This term we have published an audio version of the Churchie Weekly Newsletter as a trial. Thank you for those who have provided feedback about this additional way for you to hear what’s on at Churchie. Unfortunately we have not seen broad uptake, and therefore invite further feedback from parents, whether you have listened or not, as to whether you see this as a communications format with further potential. Comments can be emailed to news@churchie.com.au. Please enjoy this final week’s audio edition.
So it is, we arrive at the final week of Term 1. Ten weeks of full and vigorous growth and learning have brought us to Holy Week and, hopefully, a period of rest and reflection for students, staff, and families.
In our faith community, Easter is a beautiful time of worship, a time to spend with family, and a time to enjoy the turning of the seasons announcing the arrival of invigorating cooler weather in which to embrace life in all its fullness.
In recent days, we have expressed our Christian foundation, in the Anglican tradition, by worshipping in various chapel services across Prep and Senior Schools, as well as our Sunday evening Boarders’ Chapel Service. Messages of hope and thanksgiving have been central themes at this time of year.
Perhaps the highlight was our beautiful Prep Easter Service held at St John’s Cathedral, led so thoughtfully by Chaplain Stephanie Cotroneo. With the central theme of windows, through which an uplifting light would shine, God’s love for the world, through his son Jesus, was represented in the collection of 61 windows featured on all sides of the Cathedral building. As well as following the story of many of the major cathedral windows, the students sang songs of worship and led prayers of thanksgiving to remind everyone of the true meaning of Easter.
We are very fortunate to live and work in a place in which freedom of worship and adherence to our Christian traditions are so central to our daily lives. We are the benefactors of traditions that are centuries in the making, and we have the privilege of passing these traditions on to the next generation.
I wish you and your family a holy, restful and safe Easter time.
In so many ways, this has been a wonderful term and a great start to our 113th year. I offer my thanks for all you have done to support the students, staff and Churchie community this term, and I look forward to the opportunities in Term 2.
Yours sincerely
Dr Alan Campbell Headmaster
The Viking
Reminder to collect your Viking 2023
The Viking 2023 yearbook has been distributed to all staff and students across the School. If your son was enrolled at the school in 2023 and has not yet received The Viking 2023, please have them contact their housemaster (Senior School) or classroom teacher (Prep School).
Prep School
Happy holidays
We have much to be thankful for at Churchie, and Term 1 certainly epitomises what we want from our boys—a world of opportunities. At Prep Assembly last week, I reflected on our boys’ extensive engagement in our academic and cocurricular programmes. It was lovely to see the vast number of boys involved in the variety of opportunities that were presented to them in Term 1.
We enjoyed very successful junior GPS Debating and Cricket seasons. Our GPS swimmers placed a very credible second in the junior championship. We acknowledged and celebrated our Year 6 Student Leaders at our first assembly and congratulated our outstanding award recipients along the way. Prep Music Solos in the chapel was a highlight with the level of musicianship on show that was simply outstanding. It was fantastic to see our volleyballers in action. I enjoyed my time on the sidelines watching them. Boys trialled for the New Zealand sports tour and participated in Garden Club. Our footballers and tennis players have also been busy preparing for their seasons in Term 2. Our Year 6 boys kicked off the Prep Outdoor Education programme for the year with a trip to Stradbroke Island, and we held our first-ever house meetings in the Prep School with our brand-new housemasters.
Also this term, we enjoyed author visits and unit provocations, engaged in NAPLAN assessments and worshipped together at weekly chapels and the Easter Service at St John’s Cathedral. We welcomed new boys to the School, our dads ran a sausage sizzle lunch and we learned some valuable historical insights about our school from School Archivist Peter Collin. Our parent information and curriculum information nights were a huge success, highlighting the integral partnership between school and home. And, our whole school Eucharist Service round out the term in a most special way.
We certainly have cause to be grateful and celebrate all the wonderful stories that have made our journey in Term 1 so special. Please accept my best wishes for you and your family during Easter and the holiday period. I trust you will have the opportunity to spend this time with family and friends and have a chance to recharge your batteries. I look forward to welcoming our boys back at the beginning of Term 2.
We thoughtfully consider our world and our own ideas and experiences. We work to understand our strengths and weaknesses to support our learning and personal development.
Attribute of the week: discipline
When you have discipline, you have self-control. With appropriate and consistent discipline, you learn about consequences and take responsibility for your own actions.
During week nine, boys from 6A and 6C headed to North Stradbroke Island for two nights of fun, adventure, team building, resilience and supportive risk-taking. The Outdoor Education team provided the boys with invaluable opportunities to experience the joy of learning outside the four walls of the classroom and appreciate the beauty that Australia’s landscape has to offer. From stargazing, hiking and building water rafts to learning about Quandamooka people and culture, there is no doubt the boys all had a wonderful time and left with many special memories.
