Welcome to the first edition of Viking Spirit for 2020.

Firstly we congratulate those Old Boys who were recognised in the 2020 Australia Day Honours. They are Dr Neil Robert Wetzig AO (1972), Mr Barry Kelly AM (1962), Professor Anthony Cassimatis AM (1982), Colonel Craig Lauder CSM (1989) and Rear Admiral Jaimie Hatcher AM RAN DSC (1985). More detail about each of these Old Boys can be found in the Achievements section of this newsletter.

Congratulations also to the new Student Executive for 2020 on their appointments. They are: School Captain Jacob Marchant, son of Darren Marchant (1989); Vice-Captain Finn MacPherson; Vice-Captain Griff Pattison, son of Simon Pattison (1984); Vice-Captain & Head Boarder Floyd McKay, son of Ian McKay (1985).

Our first event on the calendar is the second annual Old Boys’ Day at the Volleyball which will take place on Saturday 7 March at Churchie. This season the First VI will be taking on Gregory Terrace in what promises to be a close and exciting match. For any Old Boys attending, please identify yourself at the Volleyball Supporters Group BBQ for your free hamburger courtesy of the OBA Committee.

On Friday 29 May our annual Vintage Vikings | Morning Tea and Lunch will be held in Morris Hall. All Old Boys aged 70 or older are invited to join us for this special annual event. Please note that spouses/partners are also welcome. Our signature event, the OBA Annual Dinner will be held on Friday 14 August, so please lock in this date now so you don’t miss it. Special invitations to the OBA Annual Dinner will be extended to our cohorts celebrating their 5 year (2015), 15 year (2005), 25 year (1995), 35 year (1985) and 45 year (1975) reunions. Our cohorts celebrating 55 years (1965) and 65 years (1955) will also receive special invitations to the Vintage Vikings | Lunch and Morning Tea.  This will be followed the next day by our equally popular Old Boys’ Day which is on the afternoon the school plays Brisbane Grammar School in both basketball and rugby. For more details about these events and our cohort reunions for 2020, please refer to the Reunions and Events calendar later in this newsletter.

Our third annual Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament, held on Monday 16 December 2019, proved beyond doubt that this event is gaining momentum and growing in popularity. The Old Boy & Current Student pairing of Jack Walton (2015) and Max Kruger (2020 Captain of Tennis) held off a fast finishing Max Powell (2018) and Alex Russell (2018) to take the title and will now see their names etched onto the John Millman Shield. Thank you to Old Boys John Millman (2006) and Colin Sinclair (2012) for attending and joining with brothers Jack Walton (2015) and Adam Walton (2016) for an exhibition match that was enjoyed by a very appreciative audience.

L-R: Old Boys Fergus Rees (2015), John ‘Jack’ Howard (2016) and William Anderson (2017) were 2019 recipients of the Churchie Foundation ‘Overseas Study Scholarship for Old Boys’. They each attended the London School of Economics and Political Science and have penned the following recollections of their experience.

Fergus Rees (2015)

It’s an odd thing living in London for an extended period. Undoubtedly things are familiar in a sense – the language, streets, food and even the drinking culture – yet things are different. The city is ambitious and diverse but respects its history and identity. I was struck by similar feelings walking through Churchie on a recent visit. The spectacular Centenary Library now overlooking the school chapel. It is rewarding to see that the school’s developments still retain the age tested morals of Canon Morris. There is growth with substance.

In London I undertook a program in managing financial risk with a particular interest in credit derivatives (FN202). I thought I’d take the time to pass on some of the lessons I stumbled upon:

1. Learn widely and enthusiastically

I was, once upon a time, an arrogant student who thought that he’d never have to consider mathematics after school. After all, humanities had always been my forte and I looked forward to a career in law. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

In the final exam for the program, I had to unpack successive differential equations and apply index laws for the first time since high school. Horror. Panic. All that learning content I had once dismissed had come back to haunt me. Remarkably, as my brain stewed over the seemingly impossible, Mr Coyne’s teachings in Magnus came back to me. The lesson gentlemen – respect everything you learn in school, be it mathematics, arts or sciences. You have no idea where you will end up in life.

2. Keep an open mind to opportunity

Sometimes a learning opportunity will present itself in odd ways. In London I had the opportunity to meet up with some other Old Boys from my graduating class. I was invited to a family dinner. Surprisingly, I found myself sitting across from an executive of a leading investment bank – a friend of a dad in the group. Over dinner I learnt more about the London Stock Exchange than any lecture. Unfortunately, what your teachers say is true – learning doesn’t stop at the classroom.

I have to thank the generosity and support of the Churchie Foundation for facilitating my experience. I also have to thank other Old Boys who provided planning advice and personal tips on studying overseas. I encourage all boys to continue to push their personal boundaries and take opportunities overseas.

John ‘Jack’ Howard (2016)

Throughout school it was always a dream of mine to attend the London School of Economics, viewing it as one of the best universities in the world to learn and study finance.  Hence, when the opportunity came to engage in a short-term exchange over the winter break I jumped at the chance.

Over three weeks I studied a course in the analysis and management of financial risk from esteemed professors Georgy Chabakauri and Cameron Peng.  It was everything I hoped it would be; both engaging and insightful.  Not only did this experience further my university studies but it broadened my perspective and affirmed my aspirations of one day working overseas.

Without the Churchie Foundation Old Boys Scholarship I would have been unable to complete this course or have this experience.  I would encourage any Old Boy thinking of studying overseas to apply – it enabled me to live out a childhood dream!

William Anderson (2017)

To study overseas was always an aspiration of mine and the Overseas Study Scholarship allowed me to fulfil such goals. Regarded among the elite Universities around the world, the London School of Economics truly lived up to its lofty standards.

Over the European summer I studied a three week course in Financial Risk Management. Learning from professors at the very top of their field was an unreal experience and extremely motivational. The university’s prime location in the centre of London allowed me to immerse myself within one the busiest and most efficient cities in the world.

While only staying for a short period of time, I managed to meet up with friends and spend a weekend in Paris which was only a bus ride away!

All of this would not have been possible without the financial assistance of the Overseas Study Scholarship. The opportunity to rub shoulders with the world’s best and study under them was truly an unbelievable experience and I would encourage any Old Boy aspiring to study overseas to apply.

The Overseas Study Scholarship for Old Boys is managed by Churchie Foundation. Applications for 2020 are now being received. The scholarships are open to Old Boys of the School and students in Year 12 for undergraduate or post graduate study in either the United States or United Kingdom. Please click here to read more. Applications close on Friday 29 May 2020.

With over 25 years experience in event management and production in Australia, the USA and South-East Asia, Old Boy Paul Mathers (1984) has certainly managed some major exhibitions and events. Formerly the Event Director at Motorclassica in Australia for 10 years, Paul was recently announced as Event Director & Concours Chairman of Auto Royale.

From 17 – 19 July 2020, at the ancestral home of the Spencer family in Northamptonshire, Auto Royale will present the British International Concours d’Elegance which aims to set a new standard and join the list of quintessential English summer events. Recently quoted between USD 8 – 10 million, the first car publicly confirmed to make its UK debut at the inaugural Auto Royale at Althorp is the rare and stunning ‘Shark Nose’1962 Ferrari 196 SP.

As a passionate collector and an enthusiast of British motoring himself, Paul is excited to take all he has learnt overseas to the world’s biggest classic and historic car market. He said: “It’s such a pleasure to finally give car enthusiasts a vision of what will be an incredible line up at our first Auto Royale at Althorp. This stunning Ferrari truly captures the spirit of Auto Royale and our mission to bring rare and spectacular machines to be enjoyed in the surrounds of this wonderful family estate at Althorp.”

Old Boy Mark Allen (1998) is a certified digital marketer with 15 years of agency and client side experience. Mark’s background is in the property and real estate industry where, as the son of a property developer and real estate agent, he learned about the industry before moving into property marketing.

However, it wasn’t until after his own experience of looking for a new home that Mark founded Patch, a property technology startup that provides the opportunity to place offers on ANY property, on or off the market. The dream home he was looking at was taken off the market before he could put in an offer. Then as he was settling with another home, the dream house went back on the market prompting him to question: “Why couldn’t the house be on the market all the time?”

Mark says: “Patch works to connect buyers to people looking to sell their home, so they can negotiate and transact in one simple and cost-effective place. It gives homeowners real-time, actual prices that people are willing to pay for their homes so they know the ideal time to sell.”

To hear more about Patch, please click here to watch a recorded interview with Mark. Patch is raising the first round of funding from investors, so if you are interested in speaking with Mark directly about this opportunity, he is contactable at hello@getpatch.com.au or on 0431 792 227.

Please join us on Monday 16 December at the David Turbayne Tennis Centre at Churchie for the 3rd annual Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament. Meet tennis professionals, Old Boys John Millman (2006) and Colin Sinclair (2012), as well as Churchie’s Director of Tennis, Ian Malpass.Please click here to register or refer to the event post later in this newsletter for more details.

To celebrate the end of another year and the start of the festive season, all Churchie Old Boys are invited to the 2019 Churchie OBA Christmas Drinks to be held from 6 pm – 8 pm on Thursday 19 December at Friday’s Riverside. Get a group together and join us for what is always a fantastic evening.

For the perfect Christmas gift, be sure to check out our current range of OBA merchandise. We have an exciting new addition in our grey suede cap, plus the very popular OBA Watch and OBA centenary book titled A Pictorial History of Churchie. For more details on these items and many others, please refer to the post later in this newsletter. If purchasing for Christmas, please note that the Churchie Shop has now closed for 2019 and will reopen on Monday 13 January 2020. Any items required before then can be collected from Reception in the Jackson building. Please email us at oba@churchie.com.au if you wish to make such an arrangement.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Stay safe!

This month we welcome 177 new Old Boys – the Seniors of 2019. Congratulations to these young men and we wish you well in your lives beyond school. We also look forward to hearing of your experiences at Old Boys events and reunions. For our Seniors of 2018, the annual New Old Boys Night will be held next Thursday 28 November at the Green Beacon Brewing Co. Please click here for further details and to register for this event.

At the recent Awards Assembly for 2019, the Student Leaders for 2020 were announced. Impressively, three of these four outstanding young men are sons of Old Boys. Congratulations to (pictured above L-R): School Captain Jacob Marchant – son of Darren Marchant (1989), School Vice-Captain Finn MacPherson, School Vice-Captain Griffith Pattison – son of current OBA President Simon Pattison (1984) and Head Boarder Floyd McKay – son of Ian McKay (1985).

On Monday 18 November the OBA Annual General Meeting was held. No nominations were received in addition to the standing committee, so the following persons were duly appointed: President Mr Simon Pattison (1984), Vice-President Mr Andrew Fleming (1979), Honorary Secretary Mr Tim Harland (1963), Honorary Treasurer Mr Peter Kelly (1997), Mr Jack Borger (2012), Mr Craig Dorrstein (1999), Mr Tony Rowan (1981), Mr Mike McAfee (1974), Mr Grant Menzies (1988) and Mr Rob Needham (1988).

Don’t forget to lock in Monday 16 December to get along to the Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament for 2019 to be held at the school’s David Turbayne Tennis Centre. Come along and play or enjoy the evening as a spectator. Tennis professionals, Old Boys John Millman (2006) and Colin Sinclair (2012) will be there. Please refer to the event post later in this newsletter for more details.

To celebrate the end of another year and the start of the festive season, all Churchie Old Boys are invited to the 2019 Churchie OBA Christmas Drinks to be held from 6 pm – 8 pm on Thursday 19 December at Friday’s Riverside. Get a group together and join us for what is always a fantastic evening.

Job Search
Congratulations to Old Boy Michael Dal Pra (2015) who has secured the graduate role advertised last month with Harriss Chartered Accountants & Business Advisors, which is owned and operated by a Churchie family.

In June 2017 we featured an article about Old Boy Nick Marshall (1994), titled Albatross Nippers are Little Rippers. Nick, a sports and musculoskeletal physiotherapist, is also an advocate for increased participation in surf lifesaving activities. In 2014, coupled with a passion for ensuring those with special needs and disability are included in the community, particularly insofar as it relates to them experiencing Nippers with other children of similar ages, Nick founded Albatross Nippers. His volunteer work, his commitment to achieving greater inclusion in sport and his desire to create a better and more engaged community, has inspired many. So much so that on Monday 11 November, Nick was named 2020 Queenslander of the Year – Local Hero. Nick acknowledged that it was an absolute honour and privilege to receive the award. Moreover, with admirable humility, he also gave credit to the team of dedicated selfless volunteers who help to make the Albatross Nippers program happen and keep it completely free of charge to all participants. Nick has also liaised with his local city council to install beach matting and free beach wheelchair access. Additionally, he was instrumental in designing the online Surf Lifesaving Australia special needs module, teaching clubs across Australia to better interact, engage and develop programs at their beach. On Saturday 25 January 2020 in Canberra, the winner of the 2020 Australian of the Year – Local Hero will be announced. Congratulations Nick and we wish you every success for the national award.

Earlier this year at the QLD State Nipper Championships, the Albatross Nippers became the first group of special needs children in history to participate in a surf lifesaving event. As this was also the 50th anniversary of Nippers in Queensland, it was a special day and almost a line in the sand as to what the next 50 years of lifesaving will look like and moving towards all surf clubs becoming inclusive. Last summer, during their journey towards the championships, a documentary was made about the Albatross Nippers. Nick says: “We never envisaged that the documentary would be so successful. As a result of our screenings it has now been picked up by Virgin Airlines and from Wednesday 1 January 2020 it will form part of their in-flight entertainment.” Further testament to the success of the all-inclusive Nipper program, is its expansion to multiple Gold Coast beaches and indeed across Queensland.

To view the Trailer and media about the Documentary and QLD State Nipper Championships, please click on the respective links below. The Trailer for the film includes some sports stars from the NRL, Australian Surf Lifesaving Team, as well as Swimming Australia, all of which are teams Nick works for and with in his real job as a sports Physio.

Trailer
https://youtu.be/JK3djwbb5AU

Media about the Documentary
https://youtu.be/IxCmek3xvm0

Media about the QLD State Nipper Championships
https://youtu.be/4lVhpoVNrhA

I have been associated with the Australasian transport and shipping industry for the past 45 years. During this time I have been exposed to most facets of the logistics industry, including general management, operations, merge and acquisition, ship building, agency, IT Logistics and company directorships. Many of these positions were whilst employed by BHP (25 + years) and included assignments involving significant capital raising and other financial arrangements pursuant to growing a green field or brown field business.

Latterly as a Company Executive Director and CEO, my work focused on management and strategy in a variety of demanding and transformational situations. My past international assignments have facilitated strong business relationships with the Asian and Australian resource industry logistics network. This network involved regular interaction with freight forwarders, ship owners/ charterers, ship brokers, financial institutions, insurance companies, legal entities, port operators, government and resource industry principals.

We have moved interstate and overseas 13 times in our married life. I am now retired and celebrating 40 years of marriage. We have three wonderful and successful children who are now adults. Recently, we became grandparents. Darwin is Hotel California…you can check out anytime you want, albeit you can never leave.

