Brooksbank Library Naming Ceremony 

As a part of the School’s ongoing centennial celebrations, we were delighted on Wednesday 11^th May 2022 that we could finally gather to officially name the Senior School Library after the school founder, The Reverend Hubert Albert Brooksbank.

We were honoured to host ten members of the Brooksbank family to officially name the library, which was declared the Brooksbank Library by the Chair of School Council, Dr Nikita Weickhardt.  Dr Mary Brooksbank AM responded on behalf of her family and was able to share wonderful anecdotes about Rev Brooksbank.

The ceremony was attended by members of School Council, Life Governors, staff and students. A beautiful rendition of the newly commissioned School Anthem was performed by a choir of fourteen students, which was an enchanting way to mark the occasion.

In being named the Brooksbank Library we hope that it continues to create opportunities to support learning and literacy whilst being a place of reflection and contemplation.

Reunions are back!

We were thrilled at long last to be able to host six reunions on Friday 13^th May 2022.

The Classes of 2000, 2001, 2002 celebrated their 20-year reunions and the Classes of 2010, 2011, 2012 celebrated their 10-year reunions.

The school was abuzz with different locations around the school being utilized to host these milestone gatherings. Joy and laughter was abound as we were finally able to meet and celebrate in person. It was wonderful to see so many former staff members join these year levels to celebrate and catch up on the past 10 and 20 years. It was also great to see so many current staff join in the fun to see what their past students are now doing.

Old grammarian adjudicates House Dance!

Dr Lisa Ellis has long been a supporter of ‘balance’. As a dancer, it is fundamental, as a human being – essential.

Last week Lisa (2008) returned to CGGS to assist with our House Dance adjudication. Many of our students have been inspired by Lisa’s pursuit of medicine (she is currently training to be a surgeon) whilst maintaining her Dance Prescription academy – a place for aspiring elite dancers to train under the informed guidance of Dr Ellis, who ensures they maintain peak physical and psychological fitness.

Lisa’s presence at our House event was greatly appreciated as she supplied considered feedback to all of the captains, along with her worldly perspective, “You have to upkeep doing the things that you love. Yes, because of balance, but mostly, because it makes you interesting. People want to work with interesting people.”

PFA Welcome Drinks

A fantastic night was had by all who attended the PFA Welcome Evening on Friday 25^th March. There was excitement in the air as over 200 parents and staff from junior and senior school were immersed in a street festival themed event where they could finally socialise. Guests were entertained by live music, a roaming magician and hula-a hoop performer and enjoyed a variety of delicious food, cocktails and beverages.

Three very happy guests were the winners of the PFA Lucky Door Prize and received a $250 Red Balloon gift voucher.

The PFA were delighted to provide a great opportunity to unite the school community once again and looks forward to delivering many more events throughout the year.

Junior School Twilight Picnic  

A lovely night was had by all those who attended the JS Welcome Picnic last Friday evening.

It was wonderful to see so many smiling faces and children enjoying free play on the playgrounds and PFA climbing frame, using basketballs and skipping ropes. Children were also entertained by a Balloonologist and Face Painters.

Families enjoyed the food offerings from the PFA BBQ, pre-ordered meals from Pinwheel & Co or BYO picnics and were able to mingle and meet new families.

The PFA is always delighted to support this event and looks forward to bringing more events to the CGGS Community in the coming months.

Join us!

Book now to join CGGS mums, guardians and children at the annual Mother’s Day Breakfast.

This much loved event is a wonderful way to celebrate and say thank you to our amazing mums and special women in our lives. You will be seated with others from your daughter’s year level to enjoy a delicious breakfast. You may also be the recipient of one of the special Mother’s Day prizes.

Date: Thursday 5th May

Time:  7:00 – 8.30am

Venue: Barbara Sutton Hall (Senior School)

Tickets: Adults $25 / Child $20

RSVP:    Sunday 1^st May

Ticket price includes delicious hot meal.

Book now to make sure you don’t miss out.

Thank you to the PFA!

All the above events spoken about in this section of todays CamNews are all made possible thanks to the hard work of the Parents & Friends Association.

Break the Bias – International Women’s Day

It was a delight to welcome back old grammarian, Gen Dohrmann (Simmons, 2006) as our guest speaker at the International Women’s Day assembly held on Tuesday 8^th March to talk about this year’s theme #Breakthebias.

Gen spoke about her role as President of Women Sport Australia, a volunteer, not-for-profit body dedicated to making sport equitable. She spoke about the importance of supporting women in all sports from grassroots to professional and the significance of including men in these conversations. Gen encouraged everyone to take the gender equity sport pledge which asks people to commit to affirmative action to create equity for girls and women in sport. To make your pledge please click here https://www.womensportaustralia.com.au/takethepledge/

To view this fantastic presentation, please view the video here:

https://clickv.ie/w/dlvs

PFA Events are Back!!!