Buddy classes
Throughout Term 1, 1A and 6C participated in regular buddy sessions. The boys enjoyed making connections and getting to know each other through indoor and outdoor games. To end the term, they had an Easter egg hunt, egg and spoon races, and challenged each other to keep the plastic eggs tapping on their spoons. Buddy time is a much-anticipated part of our programme as the boys delight in coming together and learning more about each other. We look forward to another term of building relationships among our classes in the weeks ahead.
Easter Service
On Monday evening, we came together as a community in worship to celebrate Easter. Through song and presentation, our boys led us through the Easter story and highlighted its significance. It was lovely to see our Prep School choirs, string ensemble and choristers as part of the service. Thank you to Chaplain Stephanie for her spiritual guidance and organisation of this wonderful community event.
The Mother and Son High Tea will be held on Tuesday 14 May 2024. As is tradition, the afternoon will commence with a mothers chapel service at 2:15 pm, followed by high tea in Morris Hall, with the boys joining their mothers at 3:05 pm.
Attendance at the event will be open only to Prep School boys in Years 5 and 6 and their mothers.
A formal invitation will be sent to Years 5 and 6 parents early next term.
Term dates
The final school day for this term is Wednesday 27 March. Term 2 commences on Tuesday 16 April.
Mark Wyer Head of Preparatory School
Open Day 2024
Churchie’s Open Day is on Wednesday 1 May 2024. If you have a friend or relative who would like to find out more about a Churchie education, you are most welcome to invite them to attend. Registrations are via the Churchie website.
QCE evaluation
The QCAA has engaged the University of Melbourne’s Assessment and Evaluation Research Centre to conduct an independent evaluation of the new QCE system. The aim is to assess the QCE’s efficacy and for recommendations to the QCAA for future improvements.
Following a recent opportunity for school communities to provide initial feedback via a quick survey, the University of Melbourne is now inviting organisations and individuals to make more substantial written submissions of up to 2,000 words on their thoughts, experiences and impressions of the QCE system and its processes. Responses are required address to five stimulus questions that can be found on the submission form via this link. The closing date for these written submissions is Friday 19 April.
Please click here for information on Churchie’s thoughts regarding the new QCE. However, we encourage members of our community to offer their own views.
Richard Wheeldon Deputy Headmaster
Senior School
Family Chapel Services in Term 2
The annual House Chapel Services will take place during Term 2, and families are invited to join their house to celebrate and worship as a community. Year 7 students will be welcomed into their house by receiving their house badges and the seniors will be acknowledged as house leaders.
Dress for students at the chapel services is Whites with blazer (no hat) and dark grey or black socks.
Morning tea for families will be served immediately after each chapel service in the undercroft of The Centenary Library lecture theatre.
Churchie’s Anzac Day Ceremony is one of the most significant events on the school calendar.
All Senior School students are required to attend the Anzac Day Ceremony which will be held on Thursday 25 April 2024 commencing at 8 am on The Flat and concluding at approximately 9:15 am. The service is viewed as a compulsory School activity.
Dress requirement for Term 2 and Term 3
On Thursdays in Term 2, students are to wear their Whites and blazer with Akubra. On all other days, the uniform is Blues.
Rod Olsen Head of Senior School
24/7 Library digital borrowing for the holidays
Holidays are always a terrific time to relax with a book. Students can borrow up to six print books before the holidays or a combination of three e-books and audiobooks at any time. If your son has an internet connection and access to his school laptop or a mobile phone, he can borrow an e-book or an audiobook from our Wheelers collection 24/7. To borrow an e-book or audiobook on your phone, students can install the ePlatform App by scanning the QR Code on our library page and following the prompts. Make sure to select the Senior School.
A reminder, our physical library will close at 6 pm each day this week. Have a wonderful break.
Brian Bodell Head of Library Services
Chaplain’s corner
Blessing of Webber House
On a rainy Tuesday morning, four Year 6 leaders ventured into the cathedral precinct with Chairman of School Council The Honourable Paul de Jersey AC CVO KC, Headmaster Dr Alan Campbell and Senior Chaplain Rev’d Sharon Mitchell. The occasion was to witness Archbishop Jeremy Greaves nail the final slate tile and bless the newly renovated building of Webber House. Churchie’s connection to Webber House is from over 100 years ago.