Some of Peter’s more recent achievements include:

• CONOPS development for a US$10.5 Billion port in Qatar.
• Conceptual design work for 2 load ports – Oceania Nickel project.
• Marine consultant for construction of new handy size South Australian Timber Port.
• Marine Consultant for new Timor Leste cement plant, including MOF wharf design and main wharf (50,000TDWT Vessels)
• Tug Barge commercial operations proposal for Timor Leste Marine Supply Base.
• Mine Management plan input for development for new Australian Iron Ore Mine. Port terminal costs, barge storage, fleet charter, operational SOPs.
• Sourcing, prequalification, arranging finance and legal support to two container vessels for an expanding international fleet.
• Leading a private equity and management team to acquire controlling shares in a private shipping company.
• Participating in negotiations for a major shipping and logistics contract with a resource industry MNC.
• Identification of a new client base consistent with an agreed strategy.
• Managing a Merge &Acquisition team for the acquisition of a competitor.
• Designed strategically focused planning and performance measurement systems for a workforce of 400 employees.
• Redesigned organisational structures, accountabilities and performance measures for an acquired target (A$8.00million)
• Renewed company policies consistent with new strategy and community changing expectations.

Mrs Pam Willmann was the house mother of Strong House from January 1998 until December 2002. As a farewell gift on Pam’s retirement, the boys of Strong House gave Pam a Lhasa Apso puppy which has been by her side every day since. As a sign of respect that she had for the boys that she cared for over her five years as their second mother, Pam named the dog ‘Strong’. Over the past seventeen years, Strong has given so much love to Pam and her husband Glenn (who was Churchie’s School Marshall from 1996 to 2004). Unfortunately however, a recent visit to the vet revealed a large tumour inside his mouth that could not be removed, so the decision was made on 17 October 2019 to let him continue to sleep. Pam would like to thank the boys of Strong House once again, and in particular the Boys of 2002, for their generosity and love for such a wonderful gift that she will always cherish.

Old Boy Dion Mayne (2000) has realised a dream of writing a historical seafaring tale, under the mentorship of Dr Paul Richardson, who is a published author and Dion’s former primary school principal. Boomerang Gold has larger than life characters hell bent on command & conquer plus the hunger for blood and gold. The story follows the adventures of Dutch Captain Calder Velden during European expansion beyond the East Indies. Based around 16th Century historical events, the story raises questions about the brutality of the times, the endurance of the early sailors, the mistreatment of women and resistence by first nation Australians to white man’s arrival on their country.

To explain how it all came about, Dion said, “I watched an interview with Actor Chris Hemsworth. He said he and his brother Liam were still waiting for a script his family could all star in together. That was the inspiration for my story. As I wrote I always envisaged each scene playing out on the big screen!” Dion wanted to write a story about European exploration in the waters of Australasia (hence the boomerang reference) and decided to develop the storyline around the Dutch and Spanish quest for gold during the 16th century. Paul helped to bring the story to life with descriptive detail and dialogue.

Dion added: “Teachers do a great deal for us, they have certainly played a key role in our successes, I don’t believe they get acknowledged enough. So, I was more than happy to acknowledge those that helped me become a better person and took the chance to thank the teachers of Churchie that inspired me and brought the best out of me during my time at Churchie.” In his Acknowledgements, Dion writes: “Thank you to my ACGS Family with special mention to Garry Andreas, Tony Rowan, Alan Greenbank, Christopher Ellis, Robert Morris, David Grogan, Catriona Dumont, John Palethorpe, Michael Gearing, David Gee and my school mates.

Featured Image: Dion (pictured centre) with the Triple M Breakfast Team, Jay and Dave. Please click here to listen to the interview.

Boomerang Gold is available via the iBookstore and Book Outlets such as Lulu Press (My Publisher), Amazon, Angus & Robertson, Book Depository, Barnes & Noble, Booktopia etc.

Facebook Link:
https://www.facebook.com/pg/Boomerang-Gold-100501264719132/about/?ref=page_internal

Amazon Link:
https://www.amazon.com/Boomerang-Gold-Lure-Legend-Bring/dp/1684707757/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?keywords=Boomerang+Gold&qid=1571697947&s=books&sr=1-1

Lulu Publishers Link: Soft Print & eBook
http://www.lulu.com/shop/dion-mayne-and-paul-richardson/boomerang-gold-its-the-lure-and-the-legend-that-bring-you-back/paperback/product-24243251.html

Google Overview Link: The overview of the first 46 Pages of Boomerang Gold
Boomerang Gold: It’s the Lure and the Legend That Bring You Back

On Thursday 10 October, to acknowledge and celebrate 100 years of the Churchie Army Cadet Unit, members of the ACGS Army Cadet Unit formed up to conduct a Heritage March down Oaklands Parade with the rest of the Senior School forming a Guard of Honour. The Churchie Army Cadet Unit has its basis in the 15th Battalion Australian Military Forces. In 1919 students from the School, as Senior Cadets, formed 16 Platoon, D Company of the Battalion. The date coincided with the 102nd anniversary of the laying of the Foundation Stone of School House.

Congratulations to First XI 2019 premiership players Jackson Simpkin (New Zealand) and Jordan Courtney-Perkins (Australia) who are taking part in the FIFA Under-17 World Cup in Brazil from 26 October 26 to 17 November. We wish them well as they represent us on the world stage. We also take this opportunity to wish the Churchie Track & Field team every success at the 2019 GPS Championships to be held on Saturday 2 November at QSAC Main Stadium.

Job Search
Harriss Chartered Accountants & Business Advisors (owned and operated by a Churchie family) are looking for either a graduating student or Old Boy who would be interested in a position with their firm. For further details about this exciting opportunity please refer to the Job Search tab in this newsletter. If you are already interested, please contact the OBA office by email at oba@churchie.com.au or by phoning 07 3896 2203.

The Churchie Army Cadet Unit has its basis in the 15th Battalion Australian Military Forces. In 1919 students from the School, as Senior Cadets, formed 16 Platoon, D Company of the Battalion.  All Old Boys and indeed the whole Churchie community are invited to Churchie on Thursday 10 October to acknowledge and celebrate 100 years of the Churchie Army Cadet Unit. The date coincides with the 102nd anniversary of the laying of the Foundation Stone of School House. On this day at a Headmaster’s assembly, which will be held at School House, members of the ACGS Army Cadet Unit will form up to conduct a Heritage March down Oaklands Parade. The march will start at 10.20 am and to pay tribute, the rest of the Senior School will form a Guard of Honour along the length of Oaklands Parade.

In the school sporting arena, the Churchie First V have added the 2019 GPS Basketball premiership to the trophy room, after sharing the honours with Gregory Terrace. Both teams finished the season with a record of seven wins and one loss after Churchie beat Nudgee College at the weekend and Gregory Terrace beat Ipswich Grammar School. We wish our young men all the very best in the Champion Basketball School of Queensland (CBSQ) tournament at Logan this week. To view the Official Draw, please click here. In Chess and Rugby our Firsts teams have finished equal second and fourth respectively whilst many teams across the age-groups have finished first in their respective divisions. Furthermore, Churchie is performing very strongly across all co-curricular activities from years 5 to 12 and this year to date is placed second overall.

As term 3 comes to a close we reflect on another very successful season of cohort reunions. The most recently held were the 1949 cohort for their 70 Year Reunion, the 10 Year Reunion for the 2009 Old Boys and the 40 Year Reunion of the 1979 Old Boys with all cohorts enjoying some time back at Churchie. The Old Boys of the 1949 cohort should be commended on their impressive attendance of 16 Old Boys and 7 spouses. The interstate reunions have continued with an enjoyable evening held in Canberra at the Australian National University. This will be followed soon by the Melbourne Reunion, to be held on Robert Flower Terrace at the Melbourne Cricket Club on Thursday 24 October.

Job Search
Harry Windle (2018) is currently seeking opportunities to gain further experience working on building sites and hence is very keen to find work with a builder. Over the past year he has worked for a local builder and has also been labouring for a concrete company. Ideally Harry would now like to find work as a 1st year apprentice carpenter. If you have an opportunity for Harry, or are able to provide some guidance in his search, please contact the OBA office by email at oba@churchie.com.au or by phoning 07 3896 2203.

In a recent The Churchie Weekly article, Mr John Frare, Deputy Headmaster Co-curricular and HR, wrote of his opportunity to attend many conferences on topics such as the role of sport in boys’ education or the value of sport in schools. Mr Frare stated that these conferences investigated the benefits and issues associated with sport in boys schools, from philosophical and practical viewpoints. He also noted that one of the aspects covered has been the connection of sport and co-curricular activities to academic performance. To that end, in recent years research has been conducted at Churchie to measure the impact of co-curricular involvement on academic outcomes.

To shatter the modern myth that sporting and academic excellence can’t mix, let’s look no further than Old Boy Angus Scott-Young (2014). It should be noted at this point that as a key member of Churchie’s undefeated First XV in 2014, Angus also was awarded Dux of the School. Fast forward four and a half years, Angus is now about to graduate with a double degree (Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Science) from the University of Queensland. All the while, racking up 28 appearances for the Queensland Reds, playing for the Junior Wallabies (2016-17) and winning two Brisbane Premier Rugby club premierships with UQ Rugby (2017 and 2019). Angus also excelled in Queensland Country’s 2017 National Rugby Championship title and is their current captain.

Furthermore, Angus has achieved a perfect GPA 7 at UQ for his dual degree which has been described by the Vice Chancellor of University of Queensland as extraordinary for any student, let alone one playing professional sport. Angus has also recently been nominated for UQ Valedictorian. Recently he has signed a new two year contract with the Queensland Reds and is already pondering whether his next step is chasing honours in science or a Masters of Medicine degree.

When a student at Churchie, Old Boy Jonathan Brunello (1989) was a Prefect and Grenfell House Captain. He went on to study a B.Business Banking and Finance at the University of Southern Queensland, before working for Grainco Toowoomba from 1994 to 1998. He then embarked on an 18 year career in Finance across London, New York, Sydney and Hong Kong with Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch. It was in August 2016 that Jonathan and his family returned to Australia.

Jonathan says: “In 2016, whilst encouraging my son to sit down to complete his homework, my request was met with ‘but Dad, it’s easier for me to concentrate when I am standing, not sitting’. This was the catalyst for me to start amperstand.”

Three years on, amperstand is now an Australian based designer of dynamically height adjustable school desks to students and teachers. “Classroom furniture, just like office furniture, must incorporate the latest ergonomic research. amperstand desks do just that – allowing students to adjust their desk to optimal sitting and standing heights.”

“Whilst the saying ‘sitting is the new smoking’ might seem somewhat dramatic, it has drawn media attention to the problem.” says Jonathan. “Anecdotally it is accepted that people who alternative between sitting and standing operate at a higher level of focus than those who are consistently seated. We hope to bring some scientific proof to this over the next 12 months, working with local and international schools”

amperstand is unashamedly challenging what has become the norm – that children need to sit to learn. “Our success will be measured when this generation of students enter the workplace, knowing that there are alternatives to sitting.”

A range of three dynamically height adjustable sit/stand desks is currently offered by amperstand. Please click here to view the range. If you are interested in making contact directly with Jonathan, please click here.

Old Boy Don Stewart (1969) reflects on a life well lived.

“After nine years at Churchie I took up a cadetship with Borthwicks Meatworks in Merinda near Bowen. I lasted five weeks as a slaughter floor sweeper before returning to Brisbane; it wasn’t for me. I re-entered the workforce as a Santa’s Helper at Myer Chermside, eventually becoming a Boyswear manager. There I met Greg Norman, shopping with his Mum for shirts to commence golf lessons. I also studied Economics and Commerce part-time at the University of Queensland, unfortunately incomplete.

I played for GPS Rugby Club for years, even the occasional first grade match. I toured with them to Thailand in 1973; there I saw Muay Thai fighting for the first time, in a huge stadium packed to the rafters. Respect and obedience are necessary for success and whilst brutal, Thai fighters were extremely fit, seemingly oblivious to pain dealt out by their opponent. The attraction was immediate. In Australia the biggest crowds for my fights were during the Ekka, when challenging members of the Jimmy Sharman Boxing Troupe. I seemed to last the distance every time, probably because I was often in my school uniform – to them I would be a ‘walk in the park’.

Back in Australia I sought information regarding training in Muay Thai in Thailand. In 1979 after another fighter and I opened The Atlas Gym and Fight Centre in Stafford, I started training in Muay Thai on Koh Samui Island in Thailand over three years. I competed in many fights and won as many as I lost.

The Gym at Stafford became a popular training centre, used by some Brisbane rugby league teams prior to the formation of the NRL. Valleys under Ross Strudwick and Brothers under Tommy Raudonikis were frequent attendees to toughen up their players.

During the 80s I was recruited as security for various overseas bands including Kiss, David Bowie and the Eurythmics. I also worked on the doors at various inner-city nightclubs. In a twist of fate, a patron I assisted after an altercation one evening offered me a job. He was the CEO of a company handling the sales and marketing of Levi Jeans. My company vehicle was a Harley Davidson wide glide, so for many years I lived the iconic Peter Fonda Easy Rider lifestyle, covering a territory stretching from Coffs Harbour to Cairns.

My next job, with Australian Combat Equipment at Enoggera, was providing equipment and clothing troops being deployed to the Middle East. I also volunteered on Friday and Saturday nights for Nightwatch in Fortitude Valley. Working alongside police and paramedics was very confrontational and after two years I felt my own mental health was in jeopardy. After taking time out, I sought employment assisting rehabilitation of children from youth detention back into society. At night I continued to teach Muay Thai voluntarily at a gym that I had set up at my own home in Oxley. It was totally free to the street kids and gang members residing in the Inala, Goodna, Redbank and Ipswich area. Many of these children were sent to me by the local church and some suffered mental health problems such as Tourette’s, Asperger’s and anger management.

Recently, chronic shoulder injuries required reconstruction on both shoulders and a knee reconstruction. Due to my debilitating physical condition, I sold my Harley which had allowed me to live a life that I never imagined was mine to live. I have three beautiful children, Sonny, Althea and Jesse, and five grandchildren. My beautiful West Indian wife, Kodajo Marsha Belle, has been my rock, giving me her total support through this journey. Despite the worry and despair she may have felt at times, she has always encouraged me to do what I felt was best.”

If you have any copies of Eagles’ Wings that date back prior to 1980 then we would like to hear from you. We appreciate that you may wish to keep any copies you have, so please email Mr Peter Collin, our School Archivist, at peter.collin@churchie.com.au so he can make arrangements with you to make a digital copy and return the magazine.

There is something extraordinary about a shared experience which becomes very obvious at the annual Old Boys’ Association dinner. The night brings together generations of Churchie boys for a night of story telling and reminiscing with friends new and old. With 250 Old Boys converging on Howard Smith Wharves last Friday evening, making it our largest annual since the school’s centenary in 2012, this year was no exception. As the Headmaster Dr Alan Campbell reflected: “There was something special and vibrant about the evening, everyone was happy and conversing across age groups.” The formalities of the evening commenced with a brief welcome from the OBA President Mr Simon Pattison, followed by some enjoyable and lighthearted banter from School Captain Jack Butler-Wood before he said Grace.

One of the more memorable and poignant moments of the evening were the fitting tributes to very prominent Old Boys who have recently passed – Graham Freudenberg (1951) and Lloyd McDermott (1957). Graham’s remarkable life was reflected on by the Honourable Cameron Dick (1984) who is an Old Boy and a minister in Queensland’s current Labor government. Graham, often described as the ‘Donald Bradman’ of speechwriters, wrote over a thousand speeches spanning fifty years for several leaders of the Australian Labor Party​ (ALP), including Gough Whitlam and Bob Hawke. Lloyd McDermott’s life was honoured with a nostalgic tribute by Old Boy Christopher Hughes QC (1974), a recent past president of the Qld Bar Association which had an important link with Lloyd. Lloyd was Australia’s first indigenous barrister and was also one of the first indigenous Wallabies.

