.  Well done to Mrs Debra Monte for her outstanding coordination and all the hardworking staff involved.  We are looking forward to the long term benefits of the great work from so many.

On Thursday 27 June, a group of our most capable scientists and engineers in Year 10 and Year 9, attended the UoN Science and Engineering Challenge. A group of 8 schools from within the Macarthur region, and one from further afield, participated in a problem-based challenge day. Each group, consisting of 3-4 students were given two very different problems to tackle throughout the day with one group spending both sessions working solely on a miniature bridge to span a 90 centimetre void. The challenges included code breaking, a fish trap challenge that utilises Indigenous technologies, model airplane construction, an electricity challenge, a helter-skelter tower building task, construction of a working wind turbine and a logic colour scheduling challenge. Each challenge came with a basic set of instructions and teams had to work collaboratively to complete several smaller components and scenarios with minimal assistance and very tight timelines. 

The day allowed our boys to mingle with the brightest in the zone and test their own STEM abilities under high pressure-timed conditions. Volunteers from local Rotary assisted tirelessly as judges and positive coaches throughout the day. 

We took out several wins including the fish trapping task and logic scheduling problem, and, with a difference of only 4 points separating second and third, we secured bronze for our efforts. It was a very worthwhile day for high potential science students, and we look forward to taking out the Gold next year!

Want to know more?

https://www.newcastle.edu.au/college/engineering-science-environment/education/science-and-engineering-challenge

3rd Place Winners

Year 10:

• Nicholas Adams
• Jack Alim
• Oliver Askew
• Ryan Burfitt
• Eamon Callaghan
• Dylan Chew
• Giles Consunji
• Cody Danjoux
• Nehal Das
• Anthony Day
• Bailey Ehlan
• Owen Fishlock
• Riley Goodall
• Fraser Holdsworth
• Joshua Hooton
• Ethan Kenney
• Leon Leejo
• Ethan Matthews
• Dylan Murray
• Josh Pearce
• Daniel Russo
• Mitchell Williams
• Jack Yates

Year 9:

• Campbell Hodgson
• Fletcher Kroh
• Chaise Fourie
• Michael Yousseph

Lauren Armbruster

High Potential Project Officer

We are very excited to announce that St Gregory's College Basketball Team are the CCC State Champions. Read on and enjoy their journey.

Day 1.

Our first grade basketball team played three games on day one of the NSW CCC basketball championships.

First up we played O’Connor Catholic College from Armidale. Their coach was Victor Simon’s next-door neighbour! The boys played well and had a lot of fun on the way to an 83-34 victory. Kai Allie had 24 points featuring six three-pointers.

Next up we played a tough game against the spirited and physical St Charbel’s from Punchbowl. They put us off our game a little and made the boys work very hard. We finished the winners 52-38. Kingston Tutani had a strong game and finished with 10 points.

Finally, we played the grudge match in our pool against a talented MacKillop College Port Macquarie. It was another tense affair but we were able to come home strong. Charlie McBeath led the scoring with 21 points in a 49-36 win. 

 Day 2. 

The boys managed to not snap their fingers off this morning in game 1! The stadium was like a commercial freezer!  The team spread the scoring evenly between them as they won 66-29 against St John Paul College Coffs Harbour.

In game 2 we came up against Clancy Catholic College. It was an end-to-end chaotic affair. We came out the other side victorious 83-52. Kai Allie finished with 21 and Mason Hunter had 16.

Game 3 was an all-Marist Semi against St Frances Xavier Hamilton (Newcastle) The team played really well against St Francis Xavier, winning 59-50. Kai Allie was brilliant with 24 points, and Charlie McBeath had 16. We’ll face the arch nemesis Dom’s in the final!

The boys have won the NSW CCC State Title! They played brilliantly and won in emphatic fashion defeating St Dominic’s 79-40! It was quite simply the best they have ever played. Kai Allie had 28 points and was on fire from three-point range. They didn’t have an answer to Charlie McBeath in the first half. From top to bottom the squad were exceptional. 