Canon Morris marched the boys ‘through the cathedral to the East Chapel for morning prayers. From there, they filed out and proceeded north down Ann Street to the slate-roofed sandstone Church Institute building, where they climbed the stairs, past the 200 girls of Miss Roggenkamp’s St John’s Day School, to their third-floor classroom.’
The Making of Men, page 39
Our boys not only had a tour of the original classrooms but also travelled on the lift, up through the scaffolding, to witness Archbishop Jeremy dedicate the building. The view of the cathedral and surrounding buildings was spectacular, even if we got a little bit wet. Webber House has had many tenants, most recently home to the Anglicare offices. This year, a new project has begun, and Webber House is once again home to a school, caring for students who are unable to attend mainstream schooling.
Date: Wednesday 1 May 2024 Time: 6 pm Location: St John’s Cathedral
Churchie students in Year 4 and above are invited to celebrate being admitted to Holy Communion in a joint service with students from St Margaret’s Anglican Girls School.
Stephanie Cotroneo Lay Minister – Chaplain Preparatory School
Confirmation Service
Date: Wednesday 12 June 2024 Time: 7 pm Location: Canon Jones Memorial Chapel
Churchie students in Year 9 and above are invited to express interest in taking part in the sacrament of Confirmation. Family and friends are welcome to attend, and sisters from any school are welcome to be Confirmed alongside their brothers. They are also encouraged to support and attend this service, which will be followed by light refreshments.
Please complete the Confirmation Application JotForm to express interest in learning more about confirmation. If the candidate has not yet been baptised, this will occur during the Confirmation Service. Please note: a separate form is required for each candidate to enter the necessary details for each person.
Please contact The Rev’d Sharon Mitchell if you have any questions or for further information at sharon.mitchell@churchie.com.au.
Rev’d Sharon Mitchell Senior Chaplain
Music
Term 1 preparations are now complete as we look forward to concert season in Term 2, particularly the May Concert Series, where every ensemble has the opportunity to showcase their work. These concerts are always more welcoming and encouraging for students with a supportive and full audience, so please come along and enjoy the performances as these young musicians continue their journeys at Churchie. Thank you to all staff, parents and students for all your preparation and effort throughout the term. Keep up the practice over the holidays as we approach the clinical stages of preparing for our performances. Best wishes for the Easter holidays.
QYS members
Congratulations to Luka Roberts (Year 11) and Hunter Luostarinen (Year 9), who both performed with the Queensland Youth Orchestra at the Queensland Conservatorium Theatre. The repertoire was provoking, moving and virtuosic, all that a great artistic experience should be in a performance of this calibre.
Music badges
Boys in Years 7 and above who have been members of two or more ensembles for two or more years are entitled to a music badge. Please see your relevant Head of Strings, Choral or Bands to request the badge, which can be worn on your Churchie Akubra.
Symphony Orchestra at Headmaster’s Assembly
Congratulations to the Symphony Orchestra on another fine performance which aptly supported the Easter service this morning. The Symphony Orchestra is our largest ensemble combining all areas of woodwind, brass, percussion and strings to make an incredible sound layered with colours. Please take the time to listen to their musical offering ‘Artist’s Life Op. 316’ by Johaan Strauss Jnr.
End-of-season presentations for volleyball and cricket were the focus of this week. The videos, prestigious awards and entertaining student speeches were a highlight. Support groups worked tirelessly to organise these spectacular events that served to celebrate and close out their seasons. I thank them for their efforts this season as they continue to support our directors in delivering a memorable experience for our boys.
On Saturday evening, over 280 guests gathered at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre to celebrate the 2024 cricket season at the annual Churchie Cricket End of Season Dinner.
The dinner was a wonderful evening, celebrating the successes of the boys on the field during 2024, with year-level representatives giving a season summary on how the teams in their year level fared during the season. Most valuable player, batting, bowling and fielding awards recognised those boys who performed their best cricket during the season.
The later parts of the evening recognised players who excelled at the highest level in 2024, celebrating those who scored centuries and took five-wicket hauls during the season, as well as acknowledging those who won Churchie Cricket’s most sought-after prizes.
A list of major award winners for the evening is below. However, a special congratulations to Year 9A (McKerrell Trophy), Angus Peters (Peter Burge Medal), Sean Hansen (Senior Cricketer of the Year) and Angus Storen (Sir Donald Bradman Medal, the most prestigious awards of the evening).