Old Boy Tim Walsh (1996), gave an intriguing insight of his journey from being a student at Churchie, to becoming a professional rugby player, to his current career as a professional coach which has already taken him to the 2016 Rio Olympics as Head Coach of the gold medal winning Australian Women’s Rugby Sevens team. It seems Tim was destined for such success in the sporting arena when in 1996 the Australian Olympic Committee acknowledged his sporting prowess in upholding Olympic ideals of sportsmanship and leadership qualities both on and off the field by bestowing on him the Pierre de Coubertin Award (now known as the Australian Olympic Change-Maker program). In 1996, Tim captained both Churchie’s First XV Rugby team and premiership winning First XI Cricket team. He also captained both the Queensland and Australian Schoolboys Rugby teams in that year.

The following day at Old Boys’ Day, we were treated to some highly competitive rugby and basketball against Gregory Terrace. The First XV came away with a well-earned, but ultimately hard fought, 33-29 drought breaking win. Conversely, our fast finishing First V basketball team were not quite able to close the gap on their rivals, falling agonisingly short of victory, 75-70, for their first loss of the season.

Later this month we welcome the 1949 cohort back to Churchie to celebrated their 70 Year Reunion. We also have interstate reunions scheduled for Canberra on Thursday 12 September, Melbourne on Thursday 24 October and Perth on Thursday 5 December.

When you next go to the movies be sure to check out the new feature film Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan. Old Boy Oliver Lacey (2014) plays a small part in the movie and at one point can be seen playing on the keyboards. Oliver debuted professionally as Baby John in West Side Story on Sydney Harbour in March 2019.

Job Search
Sam Tasker (2018)
Sam is looking for some part time work before he commences study in sports science in 2019. Ideally, Sam is looking for work in this field however would be interested in any part time work that may be available in the meantime.

Aaron Huang (Year 12)
Aaron is a current student and is looking to study Veterinary Science at the University of Sydney. Aaron is looking for some work experience over the upcoming school holidays in September/October.

If you have an opportunity for either Sam or Aaron, or are able to provide some guidance in their search,please contact the OBA office by email at oba@churchie.com.au or by phoning 07 3896 2203.

Old Boy Dr Bill Glasson (1969) recently had the pleasure of visiting Escott Station, which is situated in gulf country of North Queensland, approximately a two hour chopper flight north of Cloncurry.

“We were guests of Ian and Gabe Kennedy (nee Daniels) who own and operate the property. The property is at large a cattle station, running in the order of 30 thousand Brahman cattle. Working as Jackaroos in their gap year after finishing at Churchie, were Old Boys Michael Fletcher, Alistair Sheahan, Fergus White and Will Archer. Jesse Daniels (2017), also a Churchie Old Boy, works on one of the other properties owned by the Daniels family. The boys are having a wonderful year learning how to ride horses, muster and brand cattle, drive all sorts of machinery, as well as gaining experience in helicopter mustering. It is truly a life experience which will make them better men no matter where life takes them. We need to thank the Kennedy/Daniels family for the opportunity that they have given to these wonderful Churchie Old Boys.”

Featured Image (L-R): Michael Fletcher (2017), Will Archer (2017), Bill Glasson (1969), Alistair Sheahan (2016) and Fergus White (2017)

Endeavoring to traverse every desert between Brisbane and Geraldton, Old Boy and current Churchie teacher Charles Fisher (1977) and his wife Shona have embarked on a journey across Australia. Their first stop was Roma Saleyards (the largest in the Southern Hemisphere) where they observed 4,500 store cattle being auctioned before spending the next two nights dining at the very modern Royal on Ninety-Nine, a stylish Roma pub owned by the Garvies, a Churchie family.

Next stop was Birdsville where Old Boy Kerry Morton (1997) joined them for a chat across the road from the iconic Birdsville Pub. Kerry’s family run Rosberth which is 1.2 million acres (4,000 square kilometres) and encompasses the town. The Birdsville Track and Lake Eyre were ticked off the bucket list as they made their way to Alice Springs where they were joined by their daughter Izzy and son Charlie (2016) for a visit to Uluru over the ensuing week. It also presented an opportunity to catch up with Old Boys Hamish Clark (1999) and Stuart Barrett (1999).

The Gunbarrel Highway in Western Australia was the next landmark on the journey, where harsh corrugations and washouts meant averaging 15 kilometres per hour for 400 kilometres over three days was unavoidable. Along the way, a chance meeting in a caravan park with Old Boy Bruce McLeish (1984) rekindled some more Churchie memories.

Moving on, the next stop was Kalbarri, a beautiful seaside town and separate principality within Australia known as Hutt River Province. Continuing up the coast to the white beaches of Shark Bay, with its tropical blue water and 60 kilometres of beach made up entirely of shells (no sand), revealed to Charles and Shona that it is not only extraordinary but very worthy of its World Heritage Listing by UNESCO. Another nine hours of driving up the West Australian coast to Karratha followed, which is currently home to Old Boy Tristan Bliss (1996). Tristan and Charles spent time recalling memories of the classroom and army cadets.

From Marble Bar, after attempting the Canning Stock Route, the journey continues … during which time they will be catching up with Old Boy Jock Warriner (1998) in Kununurra.

If you wish to follow the Fishers, please click here to read their blog.

Header Image:
Clockwise from Bottom Left: with Prince Graeme of Hutt River Province; with Kerry Morton (1997); with Hamish Clark (1999) and Stuart Barrett (1999); with Tristan Bliss (1996).

For the curious among us, Charles’ shirts come from TradeMutt, which was founded by Old Boy Ed Ross (2010) and his mate Dan Allen. The idea is part of a much greater plan to start the conversation around suicide in Australian men and came about after one of Dan’s mates took his own life. Their aim is to make tradies and workers of all kinds look and feel great at work, and in doing so, reduce the rate of male suicide in Australia. Their loud and vibrant shirts act as a catalyst to starting the conversation around mental health in men. Please click here to purchase your TradeMutt shirt online.

Inspired by his involvement with Churchie Service, Old Boy Jack Gadsby (2017) has recently returned from a trip to Vanuatu during which he visited St Patrick’s College, an Anglican secondary school in Ambae. This is the same school he visited as a Churchie student in 2017.

For Jack, certainly one of the most gratifying parts of the visit was donating school supplies and clothing to the families affected by the volcanic eruptions on Ambae in 2017 and 2018 causing acid rain and making the island uninhabitable. Most of his time was spent talking to the year 7 and 8 classes about the importance of pursuing a good education. Jack is currently studying a degree in Computing and Cyber Security at the Australian Defence Force Academy so he also spent some time with the senior IT classes talking about the importance of cyber security and introducing them to some more modern IT practices. This was critical as their curriculum is quite behind on 21st century IT practices.

Jack is very pleased to report that things are looking well at the school. Whilst their campus in Ambae is prepared for their return later this year, they are sharing a campus with Santo East School in Luganville. Jacks says: “They told me they would like to express their gratitude to Churchie for previous visits to the school and would like to continue the partnership after their return to Ambae.” He also reported that they still wear the Churchie shirts given them in 2017, as a part of the teacher uniform on Monday and Wednesday. Jack is already planning and looking forward to returning to Ambae for yet another visit.

Featured Images
Left Image: Jack (pictured right) with Churchie in 2017.
Right Image: Jack in the IT classroom on his recent visit to Vanuatu.

Thank you very much to our sponsors of the 2019 OBA Annual Dinner. Please do take a moment to click on each of the sponsor logos below and familiarise yourself with their products and services. We are very appreciative of their support and we know that in return they would be very appreciative of yours.

Congratulations to the following Old Boys for their recognition in the 2020 Australia Day Honours list.

Officer (AO) in the General Division of the Order of Australia

• Dr Neil Robert Wetzig AO (1972) for distinguished service to the international community of the Democratic Republic of Congo through medical support, teaching and training programs.

Member (AM) of the Order of Australia in the General Division

• Mr Barry Kelly AM (1962) for significant service to the mining and minerals sectors, and to business.
• Professor Anthony Cassimatis AM (1982) for significant service to education, to the law, and to the community.

Australian Conspicuous Service Medal (CSM)

• Colonel Craig Lauder CSM (1989) for meritorious devotion to duty as the Chief of Staff in Headquarters Joint Task Force 633 on Operation ACCORDION from March 2018 to January 2019.

Distinguished Service Cross (DSC)

• Rear Admiral Jaimie Hatcher AM RAN DSC (1985) for distinguished command and leadership in warlike operations as the Commander Joint Task Force 633 on Operations OKRA and HIGHROAD from January 2018 to January 2019.

Aaron Brown (1997)
Aaron is a 2019 Churchill Fellowship recipient. He has been awarded The Mr and Mrs Gerald Frank New Churchill Fellowship to research the performance practice of medieval and baroque music – Greece, Italy

Charles Kosecki (2008)
Charles was a crew member on Ichi Ban which was declared the overall and handicap winner of the 2019 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race.

Lachie Taylor (2015)
Lachie, the 2015 School Captain, has graduated from QUT Law with First Class Honours. In a highly competitive field this is very hard to achieve, so congratulations to Lachie on a tremendous achievement.

Angus Scott-Young (2014)
Angus has graduated from The University of Queensland with a Bachelor of Commerce and a Bachelor of Science, all whilst playing full time professional rugby with the Queensland Reds. He has also been awarded the UQ Young Leaders Award 2019 and the Rugby Union Australia Players Association Academic Achievement Award 2019. Furthermore, Angus continues his charity work with Reds to Regions, Red Frogs, RSPCA Queensland and Queensland Children’s Hospital.

Theo Milbourne (2019)
Theo completed his IB diploma in 2019 and has been accepted into Cornell University to study a Bachelor of Architecture commencing in 2020. Cornell is one of the world’s most highly regarded and prestigious schools of architecture.

Zac Stubblety-Cook (2017)
Zac has backed up his excellent performance at the World Champs with a superb QLD champs last December. Zac established a new QLD Open and QLD All-Comers record of 2:07.28 in the 200m breaststroke, maintaining his World #4 ranking to become the world’s 7th fastest performer ever in the event. Zac followed this up superbly with a first in the 100m breastroke, stopping the clock in a time of 59.83 to achieve the first sub-minute of his career in this event.

Peter Russell (1980)
Peter has received the second runner up award at the Queensland Health Awards for Excellence. Peter restores his patients’ ability to eat, speak and smile, enhancing their dignity and quality of life, and allowing them to lead as full a life as possible.

Liam Wright (2014)
Liam has been appointed as Captain of the QLD Redsm for the 2020 Super Rugby season.

Nick Malouf (2010)
Nick has been appointed as Captain of the Australian Mens Rugby Sevens Team for the 2020 season which includes the Olympics to be held in Tokyo during July and August.

Mathai Joshi (2011)
Mathai has been crowned Townsville’s best lawyer as voted by the community. A solicitor at Arthur Browne & Associates, Mathai says his faith in God and family support has helped him to combat personal battles and mental health to go on to succeed in one of the most competitive professions.

Rod Duke (1981)
Rod is the new chief of publicly-owned Energy Queensland, parent company of Energex and Ergon.

Churchie Scholars (2019)
At the School’s recent Academic Celebration Assembly, some of our newest Old Boys of the 2019 cohort were acknowledged for achieving the equivalent ATAR of 98.00 or above. George Walker, with an equivalent ATAR of 99.55, was the recipient of The Tyrwhitt Memorial Cup for Dux of School for 2019, and The CE Elliott Rhodes Scholarship Award for Proxime Accessit to the Dux was awarded to Max Crakanthorp, who achieved an equivalent ATAR of 99.35.

Lachlan Toovey (2019)
Lachlan has been recognised as one of the state’s top academic achievers at the Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE) Achievement Awards. He was awarded the Highest Achievement by an Aboriginal Student or Torres Strait Islander Student. Please click here to read more.

Matthew Paterson (2012)
Matthew was co-winner of the 2019 Banking and Financial Services Law Association Research Essay Prize for an essay he wrote on the disclaimer of property in bankruptcy. His essay is forthcoming in the Journal of Banking and Finance Law and Practice.

Miles Farmer (1949)
Miles has been awarded the RSL’s prestigious Meritorious Service Medal. Awarded on a restricted basis, this is the League’s highest honour and is awarded only to those who have given exceptional service over a sustained period of time.

Bon Scott (2014)
Bon has been awarded 2019 NPL Goalkeeper of the Year. Bon plays for the Brisbane Strikers.

Zach Gracie (2015)
Zach has been appointed as Domino’s first ever Chief Garlic Bread Taster, after beating 7,500 Australian and international applicants.

Aaron Brown (1997)
Aaron is a 2020 Churchill Fellowship recipient. He has been awarded The Mr and Mrs Gerald Frank New Churchill Fellowship to research the performance practice of medieval and baroque music – Greece, Italy

2019 Australian Road Running Championships
Jack Bruce (2012) and Louis McAfee (2013) finished first and second respectively in the Australian Road Running Championships held recently in Adelaide .

Kalyn Ponga (2015)
Kalyn played for Australia in the Rugby League 9s World Cup

John Millman (2006)
John qualified for the final of the 2019 Japan Open in Tokyo and played world number 1 Novak Djokovic.

Sam Hockin (2010)
FLTLT Sam Hockin flew the F/A-18F Super Hornet for Brisbane Riverfire.

Rugby World Cup 2019
David Pocock (2005) played for the Wallabies and Henry Taefu (2010) played for Manu Samoa at the Rugby World Cup 2019.

2019 Junior Kangaroos
Kalyn Ponga (2015) and Brodie Croft (2015) have been selected in the Junior Kangaroos squad ahead of the match against France in Wollongong on Friday 25 October.

Zac Stubblety-Cook (2017)
Zac placed fourth in the 200m Breaststroke final at the World Swimming Championships in Gwangju, South Korea.

Izaia Perese (2014)
Izaia debuted in the NRL for the Brisbane Broncos against Penrith on Friday 16 August 2019.

Liam Wright (2014)
Liam became Wallaby # 928 when he debuted for the Wallabies against the All Blacks on Saturday 17 August 2019.
Please click here to view Liam’s post match cap presentation and interview.

Harry Hockings (2015)
Harry was awarded Man of the Match for his performance for UQ Rugby in their Grand Final win over Brothers in the Queensland Premier Rugby competition. Fellow Old Boys Angus Scott-Young (2014) and Sam Wallis (2015) were also part of the Premiership winning team.

With the Queensland GPS Schools rugby and basketball seasons now underway so too is our season for reunions. The 1999 cohort celebrated their 20 Year Reunion recently and on Saturday 27 July we welcome both our 1969 and 1989 cohorts for their 50 Year Reunion and 30 Year Reunion respectively. From an interstate perspective, we have reunions planned for Canberra on Thursday 12 September, Melbourne on Thursday 24 October and Perth on Thursday 5 December. Invitations for each will be forthcoming.

Our 2019 OBA Annual Dinner and annual Old Boys’ Day are fast approaching. With the Annual Dinner being held on Friday 16 August and Old Boys’ Day the following day on Saturday 17 August, together they really are the perfect opportunity to catch up with your Old Boy mates.

Interest in the dinner is very strong and as a result we have now increased our space at Howard Smith Wharves (Rivershed). You are however still strongly encouraged to go online now to secure your seat and avoid disappointment. Using the links provided below, tickets can either be purchased individually for $95 or as a table booking for $800 (i.e $80 per person). Our Guest Speaker for the Annual Dinner will be Old Boy Tim Walsh (1996). Tim is the current Australian Men’s Seven’s Head Coach and was previously the Australian Women’s Sevens Head Coach taking them to the Gold Medal at the Rio Olympics 2016.