Congrats to Nile Bushby of Year 9 who made his first-grade debut in the final pool game. Our youngest first grader since Alex Dolores in 2016.

The boys, Mel, and I are very pleased. We are extremely proud of this special group. 

Ben Limbrey and Melissa Giles

In Term 2, Year 3 participated in a day built around developing one of life’s important skills, ‘Resilience’. This day was centred around our Unit of Inquiry ‘Who We Are’. 

Our school counsellor Miss Lily Mamo spent the morning with Year 3 having many positive discussions unpacking the term resilience and providing our students with strategies to help them develop resilience. 

The students continued to engage in rich learning experiences which focused on overcoming problems, perseverance, how to articulate and regulate what we are feeling, building healthy relationships and team building skills.

The students will continue to reflect and build on their learning as the year continues.

• I learnt how you can figure out ways to work through problems and it’s OK to make mistakes. You don’t always need to get it right the first time, you just keep trying. ( Maya 3W)

• I enjoyed completing the perseverance activities because it taught me to keep trying and not to give up. ( Emily 3M)

• I liked the team building activities where I had to work with other kids to untangle our hands. We had to really use our words and listen to each other to finish the activity. ( Oliver 3M)

• I learnt more about the meaning of resilience and how we can build our resilience skills. (Ayla 3B) 

• Miss Lily came into our room and spoke about resilience and we did a fun activity about success. It made me think of all the great things I’ve been successful in. ( Lucas 3B)

Mrs McPherson, Mr Hayes, Mrs McGovern and Miss Thierjung

Year 3 Teachers 

Video Resume and Social Media & Content Creation Workshop 

On Tuesday 4th June, a group of Year 6 students and Senior School students joined together in the   ‘Video Resume and Social Media & Content Creation Workshop’ seminar run by Stephanie Aceglav from @mediaformillenials. We settled into the Gregorian Centre for what turned out to be an interesting and fulfilling experience.

We learned that companies have begun to require video resumes. This is due to the impact of AI, with businesses finding that so many potential employees are submitting amazing resumes, but many are written by AI. The video process helps the business to capture an impression of you. It gives a snapshot of your personality, preparedness and a visual of you, showing how you speak and how confident you are in a short period of time. She presented on how to make a standout video resume by considering your presentation, eye contact, lighting, and body language. We found that the key to making a lasting impression in a video resume is how you close, and that in what you say, less could be more. In this we found our public speaking skills transferred well!

All the students participated enthusiastically, and we ended our session with some very polished video resumes. The students showed they possess great skills in verbal communication, information technology and in problem solving. We thank Mr Ivancic for the opportunity to further our skills that will serve us well into the future.

Mrs Burton

Independent Primary Schools Sporting Organisation (IPSSO) 

Winter IPSSO

IPSSO Results Week 6

On Wednesday, 5 June 2024, our teams competed against Wollondilly Anglican College.

Junior AFL 

Score 

SGC 54  -  12  WAC 

Special Mention

• Nneka Fashoyin for her efforts in attack

• Beau Stephens for continually hunting for the ball and his impressive clearances when in defence

• Jacob Myers for his determination to do well all game.

Junior Netball 

Score 

SGC  31 - 2  WAC

Special Mention

• Stella Jensen for her great intercepts.

• Seanna Males for trying her hardest to get in front of the other player.

• Sofiya Hegarty for showing her versatility she is great in defence and shooting. 

Junior Boys Soccer

Score 

SGC 5 - 0 WAC 

Special Mention

• Harrison Sacca for his excellent defence at right back.

• Noah Cameron for his very good on ball skills and feed into attack

• Jude Lane for his wonderful strength and control of the midfield (MOTM)

Newcombe Ball

Score 

SGC 2 - 1 WAC

Special Mention

• Harvey Monte for playing in his winter uniform and still performing to the best of his abilities 

• Abigail Delaney for her catching and throwing during rallies. There were numerous times in a row when Abigail was involved during the rally 

• Xavier Foley for his incredible serving performance during the second set. He scored 12 points in a row just from his serves. 

Dr. Vincent Hurley: A Voice Against Domestic Violence - Presents to our Senior Youth Forum.