Sir Donald Bradman Medal (First XI Cricketer of the Year): Angus Storen
Mitchell Brent Memorial Trophy (First XI Player’s Player): Angus Storen
WHV Jubbs Trophy (First XI Bowler of the Year): Henry Hillier
First XI Batsman of the Year: Angus Storen
First XI Fielder of the Year: Zac Griggs
Senior Cricketer of the Year (Year 10 – 12 Cricketer of the Year): Sean Hansen 11A
Peter Burge Medal (Year 7 – 9 Cricketer of the Year): Angus Peters 9A
McKerrell Trophy (Team of the Year): 9A
Senior Wicket Keeper Award: Henry Benjamin Second XI
Junior Wicket Keeper Award: Banjo Jenkins 9A
Churchie Team of the Year:
Conor Wrigley Third XI
James Turley 7A
Sean Hansen 11A
Angus Storen 9A
Liam Stieper 10A
Shoubhit Jain 8A
Riley Wondergem 11A
Angus Storen First XI
Rupert Bignall First XI
Rafa Schroor 9A
Henry Hillier First XI
Sam Wilkins Second XI
The End of Season Dinner was the culmination of an incredibly successful 2024 season, where 14 Churchie teams recorded top-three finishes on their ladder for the season, including 5C, 9A, 10A and the Third XI secured top place finishes, while the First XI’s third-place finish was the best result by a Churchie Cricket First team in over a decade.
Ladder First Place
Ladder Second Place
Ladder Third Place
Third XI
7A
First XI
10A
7B
11A
9A
6A
8A
5C
6C
8B
5A
5B
Well done to all boys in the cricket programme for their outstanding performances throughout 2024, and a huge thank you to our coaches, staff, volunteers and parents for the immense amount of work they put in to help make the 2024 season a huge success.
Thank you to the volleyball community for an amazing end-of-season presentation night most befitting of an enjoyable and successful season. Over 300 avid Churchie Volleyball fans filled the Brisbane Entertainment & Convention Centre to celebrate the season that was.
Churchie Volleyball finished the 2024 season winning the top overall programme with 272 GPS points. The A team points were ACGS with 82 points, with an official win/loss percentage of 81.7%.
We finished the season with 20 GPS premierships—13 undefeated, 4 shared and 3 unofficial.
Our Year 9 cohort maintained an undefeated record for the 2024 season across all four teams. Additionally, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E (unofficial), 6A, 6B, 5A and 5B.
The First VI was able to defend the 2023 premiership with back-to-back undefeated premierships.
A team top three Firsts: Churchie, NC, BBC/GT
Award winners
Best and Fairest and Most Improved
7A Rhys Gezorke, Hugo Crawley
7B Edward Potter, AJ Smare
7C Shannon Moloney, William Clark
7D Orlando Culpo, Charlie Thomas
7E Nathan Wang, Oscar Chandler
8A Nic Price, Tom Barrett
8B Troy Ham, Coen Campbell
8C Oscar Moore, Zack Copland
8D Ben McKay, Aiden Jamieson
8E Ben DeLuca, Monte Lockwood
9A Kevin Tan, Hamish Rhodes
9B Jayden Ooi, Jed Foreman
9C Hamilton Chuang, Emmerson Westcott
9D Harvey Bowman, Archie Jarvis
10A Frankie Sharpe, Daniel Godfrey
10B Jacob Karlsson, Janik Nanayakkara
10C Ben Finucan, Lachlan Ball
10D Damien Ting, Ben McEntee
11A Max Lee-Hill, Tim Angliss
11B Jacob Robertson, Liam Gordon
11C Ben Williams, Finlay Ahern
11D Harry O’Connel, Hunter Evans
Fourth VI Cooper Saunders, Hugo Hall
Third VI Brendan Mullins, Ben Griffin
Second VI James Morgan, Jett Mills
First VI Luka Sazdov, Ben van Heerden
Volleyball Most Valuable Player
Cooper Sharpe
Team of The Year
First VI
Spirit of Volleyball
Sam Cooper
Rising Star awards
Each season the First VI players serve the volleyball community by connecting with a junior team, joining them for some training sessions and games throughout the season. As a part of this commitment, they also each select a player from their junior team to win their Rising Star Award. The criteria for these awards are at the discretion of the player giving them. The First VI players gave the students the awards on the night.
Introducing the Churchie GPS Sport Triage Screening Service
We are thrilled to share some exciting news from Churchie Strength and Conditioning! We are embarking on a collaboration with the Integrated Physio Centre (IPC) to introduce a new, valuable service for our students: the Churchie GPS Sport Triage Screening.
In extending IPC’s successful management of our rugby programme over the past three years, we are excited to announce their expanded role in overseeing this service for our wider sporting community. These screenings will take place following each weekend’s GPS fixtures and during respective preseason training weeks.