OBA Annual Dinner | Individual Booking

OBA Annual Dinner | Table Booking [10]

At Old Boys’ Day, experience some quality schoolboy rugby as we take on Gregory Terrace. For those interested, a tour of the school will be conducted, commencing at 11.30 am from Churchill Post (i.e. the flagpole at the northern end of the chapel). The tour will conclude at approximately 1 pm. The First XV match kicks off at 2.15 pm and then at full time, courtesy of the OBA Committee, enjoy a free steak burger at our traditional post match barbecue. Afterwards, we will reconvene at the Pineapple Hotel to watch the Wallabies take on the All Blacks in the Bledisloe Cup match which is being played in Auckland (kick off is at 5.35 pm).

It is with great sadness that we advise of the passing of one of our prominent Old Boys, Alan Lavis. Throughout his life, Alan remained a loyal, passionate and generous supporter of the School. He served on School Council from 1976 through to 1995. Alan was the first lay person and Old Boy to serve as Chairman of School Council, a position he held from 1989 through to 1995.

We fondly remember past teacher, Mr Merv Lupton who passed away on Thursday 13 February, aged 89. Merv joined the teaching staff in 1969 to teach Metal Work and Elementary Engineering. He quickly became involved as a training officer in the Naval Reserve Cadets unit TS Magnus, later becoming the Commanding Officer. In these two areas he made a very strong impression on the life of the school.

Above: Head of the River Champions – 1st IV 1922

If you can Assist Archives by providing any group photographs for the years listed below for Churchie Rowing, Volleyball, Basketball and/or Gymnastics, our School Archivist Mr Peter Collin would be very appreciative. You don’t need to part ways with these treasured memories. Should you wish to keep your photographs, they can be digitally scanned, added to the collection and returned to you promptly. Please contact our School Archivist, Mr Peter Collin on 07 3896 2137, or click here to email the OBA.

ROWING
– 1927
– 1951, 1957, 1958
– 1963, 1967, 1968
– 1973
– 1980, 1983, 1988, 1989
– 1990
– 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2018, 2019

VOLLEYBALL
– 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979
– 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989
– 1990, 1991, 1993
– 2004, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019

BASKETBALL
– 1972, 1973, 1976
– 1983, 1987, 1988, 1989
– 1990, 1991, 1994, 1999
– 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019

GYMNASTICS
– 1941, 1942, 1943, 1945
– 1950, 1951, 1955, 1956
– 1960
– 1970, 1972
– 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989
– 1991, 1992, 1993

In 2020, Churchie Foundation is again awarding the Old Boys Overseas Study Scholarships. Applications are now invited from Old Boys and current Year 12 students wishing to attend colleges or universities in the UK or USA. The application process will close on Friday 31 May. To find out more information and/or apply for a scholarship then please click here.

For more details about each event, please click on the relevant link below.

Vintage Vikings | Morning Tea and Lunch
Friday 29 May 2020
Click here

OBA Annual Dinner
Friday 14 August 2020
Click here

Old Boys’ Day
Saturday 15 August 2020
Click here

View the full Events and Reunions Calendar

For more details about each event, please click on the relevant link below.

2020 Adelaide Reunion
Friday 11 September 2020
Venue: TBC
Details: TBA

Reunions are also planned for Townsville, Sydney and Melbourne. Further details for these events will be provided once confirmed.

View the full Events and Reunions Calendar

For more details about your cohort reunion, please click on the relevant link below.

If you are from either the 1960 or 1950 cohorts and would like to assist us to plan your 60 Year Reunion or 70 Year Reunion respectively, please email the OBA Office at oba@churchie.com.au or call Casey on 07 3896 6462.

10 Year Reunion | 2010 Old Boys
Saturday 5 September 2020
Click here

20 Year Reunion | 2000 Old Boys
Saturday 29 August 2020
Click here

30 Year Reunion | 1990 Old Boys
Saturday 18 July 2020
Click here

40 Year Reunion | 1980 Old Boys
Saturday 5 September 2020
Click here

50 Year Reunion | 1970 Old Boys
Saturday 15 August 2020
Click here

View the full Events and Reunions Calendar

All Old Boys are invited to the second Churchie Volleyball Old Boys’ Day on Saturday 7 March at the Sir John Pidgeon Sports Complex. This is a top of the table clash against strong rivals Gregory Terrace. On the day Old Boys will be able to enjoy a free hamburger courtesy of the OBA. The First VI game commences at 1:30pm, which is preceded by a drum line performance.

To Speak of Cities is the second in a series of window commissions by Old Boy Sam Cranstoun (2004). The large-scale, text-based artwork has been unveiled and is currently spanning the façade of The University of Queensland Art Museum. Designed to spark conversations about future cities, the phrase is a a thought-provoking statement about how we occupy our cities. The exhibition runs until 4 July 2020 with the front window commission on display until 18 July 2020. #churchieart

It is with immense sadness that we advise of the passing of Old Boy Graham Freudenberg. Often described as the ‘Donald Bradman’ of speechwriters, Graham wrote over a thousand speeches spanning fifty years for several leaders of the Australian Labor Party​ (ALP), including Gough Whitlam and Bob Hawke. For the past few years, Graham has also generously given of his time to visit Churchie​ to speak to our Year 12 Modern History students. Graham ‘s life was recently honoured in a compelling documentary by Ruth Cullen. The Scribe​, is a powerful journey into one of the great minds of politics whose words shaped our fortunes. RIP Graham!

Opened in 1872, Trinity College was established as an affiliated residential college of the University of Melbourne, as well as a place to prepare theological candidates for ordained ministry in the Anglican Church of Australia. The College has significantly expanded since then and today consists of three divisions: the Pathways School, the Residential College and the Theological School.

Old Boy Alexander Whittle (2015) is currently studying a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and Communications at the university and is on a residential scholarship at Trinity that was established by fellow Old Boy Dr David Jackson (1930). David, an undergraduate of the college from 1932 to 1937, established the Trinity College David Jackson Scholarship. The scholarship is awarded to a resident of Trinity College who is also an Old Boy of Churchie and covers up to 50 per cent of residential fees. As a recipient of this scholarship at Trinity for the last 3 years, Alexander can testify to the profound impact residence at Trinity has had on his university experience and academic achievement, not to mention the interstate study affordability.

“My experience at Trinity has been wholly positive. It was an instant help meeting people when I arrived from interstate and I now have exceptionally lovely and talented friends from all over Australia and the world. I’ve had constant academic and social support through university.” Alexander has immersed himself in other areas of university and college life: working at Trinity in the Warden’s office; working as an intern at Ingersoll Consulting; as the Business Manager of the Tiger Tones, Trinity’s male a capella group and last year managed their tour of the U.K. and Ireland; as the Secretary of Trinity’s vintner ‘The Wine Cellar’; and playing, albeit very poorly he considers, on its All Stars AFL team each year. Now in his final year at University of Melbourne, Alexander is looking to pursue a career in Public/Corporate Affairs.

Trinity College are offering a massively extended full scholarship program for new residential students starting in January 2020. Alexander urges any current year 12s, particularly sons of Old Boys, to apply and looks forward to seeing more Churchie boys “set up tent” at Trinity. Please click here for more details. Don’t delay with your submission as applications close on Friday 19 July 2019.

Moulded by eclectic music tastes, Old Boy Liam Kenvyn (2015) with his girlfriend Sofia and three primary school mates from New Farm, have been writing, recording and performing original music for appreciative audiences. Known as San Tropez Bay, they all have a hand in writing from experience and across a range of genres, channelling the sounds of rock, funk, punk and alternative.

Liam, who is studying a Bachelor of Business in Entertainment Management at the JMC Academy, is the bass player. Sofia is the lead singer and is studying jazz singing and composition at the Conservatorium. Declan is the lead guitarist and song writer. Oscar is the drummer and is studying medicine.

San Tropez Bay started gigging in and around venues in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley and at private parties, including 21st birthdays of Old Boys. In April 2019, in the space of a week, they released a two-EP collection and consequently are receiving some strong recognition on the Brisbane music scene. “First, the Rain” is more upbeat and “Then, the Moss” is more reflective and soulful. Both are also being well received on Spotify and other streaming platforms. You can find out more about them and link to their cool, soulful and beautiful music here: https://santropezbay.bandcamp.com/

Following the success of their twin EP launches, San Tropez Bay are already writing more music and will be recording again soon.

Featured Image (L-R): Liam Kenvyn, Sofia Giacoboni, Oscar McCabe, Declan Henninger

I left Churchie at the end of 1955 – last year of junior school. We moved to Sydney where I attended Knox Grammar School completing my Higher School Certificate in 1960.  Attending Churchie was the best years of my schooling.  David Pritchard was a good friend but sadly I am aware he passed away a couple of years ago.  I was friends also with Ken Aaron. I remember the surnames of a few of my classmates including Coxon, Hunt, Duff, Nicholson, Law, Jones, Norris and McMaster (good swimmer). At Knox I played in the 1st XV (2nd row) and was Drum Major of the Brass Band. I have a strong memory of Dr and Mrs. Roberts visiting my home in Sydney when they were visiting down here. He was a kind and warm man. I also have clear memories of Mrs. Roberts in the Junior School tuck shop where I regularly bought a cream bun at mid-morning break. Other boys I remember include Donald Crombie and Rodney Delaney.

My career was agricultural based including managing four agricultural research stations, managing overseas aid programs, establishing multi-functional agricultural projects to provide farming families the option to diversify and establish alternative income streams so as to remain viable in an increasing globalised market place, eg www.harvesttrailsandmarkets.com.au and www.southernharvest.org.au  I was awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 2006 to pursue international knowledge and subsequent further development of my involvement in that area of agriculture.  I retired at 70 and now spend as much of my time with my eight children (four of my own and four step) and an ever-increasing number of grandchildren.

Whilst football was introduced to Churchie in 1972, since its introduction into the GPS competition in 1991 the school has battled long and hard to secure the elusive title. That was until Friday 21 June 2019. Coached by former Brisbane Roar player Warren Moon and captained by Lachlan Smith, son of Old Boy Russell Smith (1985), our First XI Football team reaped the rewards of a rigorous and competitive season (6 wins, one draw and one loss) to secure the school’s first-ever GPS Football Premiership. In doing so they won the title outright. Congratulations to all involved on this historic achievement.

From an Old Boys perspective, there have been many recent significant achievements. Most notable are those who have been recognised in the 2019 Queen’s Birthday Honours list. Please refer to the Old Boys Achievements section of this newsletter for full details.

On Friday 21 June, almost 50 Old Boys came together for the 2019 Old Boys’ Sydney Reunion. Generously hosted by Morgans Financial and with particular thanks to Old Boy Andrew McAfee (2009), it was a tremendous evening. Please click here to view a selection of photos from the evening.

Invitations have now been sent for the 2019 OBA Annual Dinner to be held on Friday 16 August in Rivershed East at Howard Smith Wharves. These invitations highlighted the exciting news that our Guest Speaker for the evening will be Old Boy Tim Walsh (1996). Tim is the current Australian Men’s Seven’s Head Coach and was previously the Australian Women’s Sevens Head Coach taking them to the Gold Medal at the Rio Olympics 2016. Interest in the event is already gaining momentum, so please ensure you book early to secure your seat. Tickets can either be purchased individually for $95 or as a table booking for $800 (i.e $80 per person). The following day, Saturday 17 August, is our annual Old Boys’ Day. This is the afternoon the school plays Gregory Terrace in both rugby and basketball. For more details, please refer to the Reunions and Events calendar later in this newsletter.

OBA Annual Dinner | Individual Booking

OBA Annual Dinner | Table Booking [10]

Please also ensure that you lock in the evening of Monday 16 December, 6 pm – 9 pm, for the third Annual Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament. Meet and have the chance to play with tennis professionals, Old Boys John Millman (2006) and Colin Sinclair (2012), as well as Churchie’s Director of Tennis, Ian Malpass. This event is open to the whole Churchie community, so current students, parents (past and present), staff (past and present) and Old Boys are all invited to play and compete for the John Millman Shield.

Job Search
Tom Fewtrell (2014)
Tom was a boarder at Churchie between 2012 and 2014.  He recently completed a Bachelor of Business with a Logistics and Human Resources double major and is currently looking for work within the logistics industry. Tom is currently living in Brisbane but would be willing to move if required. If you have an opportunity for Tom, or are able to provide some guidance in his search, please contact the OBA office by email at oba@churchie.com.au or by phoning 07 3896 2203.

Old Boy Sam Cranstoun (2004) is the newly appointed Patron of the churchie. Established in 1987, this highly regarded national emerging art prize is dedicated to innovation and excellence across contemporary, traditional and new media genres.

“It is with great pride that I take on the role of Patron of the churchie national emerging art prize. In the early stages of my career, exhibiting as a finalist in the churchie was a key part of my professional development, allowing my work to reach new audiences, as well as giving me the opportunity to exhibit alongside some of the nation’s best-emerging artists. Since then, I have keenly followed the churchie and watched as its past finalists have gone on to grow and refine their careers, and exhibit on a national stage. The support offered by the churchie is truly invaluable for emerging creative practitioners, and I look forward to taking on a more active role in supporting this new generation of artists as Patron of the churchie.”​

Sam’s multidisciplinary practice combines various forms of research with a wide array of media to create work that investigates different systems of representation. His work regularly focuses on historical figures and events as a way of exploring how history is shaped, how it functions and how we as spectators rely on different visual systems as a way of understanding the past. His practice traverses a variety of mediums, including collage, sculpture, painting, drawing, watercolour, sculpture and video, focusing on historical figures, events and images as a way of exploring how history and current affairs are shaped and how we respond.

The OBA are proud to continue their long association with ‘the churchie’ as a Major Sponsor.

Please click here to read more about Sam.

Photo: Cydney Holm

Over the past week it has been tremendous to be able to welcome back two Churchie Old Boys on official visits, Michael Johnston (1996) and Kalyn Ponga (2015).

In November 2018 we featured an article about the inspiration Michael drew from his years in Churchie Prep and more particularly his fond memories of competing in the annual Churchie Prep Billy Cart Grand Prix in 1990 and 1991. Ahead of this year’s Billy Cart Grand Prix, to be held on Thursday 20 June, it was a timely visit. The excitement from the boys was palpable. After reading to the Reception class, Michael moved up to the JB Adams Memorial Library to sign some copies of his book before presenting to the boys on Prep Assembly in Morris Hall. He also took the opportunity to walk the course he had raced in his day, which is now a landscaped playground and courtyard for Years 4 to 6.

It was also a pleasure to welcome Kalyn Ponga back to Churchie for a brief filming session related to his selection and involvement in the State of Origin series. As a member of the First XV undefeated premiership team of 2014, Kalyn impressed everyone with his attacking and defensive abilities across the field. Despite the high levels of public attention Kalyn is now receiving as an outstanding high-profile sportsman, he continues to impress with his gentlemanly demeanor and humility. After playing a pivotal role in Queensland’s Game 1 win, we wish Kalyn the very best for the rest of the series and indeed his burgeoning sporting career.

Featured Image: Michael reading his book, The Great Billy Cart Grand Prix, to the Reception class.
Header Image: Louie Carr-Brown, Lochie Butterworth-Love, Myburgh Van Wyk and Harry Crain with Kalyn.

