Volume 7

Pilgrimage

It was a great privilege to recently join a Good Samaritan Education (GSE) pilgrimage, visiting a number of abbeys, churches and sacred sites in the United Kingdom and Italy.  I include here an excerpt from my Pilgrimage Reflection and look forward to incorporating some of the lessons learned into my leadership style:

Our group of pilgrims came from many walks of life, but all concerned with Good Samaritan education in both pastoral and educational work. We learnt that Benedictine can be expressed in many ways but always is concerned with the Benedictine challenge of service and a love of Christ.

One thing I realise now, is that I preferred to look from the buildings we visited rather than at the buildings themselves. It was always the view that captured me, as I imagined those who stood a long time before me, appreciating the same view, the same God given masterpieces of nature.  We might try but we will never be able to match the infinite power and glory of our creator. The windows from Monte Casino confirmed this like no other place.

The journey stirred in me an interest in the Irish Benedictines. I visited Glenstal Abbey, a mesmerising place with a school tucked into the lush countryside. The buildings resonate the great past, but most uplifting once again was the use of nature to inspire. The classrooms I saw were designed with the external wall made entirely of glass. This wall ‘window’ looked into a tapestry of trees. Students are witness to the dancing sunlight as it presses onto the trees, seeking out the darkness, shading, brushing and illuminating textures and tones of green, yellow and brown. Students are immersed into landscape. My teacher’s heart soared. 

I visited Dublin several times before and after the pilgrimage and for the first time in my life I noticed the gothic remnants of olden days peeping out behind facades of shops. I had never stopped to notice. I walked cobble stones in Trastevere, Dublin and Galway with a renewed respect to those who have gone before me.

Surprisingly, we heard Archbishop Polding’s vision is perceived by some to be a disappointment, an impossible dream because of the opposition it met from the Irish in particular.  But I can see why Archbishop Polding would have had trouble with landing his vision in Australia and persuading Irish convicts that this was not an anglicised faith. This well-intentioned church leader would have been faced with severe prejudice and one I completely understand. The poverty of the Irish Catholic church, the destitution of many convicts, particularly women would have formed strong barriers. So, the magic for me, was when Polding established the Sisters of the Good Samaritan. Here we can see the Benedictine tradition become active and translated into the hard work and prayer that met the people of the church where they stood, dirty, miserable, lonely and often without hope. Sisters, who could translate the hands of Christ, who supported the destitute, the lonely, the poor, the downtrodden and the abused. They captured the hearts and souls of many. Polding may have been described as lofty, but the missing piece was the sisters.  The sisters are Good Samaritan and indeed the Benedictine community now at Jamberoo is testament to his vision and so are we. I wonder what Archbishop Polding would have thought of us all sitting in Douai marvelling at his vision and courage.

It makes the cemetery at Rosebank even more special. I often stand there and imagine these amazing women who would have pondered and tackled the pressures of their time. I try to appreciate the sacrifices they made so far away from their families, their complete surrender to their faith and love of Christ.  

This is what I bring back.

Mother’s Day Celebration

We honoured Mother’s Day with a breakfast and Mass last Friday.  My thanks to every parent and special guest who attended.  Thank you also to Father Phil Zadro, for his ongoing support of us here at Rosebank and especially for celebrating Mass with us.

Over the past 2 years I have been working towards finishing my Gold Duke of Ed Award. I started the Award knowing it was helpful for early entry university applications, but also because I knew it would challenge me to be organised with extra-curricular activities and also allow me to commit to bigger things like hikes that would take me outside of my comfort zone. My favourite part of the Award was the Residential Project, where I was able to experience Indigenous culture in remote areas of Australia. My biggest achievement was doing a 6 day Adventurous Journey hike without knowing anyone else there. We walked up to 35 kms a day with our 17kg packs, so I was pretty happy that I got through it and was able to learn about navigating through areas and working with new equipment, while also meeting new people at the same time. One thing doing the Award taught me was how good it feels to complete something significant that I committed to. 