The primary aim of these sessions is to offer our athletes additional support through comprehensive physiotherapy assessments. This includes initial assessments, injury assessments, injury observations, referrals, modifications to the Strength and Conditioning programme (conducted by our expert staff), and adjusted field/court training. The process follows a systematic approach to facilitate a safe return to training and play, with the option for further in-depth assessments during off and on-site clinic times.
This collaborative effort is designed to elevate the standard of care provided by the Churchie sports department. Our goal is to offer prompt, direct, and specific assessments, recommendations, and rehabilitation exercises, ensuring our student-athletes can remain actively engaged in their desired sporting pursuits.
Key details about the Churchie GPS Sport Triage Screening
Who: Open to Senior School GPS Sports students When: Term 2, Monday mornings from 6:30 to 8 am Where: Medical room of the Sir John Pigeon Sports Complex (SJPSC) foyer Arrival: Students seeking assessment must be in the SJPSC by 7 am to ensure sufficient time for screening Supervision: Churchie Strength and Conditioning Staff and Physiotherapists from IPC
We are pleased to announce that the Monday morning assessment is free of charge to the community. However, follow-up appointments will need to be covered by private health insurance, with charges at a reduced rate compared to private clinic fees.
For those interested in learning more about the program, please feel free to reach out to Jarrad Boswell, Director of Athletic Development, at Jarrad.Boswell@churchie.com.au.
We are enthusiastic about the positive impact this service will have on the wellbeing and performance of our student athletes.
Jarrad Boswell Director of Strength and Conditioning
Sporting achievements
Congratulations to the following students who have achieved representative success in their sporting pursuits:
Track and Field
Charlie Lopes qualified to represent Queensland at the Nationals in the U13 boys 100 metres and 200 metres and will be at the Australian Athletics Championships in Adelaide next month.
Andrew McConnel secured a bronze medal and third in the Under 15 2,000 metres Steeplechase this was a 16-second PB for him and qualified for the Queensland Track and Field team Nationals being held in Adelaide.
Hockey
Riley Wondergem was selected in the Met East 16 to 19 Years Boys Hockey team to play at the Queensland Championships in Rockhampton in May.
Basketball
Connor Davidson and Jake Miles-Wrency were selected in the Met East 17 to 19 Years Basketball team to play at the Queensland Championships in Townsville in May.
Trent Goodrick Head of Cocurricular
Pixevety
Pixevety – a photo platform for Churchie images
Pixevety is Churchie’s photo platform, where photos from across the School will be uploaded on a weekly basis. Students are recognised by the system so parents can simply click ‘myVIPs’ and see their son’s photos in one easy location.
Watch the video below to learn how to use Pixevety.
Parent Connect is the school-wide parent community support group focused on nurturing the fun and family-centric side of school life. We provide valuable support services through formal and informal networks across the School. We intentionally communicate, connect, coordinate services and facilitate wellbeing support for our families and the greater community. Click here to access on myChurchie.
Join Parent Connect
It is a long-standing initiative of the Churchie parent community to enable the sharing of contact details for those who opt in and provide consent. Joining the Parent Connect database is easy. Once you have joined, you will receive communication from your parent coordinators, access to your cohort’s parent contact list and membership to join the private Facebook groups. Join here.
Parent Connect contacts
We are happy to share with you all that the Parent Connect executive team, Year, House and Volunteer coordinators can be viewed on the Parent Connect page on myChurchie. Click here to view on myChurchie
Services and volunteer engagement
Any member of the Churchie community (parents, old boys, friends and staff) can participate in these services or make a confidential request for wellbeing support. Click here to volunteer or request support.
Meals on Wheels parent volunteers needed
We also invite you to participate in our Chapel Centenary Special Project. The Chapel is celebrating its 100th year, and we are coordinating a creative task force of volunteers to add to the beautiful collection of kneelers and create some new pieces inspired by Reverand Sharon and Chaplain Stephanie. Click here to volunteer
Midweek meditation
All are invited; the chapel will be open from 7:45 to 8:10 am on Wednesdays for meditation, an opportunity to take a quiet moment in our busy lives. We will endeavour to post the meditations in the Churchie Parents Facebook Group.
Parent Connect upcoming events
Coffee and Connect (1 May)
Churchie Open Day (1 May)
Parent Connect Meeting Brenan Pavilion (29 May)
Wellbeing Speaker Series (TBC)
Best wishes, Parent Connect Executive Team and Coordinator Community.
Tuckshop news
Viking Café volunteers
We welcome mums and dads to volunteer at our tuckshops. Please contact the Tuckshop Volunteers Coordinator for more details if you can spare some time during the term to help in our busy tuckshops.