Old Boy Eugene Dragut (2016) recently had the privilege of attending the G20 Young Entrepreneurs’ Alliance (G20 YEA) Summit in Fukuoka, Japan. The G20 YEA is a network of over 500 000 young entrepreneurs in the world and the organisations that represent them. Selected delegates from each of the G20 nations come together at the summit to share ideas and contribute to G20 policy through submitting a final communiqué. The communiqué that was signed and released at the Japan Summit focused on the global challenge of how entrepreneurs can “imagine an economy for a sustainable future”. Please click here to view the full document.

One of the fantastic opportunities Eugene received as an Australian delegate was meeting with the Australian Consul General and Trade Commissioner, Ian Brazier (1983). As a fellow Old Boy, Ian shared his insights on the potential for even greater economic cooperation between Australia and Japan as well as reflecting on his formative experiences at Churchie. Eugene observed, “I just thought it was a great moment and very interesting how even in a major regional city in Japan, two Churchie Old Boys managed to meet by pure coincidence.”

Ian noted, “Eugene may be the first of a large wave of Churchie Old Boys coming to Fukuoka in coming months. Neighboring Oita Prefecture is the hosting two of the Wallabies matches during the Rugby World Cup”.

Featured Image: Old Boy Eugene Dragut (2016), pictured sixth from left and fellow Old Boy Ian Brazier (1983), pictured fifth from left. (Note Ian’s superb tie selection for the meeting!)

The 2019 Vintage Vikings Morning Tea & Lunch was held in Morris Hall on Friday 24 May. With a total of 129 in attendance it was a truly memorable occasion. Churchie’s premiere jazz ensemble Big Band 1 performed splendidly. In a surprise guest appearance, accompanying Big Band 1 for their final piece, so too did Mr Jeffrey Black (1979) and current Year 11 student Harry Shaw who combined for a stirring vocal performance. Jeffrey, an internationally acclaimed opera singer, is Churchie’s Director of Music. The band is looking forward to once again performing at this year’s Jazz Under the Stars with special guest Rai Thistlethwaite from Thirsty Merc on Friday 9th August 2019. James Mason OAM (Past Staff) presented as Guest Speaker on the topic Fallen Old Boys of the Second World War, which certainly evoked some interest and emotion among our guests. We also enjoyed a record attendance of new Vintage Viking inductees with 16 Old Boys being presented with their ties by the Headmaster.

Without doubt, each year one of the highlights of the Vintage Vikings Morning Tea & Lunch is the crowning of the Oldest Old Boy in Attendance. This year, at 95 years of age, Tony Osborn (1942) proudly received this acknowledgement. Special mention should also go to Stuart Inverarity (1941) who travelled from Sydney to join us. Stuart is also 95 years of age, only 3 months younger than Tony. In acknowledgement of this tradition, the OBA Committee recently commissioned sculptor Dr Rhyl Hinwood AM to design a leather helmet, modelled on the St Magnus of Orkney statue in Magnus Quadrangle. Rhyl is a Past Parent of Churchie and was the sculptor of the St Magnus statue, as well as the Canon Morris statue. The helmet was made to Rhyl’s design and brief by leather artist Len Bytheway.

The 2019 OBA Annual Dinner will be held on Friday 16 August in Rivershed East at Howard Smith Wharves. In the coming weeks, special invitations to the dinner will also be extended to our cohorts celebrating their 5 year (2014), 15 year (2004), 25 year (1994), 35 year (1984) and 45 year (1974) reunions. Interest in the event is already gaining momentum, so please ensure you book early to secure your seat. Tickets can either be purchased individually for $95 or as a table booking for $800 (i.e $80 per person). The following day, Saturday 17 August, is our annual Old Boys’ Day. This is the afternoon the school plays Gregory Terrace in both rugby and basketball. For more details, please refer to the Reunions and Events calendar later in this newsletter.

OBA Annual Dinner | Individual Booking
OBA Annual Dinner | Table Booking [10]

For those who will be in Sydney on Friday 21 June, please be sure to click here to purchase your ticket for the 2019 Old Boys Sydney Reunion. Hosted by Morgans Financial and with tickets at a cost of only $20 per person, it is an evening not to be missed. This is a mixed event, so everyone is welcome.

Churchie has been very fortunate to receive many generous gifts and bequests over its long history.

From the very beginning, the Crampton-Andrews Family generously allowed the founding Headmaster to use part of “Ardencraig”, the family home at Toowong, as the School’s premises for its first year. Enrolment grew from three students on Foundation Day to eleven students by the end of 1912.

Since this modest beginning, many Old Boys and families have supported the School through generous benefaction, enabling the School’s leadership of the day to better fulfil our ambitions for the boys through the provision of world- class facilities and amenities.

One of the earliest bequests was from John Darnell. Following his death in 1930, the School received £1,200 for the construction of a library. The John Darnell Memorial Library became the second of what Canon Morris considered his ‘Three Sisters’ (the Canon Jones Memorial Chapel [1924], the John Darnell Memorial Library [1934], and the Jackson Science Hall [1938]). These iconic, early buildings enabled the Founder’s vision of providing a broad, liberal education in the Anglican tradition.

Many other bequests enabled the School to respond to the increasing enrolment demand over the years and develop the once ‘little farm school’ into one of the nation’s greatest schools.

As the growing school gradually required a greater level of management and resources, the Jensen Building [1994] was purpose-built to house the School’s leadership team as well as the Music and Languages Departments. This was the bequest of the Kappe/Jensen families in recognition of Old Boy L V Mervyn Jensen (1924-27).

Old Boy Stanley Smith (1921-23) made several financial gifts to the School during the post WWII years, enabling Headmaster Roberts to continue the increasingly necessary building and expansion program during the 1950s and 1960s. Amongst other endowments and bequests, enabled by Stanley Smith’s Trusts, the School has The Smith Fields, The Stanley Smith Preparatory School (1965) and the Stanley and May Smith Science Centre (1999).

State-of-the-art Physical Education, sporting and fitness facilities in the School would not be as they are today without numerous bequests that benefit the entire student population. The Sir John Pidgeon Sports Complex (2010) is an outstanding sports, wellness and recreational facility borne of a bequest by Old Boy John Pidgeon (1940-43).

The Graham Fowles Boat House (2005) provides the rowing community with an outstanding facility for rowing on the Brisbane River. The bequest from Graham Fowles (1939-41) enabled the School to construct the new facility and enhance the growth in the program and achievements in the boat shed (1936), which was named the Elder Hunter Boat House (1969) after H Elder Hunter (1918-22).

The Barry McCart Aquatic Centre (2010) is the result of a family bequest recognising Barry (1945-47) and the family’s contribution to swimming over many years. The centre enables the School to conduct swimming training and carnivals, lifesaving, water-polo and learn-to-swim programs.

The David Turbayne (1926-27) Tennis Centre [2011] is a state-of-the-art facility providing outstanding coaching, skill development and competition opportunities for students and the broader community.

The generous giving to the School by Old Boys has enabled the establishment and evolution of one of the most outstanding school campuses in Australia. The impact of bequests and generous donations has left a lasting legacy for families of future students, Old Boys and the wider Churchie community.

Old Boy Omar Harduwar (2016), pictured front centre, has joined forces with a group of fellow University of Queensland Law students to tackle wildlife trafficking. As part of a new international university course, The University of Queensland Law School has partnered with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to develop university modules on wildlife, forest, and fisheries crime. The group joined their counterparts from the Universities of Vienna and Zurich to trade knowledge and ideas and meet some of the endangered animals they’d be working to save. Below is a recollection of Omar’s experience so far.

International law is certainly an area of our degree that interests many budding lawyers, but often something we very rarely can interact with in our studies and careers in general. So, when the opportunity arose to research, present and prepare a paper on transnational organised crime in Vienna, it seemed like a no-brainer to me.

After a few introductory sessions, trawling through endless sources and getting tips on presentation techniques, the seven of us jetted off to Vienna to present our findings in front of colleagues from the other side of the world. Not knowing what to expect, a lot of us were quite nervous.

The nerves quickly melted away when we met the other students from the University of Vienna and University of Zurich at a local bar for a meet and greet. There was definitely a feeling from that first beer that the week was going to be one we would not forget – both academically and for the friendships we would forge in such a short period of time.

The week combined the perfect mix of student presentations, informal outings and listening to guest lecturers from the likes of the UN Organisation on Drugs and Crime and Austrian Customs. We were immensely fortunate to have access to some of the leading professionals in the field and being able to ask them questions that related to our individual topics was definitely a highlight.

I think the overwhelming consensus was that the highlight was a visit to the Schönbrunn Zoo – the oldest in the world. We were given a tour of the big ticket animals and gained invaluable insight into how Schönbrunn also has a big role in conservation and rehabilitation of wildlife.

Our trip to Austria was undoubtedly an adventure I will never forget. We managed to achieve so much in a single teaching week; we met new people from across the world, learnt from leaders in the field and enjoyed the wonderful sights and scenes of beautiful Vienna.

Omar has also recently co-authored a paper that was published in the Reuter’s Criminal Law Journal. The paper looked at reform of s320A in the Queensland Criminal Code which relates to Torture.

Old Boy Sean Riksen (2017), pictured above right, is a 2018 recipient of the Churchie Foundation ‘Overseas Study Scholarship’ for Old Boys. Sean is attending the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia and has penned the following recollections of his experience so far.

As my first year at Penn is coming to a close I thought I would write to you to provide a small update on the adventure thus far. Perhaps it would be nice to start with my realisation of how well Churchie prepared for me this environment. There are umpteen opportunities here to involve yourself in numerous academic, business and sporting clubs. For example, I have become entrepreneurship chair of Wharton Healthcare and have walked on to Varsity Rowing who had actually just raced against fellow Old Boy Alex Jeremijenko (2016) on the weekend. I am now pursuing pre-medicine as part of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and the culture here is very rigorous. The academics here are very challenging and again I felt very well prepared in the areas of chemistry and physics.

Outside of the school however, there has been a lot of self-learning. In the first semester, I did bite off a little more than I could chew, leading to an average of less than four hours sleep a night for three months. I do not recommend trying this. A big lesson has been that sometimes it can be a lot more fruitful to focus on what you want to really do, do that incredibly well and then, after this, start adding the nice accessories. As former Vice President of the United States Joe Biden said in his speech here last week, build the body and then add the radio.

Separate from this, it brought a smile to my face when Alex Chan (2018) messaged me with his good news from Georgetown. It’s great to see that the boys are still willing to pursue heading overseas.

Unfortunately, I will not be returning to Australia over the summer vacation as I will be working in Amsterdam.

In 2019, Churchie Foundation is again awarding the Old Boys Overseas Study Scholarships. Applications are now invited from Old Boys and current Year 12 students wishing to attend colleges or universities in the UK or USA. The application process will close on Friday 31 May. To find out more information or apply for a scholarship then please click here.

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Ex posse graecis omnesque nam, te novum nihil impetus mel. Et eos aliquid deserunt adolescens, summo invidunt expetendis no his, in admodum tincidunt cum. Et feugait civibus sententiae eos, mei id saperet adversarium, et qui populo consulatu disputationi. Ex pri vocent commune, choro vocibus singulis no pro, propriae consectetuer mediocritatem per ea.

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Ex posse graecis omnesque nam, te novum nihil impetus mel. Et eos aliquid deserunt adolescens, summo invidunt expetendis no his, in admodum tincidunt cum. Et feugait civibus sententiae eos, mei id saperet adversarium, et qui populo consulatu disputationi. Ex pri vocent commune, choro vocibus singulis no pro, propriae consectetuer mediocritatem per ea.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, modo repudiare his ut. Nec eu posse senserit mediocritatem, ut fabulas accommodare sea. Mea paulo electram no. Modo audire expetendis ius te. Soluta nostrud probatus cu nec, cu exerci singulis sea, mei ut alii ipsum mucius. Sit partem verterem eu, utamur dolorem efficiendi cum cu.

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In this year of celebration of 100 years of Churchie Army Cadets, our Reviewing Officer for ANZAC Day is Colonel Robert Brennan CSC. COL Brennan is currently the Commander of Australian Army Cadets – South Queensland. We look forward to welcoming the whole Churchie community for this important day. Please refer to the ANZAC Day post later in the newsletter for more details.

We are always interested to read about what Old Boys are up to in life after school. Moreover, it is particularly pleasing when Churchie’s mission Making of Men is being exhibited. Please take the time to read this article about Mack Mason (2014), who captained our First XV rugby side to an undefeated premiership in 2014 and now plays for Eastern Suburbs rugby club in Sydney and for the NSW Waratahs. A-note-on-Mack-from-Mick-Coffey

James Mason OAM (Past Staff) will be the Guest Speaker at our annual Vintage Vikings | Morning Tea and Lunch to be held in Morris Hall on Friday 24 May. James will speak on the topic Fallen Old Boys of the Second World War. All Old Boys aged 70 or older are invited to join us for this special annual event. Please note that spouses/partners are also welcome.

The venue for the 2019 OBA Annual Dinner, to be held on Friday 16 August, has been confirmed as the Rivershed at Howard Smith Wharves. Please lock in this date now so you don’t miss it. Special invitations to the OBA Annual Dinner will be extended to our cohorts celebrating their 5 year (2014), 15 year (2004), 25 year (1994), 35 year (1984) and 45 year (1974) reunions. Our cohorts celebrating 55 years (1964) and 65 years (1954) have also received special invitations to the Vintage Vikings | Lunch and Morning Tea.

Old Boys’ Day will be held on Saturday 17 August (the day after the OBA Annual Dinner). This is the afternoon the school plays Gregory Terrace in both basketball and rugby. For more details, please refer to the Reunions and Events calendar later in this newsletter.

For all ‘Churchie singers’ past and present, the St John’s Cathedral reunion planned for Sunday 28th April 2019 is fast approaching. For more details, please refer to the ‘Calling All Choristers’ post in this newsletter.

It is with great sadness that we advise of the passing of one of our prominent Old Boys, Lloyd McDermott. A boarder in Gerald, Lloyd played 1st XI Cricket for two years in 1956 & 1957 and 1st XV Rugby for three years in 1955, 1956 and 1957. He also competed in Track & Field and in 1955 was the Under 16 Champion. Australia’s first indigenous barrister, Lloyd was also one of the first indigenous Wallabies and made a notable stand against apartheid in South Africa by making himself unavailable for the 1963 tour there. RIP Lloyd!

Pictured below: Churchie’s 1957 1st XI Cricket and 1957 1st XV Rugby teams, featuring Lloyd in the front row, far right and second from left respectively.

Every day, more than 50 Australians die as a result of heart disease and more than 400,000 of us will suffer a heart attack in our lifetime. In fact, heart disease is the leading cause of death of Australians, but awareness of that message is low, especially among younger Australians. This is where Old Boy Chris Taylor (1987) has stepped in. Chris joined Heart Foundation in March 2018 as their Chief Marketing Officer and was immediately faced with three challenges: growing ignorance of heart disease, inaction and a heavy reliance on public funding. In a major push to combat these alarming statistics and overcome these challenges, Chris was the driving force behind Heart Foundation’s hard-hitting campaign, Australia’s Biggest Serial Killer.

The results of the campaign are particularly impressive. Visits to the Heart Foundation website surged by almost 300 per cent and hundreds of thousands of Australians have completed the newly launched online Heart Age Calculator. The campaign has also been cited by key politicians as being instrumental in their decision to invest a further $220 million investment for research into heart disease and pledge to support the funding of healthy heart checks for all at-risk Australians.