In a powerful moment on the ABC’s Q+A program, Dr. Vincent Hurley, criminologist and former police detective, confronted politicians about their response to family violence. His passionate plea for real change has resonated with millions of viewers on social media.

The Urgency of Action

Dr. Hurley’s frustration boiled over as he addressed politicians who prioritized politics over the lives of victims. With one woman murdered every four days, he demanded immediate action and criticized the lack of meaningful solutions. His experience on the front lines, responding to domestic incidents during his three decades as a NSW Police officer, gave weight to his words.

Beyond Arrests: Frontline Services

Dr. Hurley emphasized that arresting our way out of domestic violence isn’t enough. Instead, he called for increased investment in frontline services. Addressing underlying issues like drug and alcohol abuse, gambling addiction, and mental illness is crucial to preventing domestic assaults.

Inspiring the Next Generation

Dr. Hurley’s impact extends beyond the political arena. As an alumnus of St Gregory’s College Campbelltown, he returned to speak to current Year 11 and 12 students at our Senior Youth Form. His message was clear: Australian’s young men have a pivotal role in shaping society’s future. By challenging harmful stereotypes, promoting healthy relationships, and advocating for change, our students can contribute to a safer, more compassionate world.

A Wake-Up Call

Dr. Vincent Hurley’s outburst serves as a wake-up call for state leaders and policymakers. Let’s heed his call for action and prioritize the safety and well-being of those affected by domestic violence. Our Senior Youth Forum’s provide our students the opportunity to listen, unpack, query and comment on important issues within our society and the role each of us play in them. We are thankful to our 'Old Boy' Dr Vince Hurley in taking the time in sharing his knowledge and expertise of his continued life’s work with the next generation. Our Senior Youth Forum’s demonstrate to the current students that in the act of exchanging information and expertise with each other, the collective knowledge possessed by all is powerful. 

Old Boy - Luke Small 

Luke attended St Gregory's College from 1998 - 2003 and he thoroughly enjoyed his time here. The Small family is now up to its third generation with Father Anthony attending the college in the 1970’s, and now two out of three sons Leo and Darcy currently attending the junior school. On completion of the HSC Luke followed the career path of his uncle into the plumbing trade. 

In 2017 Winx Plumbing was founded to service many residential and commercial builders both locally in the Macarthur area and afar. Luke has always had a strong focus on our local community from supporting the College, local sporting clubs and the Kids of Macarthur Foundation. It is something which gives him great pride being able to give back to our community.

Over the years Luke has also employed a large number of former St Gregory's students. Luke states 'I will always employ a boy from St Gregs, this comes from the discipline and manners shown by every encounter I have had with any student who has passed through the gates. The Marist charisms of Family Spirit and Love of Work are always evident and are ever important when creating a team. The ability to think of others is a trait I like to see in my own team.” 

This year Luke has taken on a huge personal challenge alongside fellow old boy Daniel Logue and mum of current students Gemma Benad in raising money for Rare Cancers in Australia by completing in the Corporate Clash in Macarthur. Through involvement with the organisers of the event, Old Boy - John McDonald Building Services, Luke has seen firsthand where the proceeds of the night are targeted and Winx plumbing have been involved in projects that benefit those in need.

To donate or follow and share the journey of Gemma, Daniel or Luke please visit give.rarecancers.org.au/fundraisers/lukesmall 

The College was excited to once again host our annual Vintage Luncheon. This year it was for old boys who attended St Gregory's from 1926 to 1974. The event included a liturgy in the chapel, a tour of the college (featuring the new “Gregorian” facilities), and a delightful lunch where stories were shared with cheer.

This year, guests came from various places, including Perth, Melbourne, Brisbane, and New Caledonia. Notably, Mr. and Mrs. Steve and Chris Benoit celebrated their 49th wedding anniversary, having been married in the College Chapel on this day 49 years ago. It’s heartwarming to see the enduring connections among the St. Gregory’s community! We reflected on our College motto “What you sow, so shall you reap” For it is in the efforts that have been sown before us of which we reap today.