Lucy Garraway 
Year 12 

During the time spent completing the Duke of Ed Award, I learnt how to be myself. I discovered how to interact and form relationships with people I had never seen before and how to motivate others to achieve their potential. The most valuable lesson I learnt was to just keep on going. This pertains to other sections, such as the Voluntary Service section where your actions are rewarding but not by self gratification and validation but rather the awareness that you are leaving behind a positive impact on the lives of others. This was the most rewarding aspect of the Duke of Ed experience. Through the challenges, and there were too many to think about, it was persistence that allowed me and others to complete the Duke of Ed Award. This was especially noted when we had to complete the Adventurous Journey section virtually during COVID-19. Doing Duke of Ed was a great experience and one that taught me a lot about myself. 

Paolo O’Connell 
Year 12

Congratulations to the following students who have also recently completed the respective level of their Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award.  
Bronze Award: Thomas Canale, Sophia Ferrara, Grace Renwick, Ilaria Carbone  
Silver Award: Benjamin Charles  

If you’re in Years 9-12 and would like to participate in Duke of Ed, please contact Miss M Di Bella (mdibella@rosebank.nsw.edu.au) for more information. 

Club Netball off to a great start! 

 

Rosebank’s Club Netball teams are off to a great start in the Inner West Netball Association winter competition. This season Rosebank has 158 students competing across 19 teams and additionally eight ex-students representing Rosebank as part of our alumni team. Rosebank was well represented at the annual association March Past, showing great school spirit and pride, highlighting our girls, mixed and alumni teams. Rosebank had the largest representation of any club and all students who attended are to be commended on their efforts. The first four rounds of the competition have provided all sorts of weather conditions, with all of our Rosebank teams up to the challenge, working cohesively as a team and improving their skills each week. 

Netball Umpiring Achievement 

 

Congratulations to (from left to right) Isabelle Calleja, Olivia Gimenez, Katia Reichle and Sienna Roach who were all recently awarded their Club Umpiring Badge. All four students are part of Rosebank Netball Club’s Umpiring Program where they attend weekly umpiring training and umpire games on a Saturday. 

Ms Maryanne Di Bella 
PACE Coordinator (Cultural and Diverse Activities) 

High Performance Program 

 

Rosebank College conducted a trial “High Performance” training program for the Cross-Country team this week at St Lukes Park. It was very well accepted with over 25 cross country runners attending session 1 and they were put through a mobility and prehab opening, then progressing to a conditioning program in preparation for the upcoming cross country event at Eastern Creek. 20 junior football girls also joined in for the opening session for mobility and injury prevention. We have a big focus on resilience and wellness, so we do a lot around these factors within the program. Our motto is “Creating Future Champions, On And Off The Field”!

The cross-country program was scheduled for Monday and Wednesday afternoons after school and a special 6.30am preparation session on Friday morning at 6.30am. We hope that future sessions will be held for all athletes, all sports, and all participation levels. This I believe could set our school apart from all others. 
 

Coaching Seminar 

On Thursday, 4 May, the PACE Department held a “Coach the Coach” seminar conducted by Stuart Hanrahan and Jason Amos. This was the first in what will become a term-based initiative to ensure that coaches represent the values and culture of Rosebank College, as well as delivering the upmost professionalism in youth coaching standards. An emphasis was placed on student welfare, injury procedures and what makes the ideal Rosebank Coach. The event was received well by the coaching staff and there will be future ones planed in coming months. PACE will also be completing an induction video to ensure that new coaches will have an easy transition into the Rosebank Community. 

Mr Jason Amos 
PACE Administrator and Club Sport Coordinator 

Theatresports at Rosebank 

 

On Monday, 8 May, the Senior Theatresports team competed in the Theatresports School Challenge at Ashfield Boy High School. This was the team’s first official competition and live performance and after a term of training they faced the competition with excitement and a little trepidation.

From the moment the team stepped on stage, their performance was strong.  Creating characters of great depth and interest, improvising entertaining scenes of humour and enthralling storylines, they fought with gusto through the 4 rounds.  A mime in a house of vampires, characters exploring the jungle, a door of destiny and a Shakespearean skateboarding duel, the team performed with brilliance, dazzling the audience and judges.  At the end of the night, they were announced as winner of this heat and they now move on to the semi-finals where they will face new competition.