Chris’ distinguished background as a marketer comes from working across multiple sectors with a range of leading brands, including but not limited to: Coca-Cola, Telstra, Visa, Johnson & Johnson Medical, Macquarie Bank and Woolworths. He is also an experienced key-note speaker, moderator and event chairman. Outside of work, Chris is a real estate investor and home renovator with a passion for restoring Federation homes, faithfully reproducing the original style through attention to detail and a modern flair.

Please click here to read more about the Australia’s Biggest Serial Killer campaign.

Please click here if you would like to check your heart age using the calculator.

When it comes to pure mathematics, Old Boy Pete Jenkins (1997) exudes a true passion that has always been a joy… and a struggle. Whilst enjoying mathematics from a young age, he remembers always finding it very challenging. Pete says: “The key is to embrace the challenge and not wish that it was easy. The more time you spend studying and exploring the intricacies of these patterns and structures, the more satisfying you find the experience.”

Pete says he was also fortunate enough to have some very inspiring mathematics teachers here at Churchie that not only helped bring a lot of clarity to the subject, but also helped him to become more confident. Mr Peter Coyne, who he considers to be his best mathematics teacher, had a teaching style that Pete admired. “Mr Coyne was extremely organised, calm and helpful, and he was very good at organising challenging ideas in a way that was logical and clear, without oversimplifying things.”

After completing a Bachelor of Science degree, majoring in Mathematics and Computer Science from The University of Queensland, Pete then completed Honours and eventually a PhD in Mathematics. Whilst completing his PhD Pete spent time lecturing and given his level of enjoyment he completed a graduate Diploma in Education enabling him to teach at secondary school level. He is currently the Head of Mathematics Curriculum Development and Tennis Coordinator at Brisbane Girls Grammar School (BGGS).

Pete enjoys tennis outside of school as well and has started competing in many of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) senior tournaments.

Co-founded by Old Boy Guy Crofts (2014), Aldergrove Studios is a tight-knit film making crew, dedicated to making quality content. Specialising in pre-production, audio, video and post-production, they are a collective of filmmakers, animators, gamers and musicians, who all share one goal … to bring creative visions to life.

Guy’s inspiration to be a Cinematographer and Animator stems from always having had some involvement in the visual arts. His parents bought him a reusable film camera when he was 5. As a kid, Guy was always intrigued with how special effects in movies were made, so when he started at Churchie in Grade 8 and saw that Film and Television was on offer as a subject from Grade 9, he couldn’t wait to start the following year. “I loved it from the very first class” says Guy.

Since leaving Churchie, Guy has completed a Bachelor of Film and Screen Media degree at Griffith University. He has worked as a content creator for many companies. However, working under other people he wasn’t getting the level of creative or professional fulfilment he wanted; so he teamed up with some of his closest friends from university to make their own production company, Aldergrove Studios.

Guy’s proudest achievement to date is when he went to the Maldives to film super models for Studio10 and SkinO2. “It was incredible being there, but it was a stupid amount of work. Seeing your footage on TV makes the whole thing worth it though” says Guy. He still enjoys getting back to Churchie to film the sporting endeavours of our young men and to pass on his knowledge to the next generation of filmmakers. “I want to give back to the community that helped me discover my love of film.”

Please click here to view some of the work done by Aldergrove Studios.

Congratulations to the following Old Boys for their recognition in the 2019 Queen’s Birthday Honours list.

Member (AM) of the Order of Australia in the General Division

• Mr Graham Bell (1954) for significant service to family law, and to the judiciary.
• Professor Bruce Black (1964) for significant service to otolaryngology, and to medical education.
• Mr Paul Clauson (1966) for significant service to the law, and to the people and Parliament of Queensland.

Medal (OAM) of the Order of Australia in the General Division

• Dr David McDonald (1968) for service to medicine as a paediatrician.
• Mr Daniel O’Connor (1978) for service to the law, and to the community.

Australian Police Medal (APM)

• Chief Superintendent Benjamin Marcus (1986)

Medal (OAM) of the Order of Australia in the General Division

• Colonel Mark Ascough (1992 for distinguished leadership in warlike operations as the Commander of the Kabul Garrison Command Advisory Team and Senior Mentor to the Kabul Garrison Commander, whilst deployed on Operation HIGHROAD in Afghanistan from June 2017 to February 2018.

Congratulations to the following Old Boys for completing Gold level for The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award.

• Maxwell Bell (2018)
• Alexander Cockerill (2018)
• William Richardson (2018)
• Alexander Russell (2018)
• Bailey Shepherd (2018)

Eddy Ross (2012)
Eddy and his mates at TradeMutt took out this year’s Queensland Men’s Health Awards, based on the key criteria that they provide the most impactful male-friendly service to enhance the lives of men and boys.

Jason Gilmore (1995)
As coach of the Australian U20 Rugby team, Jason guided his Junior Wallabies into the final of the World Rugby U20 Championship 2019 in Argentina. Despite a gallant performance, France prevailed as defending champions to win 24-23. To view highlights from the match, please click here.

Zac Stubblety-Cook (2017)
Zac has qualified in the 200m Breaststroke for the World Swimming Championships in Gwangju, South Korea from 12 – 28 July 2019.

Fred Fewtrell (2018)
On Saturday 8 June, Fred made his Brisbane Premier Grade Rugby debut for Easts against GPS. Below is a photo of the Fewtrell family after the match.
L-R: Tom Fewtrell (2014), Mr Doug Fewtrell, Fred Fewtrell (2018), Mrs Susie Fewtrell and Sophie Fewtrell.

Kalyn Ponga (2015)
Kalyn has been selected in the Queensland State of Origin team. After debuting from the interchange bench for Queensland in the second match of the 2018 series, Kalyn will take to the field in the run on side in the position of fullback. Game 1 kicks off at 8.10 pm on Wednesday 5 June 2019 at Suncorp Stadium.

James Debnam (2018)
James won a Bronze medal representing Australia in Volleyball at Arafura Games that were recently held in Darwin.

Zac Crothers (2018)
Zac recently made his Premier Grade Rugby debut off the bench for Easts Rugby Club against Sunnybank. Please click here to read more.

James Debnam (2018) with Shaun Scott (current parent)

Sam Hurwood (2018)
Sam won the 110m Under 20 hurdles at the Australian Athletic Championships held in Sydney. Sam has also been selected to represent Australia at the Oceania championships at Townsville in June.

For some of our most recent Old Boys,  the recently held OP 1 Assembly was certainly a time for reflection. This annual event is a time-honoured tradition at Churchie as it acknowledges not only the OP 1 recipients but the most recent Year 12 cohort as a whole. Max Powell, 2018 Dux of the School, gave an outstanding speech as he reflected on his final year at school. Congratulations to these young men on their tremendous achievement.

In the sporting arena, Churchie’s swimmers finished a creditable sixth place at the GPS Swimming Championships. Swimmers and supporters alike displayed great commitment and sportsmanship. This was also particularly evident last weekend at the GPS Head of the River. Six wins from twelve points score races meant that Churchie was able to secure the coveted Old Boys’ Cup for the first time since 2006, stamping us as the premier rowing school in the Queensland GPS. A commendable effort by the First VIII saw them place equal third with TSS, behind Terrace in second place and Nudgee College first.

This month, one of our most heralded former sports masters, Mr Tony Booth OAM celebrated his 90th Birthday. Despite physical exertion being a key recollection when one thinks of Tony, particularly when it came to 400 metre sprints, the level of respect afforded to him is a true reflection of his character and achievements. As one of Queensland’s premier athletics coaches, Tony’s contribution to the success of Churchie​ athletics and cross-country from 1957 to 1989 is immense. Please click here to view some photos of Tony in action over the years.

In this year of celebration of 100 years of Churchie Army Cadets, our Reviewing Officer for ANZAC Day is Colonel Robert Brennan CSC. COL Brennan is currently the Commander of Australian Army Cadets – South Queensland. Please refer to the ANZAC Day post later in the newsletter for more details.

A reminder that our annual Vintage Vikings | Morning Tea and Lunch will be held in Morris Hall on Friday 24 May. All Old Boys aged 70 or older are invited to join us for this special annual event. Please note that spouses/partners are also welcome.

A further reminder that our that our signature event, the OBA Annual Dinner, will be held on Friday 16 August, so please lock in this date now so you don’t miss it. This year, special invitations to the OBA Annual Dinner will be extended to our cohorts celebrating their 5 year (2014), 15 year (2004), 25 year (1994), 35 year (1984) and 45 year (1974) reunions. Our cohorts celebrating 55 years (1964) and 65 years (1954) will also receive special invitations to the Vintage Vikings | Lunch and Morning Tea. This will be followed the next day by our equally popular Old Boys’ Day which is on the afternoon the school plays Gregory Terrace in both basketball and rugby. For more details, please refer to the Reunions and Events calendar later in this newsletter.

For all ‘Churchie singers’ past and present, a St John’s Cathedral reunion is planned for Sunday 28th April 2019. Again, for more details, please refer to the Reunions and Events calendar later in this newsletter.

Job Search
Mitchell Griffith (2011)
Mitchell recently graduated with a dual (Civil) Engineering and Business Management Degree from the University of Queensland. He is subsequently very interested in securing a full time position within the (Structural) Engineering Sector. Further to Mitch completing extensive, industry-related work experience, and being able to provide numerous excellent personal and professional references; if you are able to provide Mitch with either a start as a Graduate Engineer or some guidance in his search, please contact the OBA office by email at oba@churchie.com.au or by phoning 07 3896 2203.

Old Boy Henry Harland (2015), pictured above right with his parents, is a 2018 recipient of the Churchie Foundation ‘Overseas Study Scholarship’ for Old Boys. Henry recently attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison and has penned the following recollections of his experience.

An exchange to the US is something I’ve wanted to do for quite a while now, it even played a role in my university selection. I wanted to experience a college town, a place overrun by students where the culture and passion that existed at Churchie may live on. The University of Wisconsin – Madison did not disappoint, in a town of only 250,000 crowds at the football reached nearly 80,000. The highest paid government employee in the state is the football coach, earning twenty times more than the governor! The atmosphere at the game was electric, people in the student section did not sit down the entire game with seemingly continuous chants and games to be played.

Once the Saturday football was over it was time for Sunday football, and then Monday football, the sheer volume of sports on offer was tough to comprehend and made it even more difficult to get my studies done. However, once I pulled myself away from the sports it was time to do some study. During the semester I had to knock off four of my compulsory Civil Engineering courses so it wasn’t going to be cruisy. Thankfully the two other Australians that I was staying with (both Brisbane boys) had the same issue and we shared several classes, so we managed to get each other on track occasionally. I found university in the US a very different experience to Australia. For me it felt more like high school with homework given out and checked as well as near mandatory attendance in most classes.

During my time in the US I managed to duck away on a few quick trips to Chicago, New Orleans, Nashville and even a mate´s place in New Jersey for an authentic American Thanksgiving! Despite not making it through even half of the turkey Thanksgiving was an awesome experience and one that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Living out of home for the first time was also a great experience and although we made it through the entire semester without a vacuum cleaner, mugs or a kettle I´d say we did pretty well for ourselves and managed to keep the place in a decent state. The only exception to this would have to be when we managed to cram nine people (mates coming up to Madison for the weekend) into our three person apartment, that was chaos.

I met so many good mates during my time in Madison, friends who hopefully I can convince to make the trek to Australia and show around here. I couldn´t recommend an exchange highly enough to anyone else considering it, it’s the trip of a lifetime and the only downside is that you have to say goodbye to all the great friends you´ve made.

In 2019, Churchie Foundation is again awarding the Overseas Study Scholarships for Old Boys. Applications are now invited from Old Boys and current Year 12 students wishing to attend colleges or universities in the UK or USA. The application process will close on Friday 31 May. To find out more information, or apply for a scholarship, please click here.

Real people, historical figures, imagined dialogues …

The Museum of Brisbane has partnered with Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) to create a series of Impossible Conversations, connecting contemporary Australians living in Brisbane with celebrated figures from Italian history.

In the series, Old Boy and Brisbane artist Sam Cranstoun (2004) examines cultural identity across centuries and continents in a stunning new watercolour series. Inspired by Vanity Fair’s satirical 1930s series ‘Impossible Interviews’, nine Brisbane residents shared with Sam the conversations they would like to have with their chosen figure from Italian history. He has then interpreted these conversations through a series of watercolour paintings. Since the historical figures are unable to take part in the conversations, Sam’s paintings hover in the space between question and answer. He offers glimpses of the conversations through imagery and text, inviting us to weave our own narratives.

As a multi-disciplinary artist, Sam experiments with incomplete, unusual and ambiguous ways of viewing and participating in history. His work regularly focuses on historical figures and events as a way of exploring how history is shaped, how it functions and how we as spectators rely on different visual systems as a way of understanding the past.

Be sure to get along to the Museum of Brisbane before Sunday 31 March to see Sam’s Impossible Conversations. You can read the full conversations in the QPAC tunnel at the Cultural Precinct.

He almost became a chef, but thankfully creating incredible music won out over incredible food. Now acknowledged as a dynamic young Brisbane talent, Old Boy Connor D’Netto (2011) has been named Composer-in-Residence for the 2019 Australian Festival of Chamber Music (AFCM) – the youngest in the 29-year history of the event! Taking over Townsville for 10 days of world-class music making from Friday 26 July to Sunday 4 August, the AFCM will celebrate music from over 80 composers, including a world premiere by Connor.

Connor is a trained classical bass, also a talented photographer, videographer and visual-artist, creating and shooting not only material for his music, but also for a number of other artists and musicians. He has a Bachelor of Music (Honours), graduating with First-Class Honours in 2016 from the University of Queensland and is currently completing his Masters as a Tait Trust Scholar at the Royal College of Music in London.

When it comes to contemporary classical music, Connor has been described by ABC Classics as “the model contemporary Australian composer”. His music has been commissioned and performed across Australia and the world. Connor is excited about the year ahead, one which sees world premieres of his works around the globe. Already he has composed a new piece for leading Australian songstress Katie Noonan for her upcoming album. He is also co-writing a ballet called Non-Place, with fellow musician Matthew Lomax in London.

As a nice side story and referring to the above image, in November last year Connor (pictured centre back row) was invited for dinner with His Excellency the Honourable Paul de Jersey AC and his wife. The dinner was to celebrate the achievements of young Queenslanders in the UK and for Connor it was a great honour to be included among the invited guests who were the other young London-based Queenslanders honoured at the event.

More about Connor and his work can be found at www.connordnetto.com

Welcome to the first edition of Viking Spirit for 2019.

The hosting of the 2018 Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament saw the year finish with the same momentum with which it started. Congratulations must go to Federico Keil (2012) and Charl Van Den Berg who earned the right to have their names engraved on the John Millman Shield. It was also really fortunate for Fed and Charl as it secured them some extra air time at the trophy presentation to push their new business Your Tennis Mate. Charl, a Nudgee Old Boy, was particularly excited to get his name on a Churchie trophy. Thanks again must go to Ian Malpass and Fiona Cowan for their tireless efforts to co-ordinate the tournament, as well as Old Boys John Millman (2006) and Colin Sinclair (2012) for attending. Congratulations to John and Colin on stellar 2018 seasons and we look forward to following and supporting you both in 2019.

We are very proud to acknowledge six of our Old Boys who received recognition in the 2019 Australia Day Honours List for outstanding service and contribution their respective fields of expertise. They are Mr Rex Wild AO (1964), Mr Richard Gower AM (1957), Dr Ian Airey OAM (1965), Mr Grant Cassidy OAM (1984), Dr Frank Grigg OAM (1958) and Mr Bruce Shearer OAM (1959). Please refer to the Old Boys Achievements section of this newsletter for further details.