We are delighted to be able to finally hold functions again for the CGGS Community and hope to see you at the upcoming PFA events.

The PFA Welcome Evening

We would love to see parents from every year level across the school join us at this fun whole school complimentary event on Friday 25 March from 6:00 – 8:30pm.

Be entertained by live music and enjoy a variety of delicious food, cocktails, wine, beers and soft drink. You could be the winner of an amazing Lucky Door Prize!!

This will be a great opportunity to catch up with parents from your year level and meet others new to the school community.

Bookings are essential for catering purposes.

Dads Night Out
 
The CGGS Dads Group Committee invite you to join dads, uncles and grandads from the senior and junior school communities for the first Dads Night Out of 2022. 

The Dads Night Out will be held at the Ramblers Ale Works on Thursday 17 March from 7:00pm

This will be a great opportunity to reconnect, meet new dads and enjoy each other’s company over a quality ale at this fantastic new venue.

$30per person will provide finger food all night and a pint of beer.

Tickets can be purchased via the link below:

Junior School Twilight Picnic IS ON!!

The Parents and Friends Association and Junior School staff look forward to welcoming all families to the Junior School Twilight Picnic.

BYO picnic, drinks and a rug to this fun filled evening on Friday 1 April to see your CGGS friends and meet new families. The PFA BBQ will offer sausages, drinks and icy poles.

The event will be held over two sessions to ensure adequate space for all families in the Early Learning and Junior School grounds.

EL3 – Year 3 / 4:30 – 6:00pm

Year 4 – Year 6 / 6:30 – 8:00pm

We are looking forward to seeing you at one or all of these PFA events!!

PFA Friends of Sport support for House Athletics

The Friends of Sport parent volunteers were delighted to prepare and serve morning tea for CGGS staff at the recent House Athletics Carnival. Year 11 parents Tracey Tremewen and Kate Locke organised an amazing array of baked goods to energise and fulfil the staff during a busy day at the track.

If you would like to volunteer with the Friends of Sport please contact Susannah Jepson, Community Relationships Coordinator via jepsons@cggs.vic.edu.au

Join the PFA Committee at the Annual General Meeting

The Parents & Friends Association is committed to supporting the school and its amazing community.

Parent involvement is always welcomed. We aim to build a strong network and sense of community and would love you join this vibrant group of CGGS parent volunteers at a PFA event or meeting or volunteer on the Committee.

We are seeking nominations for positions on the PFA Executive and Committee and the 2022 Committee will be inducted at the upcoming Annual General Meeting on Tuesday 22 March at 7:30pm in the Junior School Hall.

All members of the CGGS community are warmly invited to attend the meeting, even you do not wish to nominate for a position.

Positions include: President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer and 6 committee member positions.

The term of these positions is one year with a maximum of 3years.

Learn more about the PFA Committee roles via the button below.

The Nomination Form is available via the tab below:

For more information about the PFA or the Committee roles contact Susannah Jepson, Community Relationships Coordinator for more information.

CONTACT   jepsons@cggs.vic.edu.au

Welcome to 2022 from the Parents & Friends Association

The Parents & Friends Association (PFA) is delighted that all students have returned to school after a well needed summer break.

It is wonderful to see their smiling faces and hear the joyful noises of laughter and play around the school grounds once again.

We have planned many fantastic events for the CGGS community throughout the year. We hope to be able to run them for both junior and senior school families and will be guided by the government and school health operation guidelines at the time.

The annual PFA Welcome Drinks that was scheduled in February will now be held on Friday 25 March. We look forward to seeing junior and senior parents at this fun, whole school event where we will all have the chance to mingle again and enjoy delicious food and beverages.

More details about this event will be published in upcoming Junior and Senior Weeklies.

The PFA welcomes all members of the CGGS community to become involved. Whether by attending events as a guest, volunteering or joining PFA meetings, we encourage everyone to take part and meet others in our wonderful school community.

For more information about the PFA:

Visit the PFA pages on the CGGS Website.

Make sure you follow the PFA on Facebook.

Contact Susannah Jepson for more information about the Parents and Friends Association via pfa@cggs.vic.edu.au  

PFA Community Raffle

Are you a Lucky Ticket winner??

The Parents and Friends Association is excited to have launched the PFA Community Raffle to celebrate our wonderful CGGS Community.

Your daughter was given a PFA boxed chocolate bar to bring home as a gift from the PFA. Inside could be a Winning Lucky Ticket.

There will be winners from every year level from Early Learning to Year 12 and Professional Services, Junior and Senior Staff groups.

Be sure to check inside your gift to see if you have won!!