The semi-final is a public performance and open to all. It will be held at Ashfield Boys High School on Monday, 22 May from 7pm.  Tickets for Adults are $15 and students $10.  We encourage you all to come along to support the team and to find out what Theatresports is all about.

Ms Belinda Clark and Ms Heather Clark  
Theatresports Coaches 

Conference Table Tennis

Our representative table tennis team got off to a swinging start on Tuesday, 9 May at the Sydney Catholic Schools (SCS) Conference 2 Table Tennis Championships. Our 12-player strong team went out to Sydney Olympic Park Sports Hall to compete against other schools in this gala day. The team is to be commended on their excellent display of skill and composure. A special mention to the following students who placed in their age category:

• Toby Nakat and Jayden Wong - 2nd place Boys Senior
• Mia Mullan and Isabel Wong - 2nd place Girls Junior
• Santiago Anaya Alamanza and Moses Lawrence - 3rd place Boys Junior

Toby, Jayden, Mia and Isabel now progress onto the Sydney Championships. 
Congratulations to our table tennis team: Santiago Anaya Almanza, Luca Ciancio, Levi Cidem, Moses Lawrence, Mia Mullan, Toby Nakat, Fotini Papavramidis, Zoe Papavramidis, Isabel Wong, Jacob Wong, Jayden Wong, Lucas Ziino 

Representative Boys and Mixed Netball 
 

Rosebank is excited to be able to field teams in the inaugural Sydney Catholic Schools (SCS) Netball boys and mixed netball competitions. These teams compete in the term 2 weekly sport competition at Cintra Park Concord, with all teams putting out strong performances to set the tone for the season. These teams are to be commended for their commitment and sportsmanship. 

European Handball 

 

On Monday, 8 May (girls) and Tuesday, 9 May (boys), Rosebank competed in the NSW State Schools Handball Championships. The girls team finished 5th, narrowly missing finals by one point. To their credit, they recorded a win over the eventual runners up and didn’t lose any of their games by more than one goal. This is an exceptional performance given that most of the players in the team had never played before. The boys finished 4th, recording three out of five wins in the pool stages to finish 3rd. The team battled through extra time in the 3rd place play-off game, going down by one goal. Similarly to the girls, for all except one player, this was their first experience of competitive handball.

Congratulations to the following students: 
Girls team: Lola Arnold, Elise Borozan, Anna Concannon, Elizabeth Cruz, Dakota Hammond, Marlie Harris, Tina Hatzivasiliou, Olivia Mazzott, Maggie Peterson, Lola Tesoriero, Chloe Tselis 
Boys team: Hugo Guastella, Cooper Husken, Daniel Righi, Cooper Smith, Nate Toelleatkinson, Owen Tourle-Choi, Owen Watson, Scott Wrigley 

Rosebank Boys Dominate at Nationals 

 

Over the Easter Holidays, Jack Harris, Jonas Kapsanis, Solomon Howard, and Fraser Salmon represented New South Wales and embarked to Perth for the annual Australian Men's and Mixed Netball Championships. The championships commenced with an opening ceremony on Saturday, 8 April and concluded with a presentation dinner on Saturday, 15 April. Jack, Jonas and Fraser competed in the 20’s and under age division while Solomon in the 17s and under, with all age groups (17s, 20s, 23s, Opens, Open reserves, Mixed, and Mixed reserves) playing 2 games a day and one game on Thursday leading up to the start of finals on the Friday. The NSW 20s age team finished the regular rounds with four wins and five losses, securing 3rd place position, getting eliminated in the elimination finals to 4th seed Queensland metro. The 17s and under age group secured three wins out of the nine games and finished 5th out of seven teams.

Overall, we can all confidently say being a part of a NSW men's netball team was an experience we recommend for any male netballer seeking to take their skills to the next level. The opportunity provides means to create new friends, develop skills in a high-performance environment and have a chance to represent NSW! Information regarding trials for the 2024 championships will be released at a later date and can be found on the Men’s Netball New South Wales Facebook page. 

Fraser Salmon 
Year 12 Caulfield