In the November 2018 edition of Viking Spirit we featured an article about Old Boy Michael Johnston (1996) and the children’s book he authored, titled The Great Billy Cart Grand Prix. Generously, Michael has since donated two copies of the book to the J B Adams Memorial library in the Prep School. Fittingly, these books were gifted to the Headmaster of the Prep School, Mr Michael Dunn at the Prep School Assembly as part of International Book Giving Day, which was on Thursday 14 February.

Many of the dates for OBA reunions and events for the year have been confirmed. The first of these is our inaugural Old Boys’ Day at the Volleyball which will take place on Saturday 9 March at Churchie. This season the First VI are chasing an unprecedented fourth straight GPS premiership in this sport. On Friday 24 May our annual Vintage Vikings | Morning Tea and Lunch will be held in Morris Hall. All Old Boys aged 70 or older are invited to join us for this special annual event. Please note that spouses/partners are also welcome. Our signature event, the OBA Annual Dinner will be held on Friday 16 August, so please lock in this date now so you don’t miss it. This year, special invitations to the OBA Annual Dinner will be extended to our cohorts celebrating their 5 year (2014), 15 year 2004), 25 year (1994), 35 year (1984) and 45 year (1974) reunions. Our cohorts celebrating 55 years (1964) and 65 years (1954) will also receive special invitations to the Vintage Vikings | Lunch and Morning Tea.  This will be followed the next day by our equally popular Old Boys’ Day which is on the afternoon the school plays Gregory Terrace in both basketball and rugby. For more details, please refer to the Reunions and Events calendar later in this newsletter.

We also take this opportunity to welcome Casey Ouston to the OBA office. Casey joins us as Administrative Assistant to the Old Boys’ Association (OBA) and Churchie Foundation. She comes to us with a wealth of experience in schools, most recently Villanova College and previously Brisbane Grammar School. When you next contact or visit the OBA office, please take a moment to welcome Casey.

Job Search
Sam Kendall (2013)
Sam is currently seeking employment into a graduate program or an entry-level position in the banking / financial sector. Sam holds a Business degree majoring in Finance from QUT. If you are interested in speaking with Sam about an opportunity or can provide some guidance in his search, please contact the OBA office by email at oba@churchie.com.au or by phoning 07 3896 2203.

Harry Windle (2018)
Harry is currently seeking employment as an apprentice carpenter or apprentice electrician. If you have, or know of, an opportunity for Harry to commence his career in either of these fields then , please contact the OBA office by email at oba@churchie.com.au or by phoning 07 3896 2203.

Jed Cornish (2013)
Jed is a Commerce student at the University of Queensland, majoring in Finance and Accounting. He graduates in mid 2019 and is therefore seeking part time or full time work within the finance sector. If anyone can assist Jed, please contact the OBA office by email at oba@churchie.com.au or by phoning 07 3896 2203.

Job Opportunity
Cody Campbell (1999)
Progressive Air QLD is a small, but passionate company & having grown our clientele across a varied range of light commercial and domestic projects, we are now excited to bring on a new team member/s to join our  family. Duties and responsibilities include installation, servicing & maintenance of all types of air conditioning/refrigeration. This position offered is permanent & full-time. Please make all enquiries and submissions to info@progressive-air.com.au

Luke White (1997)
Ashley-Cooper Constructions are looking for a 3rd year university student studying construction management looking to further their skills within the industry. The role would be flexible around university attendance during the semesters but would be a full time role during the holiday periods. Ashley-Cooper Constructions is based on the north side of Brisbane and most of their clients are within, but not limited to, the pubs and club sectors and school sectors. Please make all enquiries and submissions by email to oba@churchie.com.au or by phoning 07 3896 2203.

Haydn Furness (2012)
Haydn is currently recruiting full-time graduate positions for two leading Brisbane organisations within the Agriculture Industry. Full training and support will be provided, with graduates in Business, Finance, Economics, or Accounting welcome to apply. If you are a recent graduate and have a keen interest in Agriculture, please email haydn.furness@perigongroup.com.au or call him on 07 3854 3805

Mentor Search
Vaughan Marega (2017)
Vaughan is searching for connections in the Old Boy network who are in the financial advisory and investment fields in Melbourne. Vaughan is currently studying at University of Melbourne and would simply like to have a chat over a coffee to gather some advice for what lies ahead … re course/subject choices, the first best steps in his career path etc. If anyone can assist Vaughan, please contact the OBA office by email at oba@churchie.com.au or by phoning 07 3896 2203.

In what has become a long-standing tradition, Churchie and Somerville House will again present a Senior Play in 2019. Return to Oz, the unofficial sequel to L. Frank Baum’s Wizard of Oz, appeared on film in 1985. Its colourful, zany characters have become cherished additions to the Oz stories.

The story is also an attempt to look at the long-term effects of childhood trauma through the lens of a young girl trying to return to a fantasy world that’s been completely upended. Dorothy discovers she is back in the land of Oz and finds the Yellow Brick Road is now a pile of rubble and the Emerald City is in ruins. The magical land is now under the control of an evil empire, so Dorothy sets off to rescue the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Lion with the help of her new friends.

It is tremendous to see the involvement of the following Old Boys in this year’s production.

• Henry Friend (2016) Stage Manager
• Dylan Maxwell (2018) Backstage Manager
• Lachlan Haller (2017) Publicity (trailer video)
• Tom MacPherson (2017) Original Music

All staff and families are warmly invited to join us in Morris Hall for this large-scale production, featuring wonderful characters, fabulous costumes and an Oz-sized dose of theatrical magic.

Performances will be held in Morris Hall on:
– Thursday 28 February, 7pm
– Friday 1st March, 7pm
– Saturday 2nd March, 2pm (Matinée)
– Saturday 2nd March, 7pm

Tickets are available online. Adults $26, students $21.

Old Boy David Abrey (1998) is a criminal defence lawyer in Brisbane. In 2010 he opened his own firm, Harper Finch Lawyers, and is the sole practitioner. He is happily married and has been blessed with two wonderful sons. After reading a recent article about Adalynn “Addy” Sooter, a four-year-old American girl who tragically passed away in 2018 from an aggressive type of brain cancer, David realised he knew very little about brain cancer and began thinking about how he could make a difference. The article included a photo of Addy’s older brother comforting her in the hospital shortly before she passed away. “As a father, it is devastating to think about how many children lose their lives to brain cancer. No family should have to go through such pain and suffering”.

David’s inspiration now sees him preparing to take on one of his biggest personal challenges to date. From 15 to 20 March, he will Run Tassie for A Cure. David will be running 372 kilometres from Southport (in the south of Tasmania) to Devonport in the north. This is 1.5 marathons every day for six days. David is doing this through the Charlie Teo Foundation and has set himself a goal to raise at least $10,000 to help raise money to find a cure for brain cancer. Brain cancer is the number one killing cancer for people 40 years old and under and essentially there has no progress in finding a cure in decades. David chose the Charlie Teo Foundation because they maximise the value of the donations by aiming to keep their administration costs as low as possible.  He also generally respects Dr Teo and his tenacity to not give up when other surgeons do.

Every bit of support will help David and his contribution to this very worthy cause. If you would like to make a donation, please click on the following link.
https://ctffundraiser.everydayhero.com/au/run-tassie-for-a-cure

Please also follow David via his website and/or on Facebook.
www.runtassie.com.au
www.facebook.com/runtassie

Over the past four weeks, Old Boy Vaughan Marega (2017) travelled to many parts of India with friends from Trinity College at the University of Melbourne. He recounts his experience.

It has been an amazing journey of discovery with perhaps the most amazing part being the time spent volunteering. We dedicated two weeks of our travels to volunteer for Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) at one of their centres located in Seelampur, a 1-hour train ride outside Delhi. ASHA is a non-for-profit organisation that operates in 91 slums in Delhi. The organisation performs three vital services for young families in the slums of Delhi and provides healthcare, education, and women’s empowerment and awareness.  They receive all of their funding from supporters in Australia, England, Ireland and Wales. Having previously read that many charities and non-government organisations in India are tied closely and sometimes corruptly to governing bodies through dodgy deals in order to remain operational, I was at first sceptical about ASHA and its success in Delhi. Reassuringly, I discovered that ASHA acts independently from the local government.

Throughout our time volunteering, we organised lessons for students ranging in age from 5 to 21 to further their understanding of English for their respective year levels. The smiles on the children’s faces as well as their powerful stories during these classes will stay with me forever. My time with ASHA has been one of my most precious and memorable life experiences to date. Meeting Dr. Kiran the founder of ASHA, reassured me of the organisation’s sincere dedication to improving the welfare of slum residents for generations to come. The support provided by ASHA to the poor in India simply cannot be over-estimated. It is both vital to these people … as it is beautiful to witness. I wish ASHA many years of success ahead.

For further information or to support ASHA click the link: https://asha-india.org/about-us/

To hear more of my story with ASHA and how you can support this incredible organisation please email me: vmarega@student.unimelb.edu.au

Don’t forget to lock in Saturday 15 December to get along to the Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament for 2018 to be held at the school’s David Turbayne Tennis Centre. Meet and have the chance to play with tennis professionals, Old Boys John Millman (2006) and Colin Sinclair (2012). Please click here to register or refer to the event post later in this newsletter for more details. This year we welcome Your Tennis Mate (YTM) as our event sponsor. This exciting new online platform is an initiative of Old Boy Federico Keil (2012) and his business partner Charl Van Den Berg. YTM allows tennis players of any standard to view court locations and availability anywhere in Australia based on ‘real-time’ and easily book a court or service offering.

To celebrate the end of another year and the start of the festive season, all Churchie Old Boys are invited to the 2018 Churchie OBA Christmas Drinks to be held from 6 pm – 8 pm on Thursday 13 December at Friday’s Riverside. Get a group together and join us for what is always a fantastic evening.

Our Seniors of 2017 reunited on Thursday 29 November for the annual New Old Boys Night. Have a look at the Photo Gallery in this newsletter to view some photos from the evening.

This month we farewell Jennifer Garner who has tendered her resignation (effective from Tuesday 11 December) after serving as Administrative Assistant to the Old Boys’ Association (OBA) and Churchie Foundation for the past seven years. In her dual focused role, Jennifer has been a tremendous support for both the OBA and Foundation. We thank Jennifer for her tireless efforts over this period and wish her all the very best.

Old Boy Achievements
Congratulations to the following Old Boys on their tremendous achievements.

David Wright (2002)
On the 23rd of October 2018, David was awarded the Queensland Literary Awards’ Digital Literature Prize for “Little Emperor Syndrome”. Awarded to an exceptional work of transmedia or digital literature showcasing innovation in storytelling, it is the richest prize of its kind in the world.

William Wilson (1995)
On Tuesday 20 November, William was elected president of the AgForce Cattle board. He has been on the AgForce Cattle board for four years and has been vice-president since 2016.

Noelis Rheault (2003)
Noelis undertook three 100km trail ultra marathons and a number of other 50km+ events throughout 2018. He won two of these 100km running events (Glasshouse 100 and Brisbane Valley Rail Trail) and finished 9th in the Australian Long Course Championships at Blackall 100 in October.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Stay safe!

This month we welcome 226 new Old Boys – the Seniors of 2018. Congratulations to these young men and we wish you well in your endeavours. We also look forward to hearing of your experiences at Old Boys events and reunions. For our Seniors of 2017, the annual New Old Boys Night will be held next Thursday 29 November at the Green Beacon Brewing Co. which is owned by two of our Old Boys. Please click here for further details and to register for this event.

On Monday 19 November the OBA Annual General Meeting was held. Congratulations to Mr Simon Pattison (1984) who was voted in as President and takes over the reins from Dr Daniel Pitt (2006) who has served on the OBA Committee for 12 years and presided over the association for the past two of those years. We thank Daniel very much for his commitment and contribution as he now moves on to focus on his career in medicine. Congratulations must also go to Mr Andrew Fleming (1979) on his election to the position of Vice-President and Mr Rob Needham (1988) on his election to the Committee as an Executive member. Rob was the Manager of Churchie Foundation from 2011 until 2016 and is looking forward to rejoining the Churchie community.

To celebrate the end of another year and the start of the festive season, all Churchie Old Boys are invited to the 2018 Churchie OBA Christmas Drinks to be held from 6 pm – 8 pm on Thursday 13 December at Friday’s Riverside. Get a group together and join us for what is always a fantastic evening.

Don’t forget to lock in Saturday 15 December to get along to the Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament for 2018 to be held at the school’s David Turbayne Tennis Centre. Meet and have the chance to play with tennis professionals, Old Boys John Millman (2006) and Colin Sinclair (2012). Please refer to the event post later in this newsletter for more details.

Job Search

Jed Cornish (2013)
Jed is a Commerce student at the University of Queensland majoring in Finance and Accounting. He graduates in mid-2019 and is therefore seeking part time or full time work within the finance sector from February onwards. Jed does have nine months experience in business services roles, including work at a KPMG and BDO. This experience has given him the fundamental understanding required to analyse financial statements in depth. He now hopes to leverage the experience in an asset management role or indeed any general role within finance. If anyone can assist Jed, please contact the OBA office by email at oba@churchie.com.au or by phoning 07 3896 2203.

James Ohlson (2014)
James has recently graduated from Griffith University with a Bachelor of Business/Bachelor of Public Relations. He is interested in a full time position in the Digital Marketing industry. If you have an internship opportunity for James, then please email the OBA office at oba@churchie.com.au or by phoning 07 3896 2203.

Bailey Shepherd (Year 12)
Bailey is a current Year 12 student who is interested in Digital Social Media Marketing. More specifically, he would like to gain some hands on experience with filming, editing and to collaborate with the filming world. If you have an internship opportunity for Bailey to gain some experience during the school holidays, or perhaps a job ongoing, then please email the OBA office at oba@churchie.com.au

William Macpherson (School Captain 2018)
Will is interested in pursuing a career in the Finance industry and is looking for a work experience opportunity before he commences university. If you are located in Melbourne or Sydney and have an opportunity for Will during the December / January period, please email the OBA office at oba@churchie.com.au

Those who attended the OBA Cocktail Evening at Porsche Centre Brisbane on Friday 12 October were unanimous in agreement that it was a perfect setting and a very enjoyable evening. To round off reunion season, tonight (Friday 26 October), many Old Boys will be gathering at the Royal South Yarra Lawn Tennis Club for the 2018 Melbourne Reunion. If you are in Melbourne and would like to attend, it’s not too late to join us. Please click here to register.

Recently the talent and dedication of students in art, design and technology was on display at the CART (Churchie Art) awards. This year CART was judged by highly acclaimed Australian artist Michael Zavros, who was impressed not only with the technical skills on display but with the sophistication of the boys’ ideas and their ability to clearly articulate themselves both visually and verbally. Congratulations to Craig Waddel (Year 12) on being awarded the Old Boys Association Prize for the piece most reflective of Churchie values.

Please, if you can, make the time to participate in Walk4Brain Cancer (Newro Foundation Walk/Run) on Sunday 28 October. The Churchie community is asked to register under Team Hugo in memory of Old Boy Hugo Shepherd (2013). To register, please click here. If you can’t make the event but would still like to donate to Team Hugo, then please click here. The run will commence at 6.45 am at the 7th Brigade Park, 375 Hamilton Road, Chermside and conclude at 10 am.