Some lucky winners have already been identified and have won either:

1^st place Lucky Ticket – you win a $250 RedBalloon voucher and a Limited Edition CGGS Centenary Merchandise Hamper

2^nd place Lucky Ticket – you win a Limited Edition CGGS Centenary Merchandise Hamper

If you are a lucky winner, be sure to email a photo of yourself holding the winning ticket to Susannah Jepson – jepsons@cggs.vic.edu.au

The PFA looks forward to reconnecting with the CGGS community and celebrating the lucky winners of the Community Raffle.

GOOD LUCK!!

Old Grammarians provide inspiration at Service Learning Conference 

Year 9 enjoyed a Service Learning conference which focused on the value of being Useful in Service and connecting with the local community.

The school invited old grammarians who volunteer and serve the local community to present via video to the Year 9s about their work and contribution to the communities they serve.

The students were very fortunate to hear from: 

Amanda Mandie OAM (1977), Executive Director and Founder of the Koala Kids Foundation (2021 CGGS Inspiring Woman)
Amanda and her 13-year-old son Nick founded Koala Kids in 2005 with a mission that Koala Kids volunteers provide small things that make a difference for children and young people, their families and healthcare team during cancer treatment. As well as working tirelessly to provide moments of happiness for children and young people from birth to 25 years Amanda also manages Koala Kids’ large army of volunteers committed to its vision to touch every child and young person with cancer in Victoria and Tasmania

In the 2021 Australia Day Awards, Amanda was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for her service to the community through charitable organisations. Amanda spoke with such passion about bringing moments of happiness and joy to these families undergoing treatment. 

Helen Parker OAM (1996), Founder and CEO of the Babes Project
Helen Parker established the Babes Project in 2019, after being confronted with her own experience of crisis pregnancy.  The Babes Project is changing the way Australians approach crisis pregnancy by supporting and encouraging women on their journey no matter the circumstances.  Helen shares her passion of ensuring every woman in Australia has access to help and support during pregnancy. She was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia for her service to pregnant women in need.

Diane Dick (1965)
Diane  spoke about her time volunteering in her local community where she first began volunteering on the Mornington Peninsula at a Neighbourhood House. Utilising her professional skills, she developed software to assist in the administrative running of the Neighbourhood House to allow the volunteers to focus on delivering eduational programs. Diane has moved to Perth and now offers her time in assisting a Dog Rescue organisation. She is a great example of someone using her skills to volunteer and serve. 

Andrea Brown (1984)
Andrea Brown started her volunteer career after leaving school by ushering at the theatre for the Royal South Street Calisthenics Society. Andrea has always had a passion for calisthenics since the age of six and she is currently the Chair of the Calisthenics Discipline and Deputy Chair of the Royal South Street Society. She is a great example of someone who serves in an area where she can use her passion and continue to serve the community she loves.

Elisabeth Sandbach (2012)
A strong advocate for volunteering whilst at school, Elisabeth continued on volunteering at university where she gave her time to VGen, a youth movement of World Vision Australia. VGen’s goal is to inspire, educate and empower young people about worldwide issues of social injustice and poverty. Elisabeth currently volunteers for The Sudanese Australian Integrated Learning (SAIL) Program, a completely volunteer-run, not-for-profit, secular organisation which provides free tutoring and educational support to the Sudanese Australian community. Elisabeth works as a commercial lawyer and is the pro bono Coordinator for the  firm which has a strong commitment to pro bono work such as homeless law and refugee legal.

It was wonderful to see the way she continued to employ the CGGS motto of being Useful in Service after leaving school and use her professional skills in service once she became a lawyer.

Georgie Herbert (1998), Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation
After the death of her mother in 2017, Georgie commenced her journey in philanthropy to raise funds for ovarian cancer research. Georgie has worked tirelessly to raise funds and has personally raised over $400,000. After working many years at the AFL as Head of Commercial Operations, she joined the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund as Philanthropy and Corporate Partnerships Manager, continuing her philanthropic work. Georgie told the students her story of volunteering in sports clubs and the evolution of her service which has eventually become her full-time work.

Past Parents Group

CGGS recognises and appreciates the contribution parents make to the school and the friendships and connections that are formed whilst their daughters are at school. We are excited to announce that we will be launching a Past Parent Community group in 2022.

The purpose of the group is to continue the connections made throughout their daughter’s time at the school. We will be inviting current Year 12 parents who are leaving the school to be the inaugural members of this group. Please stay tuned for your invitation to assist in creating a wonderful past parent community group.

It will be a fantastic opportunity for you to maintain connections and network within the CGGS community.

Thank You to our Volunteers

We are very appreciative of the wonderful culture of volunteering within our CGGS community. In 2020 and 2021, we have not had many opportunities to meet in person; the Parents & Friends Association and Year Level representatives have endeavored to maintain contact and keeping our communities connected.

To thank our amazing volunteers, we enjoyed a virtual cheese and wine tasting where we tasted amazing cheeses from local producer That’s Amore Cheese and travelled to Italy to meet the wine makers from Salatin Winery in Veneto. The evening was bellisimo!