After the success of the inaugural Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament last year, Saturday 15 December has been locked in for this year’s event at the school’s David Turbayne Tennis Centre. Meet and have the chance to play with tennis professionals, Old Boys John Millman (2006) and Colin Sinclair (2012). As holders of the John Millman Shield, Old Boys Nick Clarke (1996) and Sean Fyfe (1996) will be keen to defend their doubles title. Please refer to the event post later in this newsletter for more details.

The Rev’d Bryan Gadd, School Chaplain, will be the Preacher at All Saints’ Church, Wickham Terrace at 9.30 am on Sunday 25 November, for the Feast of Christ the King. The Rev’d Canon Dr Richard Martin SSC is an Old Boy of the School (1960 – 1965) the present Rector of All Saints’. Rev’d Canon Thomas Jones, after whom Churchie’s Chapel was dedicated in 1924, was All Saints’ second Rector (1865 – 1877) and was one of Queensland’s Anglo-Catholic pioneer priests.

Job Search
Bailey Shepherd (Year 12)
Bailey is a current Year 12 student who is interested in Digital Social Media Marketing. More specifically, he would like to gain some hands on experience with filming, editing and to collaborate with the filming world. If you have an internship opportunity for Bailey to gain some experience during the school holidays, or perhaps a job ongoing, then please email the OBA office at oba@churchie.com.au

William Macpherson (School Captain 2018)
Will is interested in pursuing a career in the Finance industry and is looking for a work experience opportunity before he commences university. If you are located in Melbourne or Sydney and have an opportunity for Will during the December / January period, please email the OBA office at oba@churchie.com.au

The 2018 OBA Cocktail Evening is fast approaching and will be held at Porsche Centre Brisbane on Friday 12 October. The more informal style for this event is proving to be very popular and it is shaping to be a tremendous evening. If you haven’t already set aside this date, then please click here to do so. For the last of our reunions for 2018, those Old Boys who will be in Melbourne on Friday 26 October, please join us for the annual Melbourne Reunion at the Royal South Yarra Lawn Tennis Club.

Congratulations to the following Old Boys in the 2017 cohort who have achieved Gold level for The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award – Quinn Rashford , Nicholas Richards and Lewis Solomon. The past week has also seen the completion of highly competitive seasons for many GPS sports, in which we witnessed and enjoyed strong performances from our young men. Congratulations must go to Churchie’s Premier Chess Team who secured the 2018 GPS Chess premiership for the second consecutive year – the first time since 2001. Congratulations also to the First V basketball and First XV rugby teams who finished second and third respectively. Term 3 has culminated in the annual inter-house swimming carnival. For those Magnus Old Boys among us you will be pleased to know that Magnus house claimed the honours, followed by Grenfell in second place and Kingsley in third place.

Job Search
Bailey Shepherd (Year 12)
Bailey is a current Year 12 student who is interested in Digital Social Media Marketing. More specifically, he would like to gain some hands on experience with filming, editing and to collaborate with the filming world. If you have an internship opportunity for Bailey to gain some experience during the school holidays, or perhaps a job ongoing, then please email the OBA office at oba@churchie.com.au

Please enjoy this month’s edition and we look forward to seeing you at the 2018 OBA Cocktail Evening.

As we approach the end of the rugby and basketball seasons, so too we approach our annual Old Boys Day. Please lock into your calendars to head to Churchie’s Main Oval on Saturday 8 September to cheer on our 1st XV from 2.15 pm as they take on Nudgee College. This is the last home game of the season and will be followed by the traditional Old Boys BBQ, where the OBA Committee will be all hands on deck to provide their classic free steak burgers for everyone to enjoy. For more details and to view our full Reunions and Events calendar, including the OBA Cocktail Evening on Friday 12 October, please click here. A further reminder also to those Old Boys who will be in Melbourne on Friday 26 October to please join us for the annual Melbourne Reunion at the Royal South Yarra Lawn Tennis Club.

Owing to the tremendous amount of interest and feedback we have received from archival requests in past editions of Viking Spirit, in our new monthly feature called Assisting Archives we will be displaying photographs, mementos and memorabilia and asking for assistance to identify names, places and occasions etc. Even if you can only help with part of the puzzle, please do let us know. More details are provided in Assisting Archives later in the newsletter.

Churchie’s connection with St John’s Cathedral extends way back to 1913 when the school moved there from its original premises at Ardencraig, Toowong and became known as St John’s Cathedral Collegiate School for Boys. It is now estimated that there are more than 1,000 Churchie Old Boys who either sang in the Cathedral or other Churchie choirs (since 1940), with many going on to pursue professional or semi-professional singing activities. If you are one of these Old Boys, then please be sure to read our feature later in the newsletter about the upcoming St John’s Cathedral reunion.

Welcome to the July 2018 edition of Viking Spirit. You will already have noticed its fresh new look, making it easier to read and navigate. Furthermore, the fantastic news for those on the move is that it is fully optimised for mobile phones. Please enjoy our feature articles and of course our acknowledgement of some of the tremendous achievements of our fellow Old Boys. Also, be sure to check out our Reunions and Events calendar for your opportunity to stay connected.

Term 3, now underway, signals the commencement of the GPS competitions for rugby and basketball. So too, we kick start our season of events and reunions. Further details can be found by clicking on the link in the Reunions & Events Calendar later in the newsletter. For those Old Boys who will be in Melbourne on Friday 26 October, please make a note to join us for the annual Melbourne Reunion at the Royal South Yarra Lawn Tennis Club. Our 2018 OBA Cocktail Evening will be proudly hosted by Porsche Centre Brisbane. This more informal style, in lieu of the OBA Annual Dinner, is sure to appeal to Old Boys across all generations. If you haven’t already done so, then please set aside the evening of Friday 12 October and join us for what promises to be a fantastic event. For more details, please click here.

Churchie invites you to commemorate ANZAC Day on The Flat at 8 am, Thursday 25 April. To acknowledge 100 years of Churchie’s Army Cadets, our Reviewing Officer this year is Colonel Robert Brennan CSC. COL Brennan is currently the Commander of Australian Army Cadets – South Queensland.

Please arrive in time to be seated by 7.50 am.
A light Morning Tea is served in Founders Court following the ceremony.

Featured Image: 1958 ANZAC Day

For more details about each event, please click on the relevant link below.

OBA Annual Dinner
Friday 16 August 2019
Click here

Old Boys’ Day
Saturday 17 August 2019
Click here

View the full Events and Reunions Calendar

Ryan Manu (2013) is one of many Old Boys currently serving abroad. Ryan is a Rifleman with the Artillery division and departed Australia on Tuesday 18 June for a 9 month deployment to Taji, Iraq. He will be involved in training the Iraqi soldiers during a hostile time in the Middle East.

We appreciate and honour the commitment of all Old Boys serving abroad and keep them in our prayers for a safe return.

The President of the Churchie Old Boys’ Association, Mr Simon Pattison and the Executive Members invite all Old Boys to attend the 2019 OBA Annual Dinner.

The OBA Committee invites all Old Boys to the traditional annual Old Boys Rugby BBQ which will be held on Saturday 17 August 2019. At the conclusion of the First XV match v Gregory Terrace (which kicks off at 2.15 pm), please join us at the Brenan Pavilion end of the 50 m pool to enjoy your free steak burger.

Prior to the First XV match, which kicks off at 2.15 pm, the Old Boys Committee will again be selling OBA merchandise at a marquee that will be located at the entrance to The Pocket, in front of the Old Boys War Memorial Pavilion. For anyone interested in a tour of the School, we will meet at the flagpole at Churchill Post at 11.30 am. The tour will conclude at 1 pm.

Join Us at the Pineapple Hotel afterwards!
After the BBQ, we will reconvene at the Pineapple Hotel to watch the Wallabies take on the All Blacks in the Bledisloe Cup live from Auckland. Kick-off is at 5.35 pm.

For more details about your cohort reunion, please click on the relevant link below.

60 Year Reunion | 1959 Old Boys
Thursday 28 November 2019
Click here

View the full Events and Reunions Calendar

For more details about your cohort reunion, please click on the relevant link below.

10 Year Reunion | 2009 Old Boys
Saturday 7 September 2019
Click here

40 Year Reunion | 1979 Old Boys
Saturday 7 September 2019
Click here

60 Year Reunion | 1959 Old Boys
Thursday 28 November 2019
Click here

70 Year Reunion | 1949 Old Boys
Friday 30 August 2019
Click here

View the full Events and Reunions Calendar

For more details about your cohort reunion, please click on the relevant link below.

10 Year Reunion | 2009 Old Boys
Saturday 7 September 2019
Click here

30 Year Reunion | 1989 Old Boys
Saturday 27 July 2019
Click here

40 Year Reunion | 1979 Old Boys
Saturday 7 September 2019
Click here

50 Year Reunion | 1969 Old Boys
Saturday 27 July 2019
Click here

60 Year Reunion | 1959 Old Boys
Thursday 28 November 2019
Click here

70 Year Reunion | 1949 Old Boys
Friday 30 August 2019
Click here

View the full Events and Reunions Calendar

For more details about your cohort reunion, please click on the relevant link below.

10 Year Reunion | 2009 Old Boys
Saturday 7 September 2019
Click here

20 Year Reunion | 1999 Old Boys
Saturday 20 July 2019
Click here

30 Year Reunion | 1989 Old Boys
Saturday 27 July 2019
Click here

40 Year Reunion | 1979 Old Boys
Saturday 7 September 2019
Click here

50 Year Reunion | 1969 Old Boys
Saturday 27 July 2019
Click here

60 Year Reunion | 1959 Old Boys
Thursday 28 November 2019
Click here

70 Year Reunion | 1949 Old Boys
Friday 30 August 2019
Click here

View the full Events and Reunions Calendar

For more details about each event, please click on the relevant link below.

2019 Perth Reunion
Thursday 5 December 2019
Venue: Optus Stadium
Click here

View the full Events and Reunions Calendar

For more details about each event, please click on the relevant link below.

2019 Melbourne Reunion
Thursday 24 October 2019
Click here

2019 Perth Reunion
Thursday 5 December 2019
Venue: TBC

View the full Events and Reunions Calendar

For more details about each event, please click on the relevant link below.

2019 Canberra Reunion
Thursday 12 September 2019
Venue: TBC

2019 Melbourne Reunion
Thursday 24 October 2019
Click here

2019 Perth Reunion
Thursday 5 December 2019
Venue: TBC

View the full Events and Reunions Calendar

Ivan Zelich (2015)
Ivan, a University of Queensland Maths scholar, has graduated from his course as Valedictorian for the Faculty of Science.

Alexander Jeremijenko (2016)
Alex has been selected to row for Rowing Australia in the Men’s VIII at the 2019 World Rowing Under 23 Championships being held from 24-28 July in Sarasota/Bradenton Florida.

Liam Wright (2014)
Liam was named in the Qantas Wallabies 34-man squad for their first test match of 2019 against South Africa in Johannesburg on July 20.

John Millman (2006)
John progressed to the third round of The Championships, Wimbledon 2019.

Sam Hurwood (2018)
Sam claimed the Under 20 title for the 110 metre hurdles with a personal best at the Oceania Athletics Association titles, held recently in Townsville.

Zac Stubblety-Cook (2017)
Zac has qualified fourth fastest in the 200m Breaststroke at the World Swimming Championships in Gwangju, South Korea. He will compete in the final on Friday 28 July 2019.

Please click here to view the full Photo Gallery

Above: Aaron Huang (2019) gaining some veterinary work experience with Arthur Woo (1985)

Above: 2019 Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament Participants

Above: 2019 Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament
L-R: Jack Walton (2015), Max Kruger (2020 Tennis Captain), Alex Russell (2018), Max Poewll (2018)

Above: 2019 Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament
L-R: John Millman (2006), Jack Walton (2015), Colin Sinclair (2012), Adam Walton (2016)

Above: Charles Kosecki (2008), pictured back row centre, and his fellow crew members of Ichi Ban enjoying the spoils after being declared the overall and handicap winner of the 2019 Sydney to Hobart yacht race.

Above: 2019 Churchie Scholars
Senior Chaplain Fr Bryan Gadd, Deputy Headmaster (Academic) Mr Richard Wheeldon, Dean of Studies (Years 10 to 12) Ms Marcia Brumpton, Headmaster Dr Alan Campbell, Head of Senior School Mr Rod Olsen, Chairman of School Council Mr Daniel O’Connor OAM, Dean of IB Diploma Programme Ms Catherine Prosser, Deputy Headmaster (Co-curricular and HR) Mr John Frare with equivalent ATAR 98.00 or above recipients who returned for the Academic Celebration Assembly.

Above: QCE Award Winner Lachlan Toovey (2019)
Highest Achievement by an Aboriginal Student or Torres Strait Islander Student

To view photos from the recent events and cohort reunions, please click on the link below.
View the full Photo Gallery

On Saturday, 21st September at Parkvale Gardens near Eumundi, Old Boy Nick Dunsdon (2007) from “Yallambee” Cunnamulla married Jess Weber (2011) from St George who attended Fairholme College in Toowoomba as a boarder.

Old Boy Rohan Dunsdon (2006), Nick’s elder brother, was his best man. Jess’s sister Nicole Weber was Maid of Honour and Nick’s sister Lucinda Dunsdon was one of the Bridesmaids.

To view photos from the recent events and cohort reunions, please click on the relevant links below.

2019 OBA Annual Dinner
Friday 16 August 2019
Click here

1989 – 30 Year Reunion
Saturday 20 July
Click here

1969 – 50 Year Reunion
Saturday 20 July
Click here

View the full Photo Gallery

Rob Needham (1988) and Stuart Waddington (1983)
at the Churchie Rugby Lunch

Grant Menzies (1988) with Jonny McKain (1999)

Tim Nicholls (1982) & Jonathan Brunello (1989)
with Cr David McLaughlin (local council member)
testing Jonathan’s new Amperstand height adjustable desks.

Harry Hockings (2014) and Angus Scott-Young (2014)
First XV jersey presentation v GT – Saturday 17 August 2019

To view photos from the recent events and cohort reunions, please click on the relevant links below.

1999 – 20 Year Reunion
Saturday 20 July
Click here

1956 cohort – Annual Lunch
The Brisbane Golf Club  – Thursday 18 July 2019

View the full Photo Gallery

On Monday 16 December, the third Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament will be held at the David Turbayne Tennis Centre. Meet tennis professionals, Old Boys John Millman (2006) and Colin Sinclair (2012), as well as Churchie’s Director of Tennis, Ian Malpass. This event is open to the whole Churchie community, so current students, parents (past and present), staff (past and present) and Old Boys are all invited to play and compete for the John Millman Shield. It is encouraged that at least one player from each doubles pairing is either a Churchie Old Boy or current Churchie student.

Starting at 6 pm and finishing at 9 pm, this is a fantastic opportunity to play some social tennis and make new connections. The format for the day will be 24 doubles teams competing in a round robin format. There will also be a sausage sizzle for players and spectators. Registration fee per player is $50, so if you’re interested in participating then please click here to register. Alternatively, if you simply wish to come and spectate we look forward to seeing you at what promises to be a great event.

To celebrate the end of another year and the start of the festive season, all Churchie Old Boys are invited to the 2019 OBA Christmas Drinks to be held from 6 pm – 8 pm on Thursday 19 December at Friday’s Riverside. Get a group together and join us for what is always a fantastic evening.

For all ‘Churchie singers’ past and present, a St John’s Cathedral reunion is planned for Sunday 28th April 2019. If you were a St John’s Cathedral chorister, or sang in a Churchie choir (i.e. Prep Choir, School Choir, Dectet, Octet, Viking Voices or perhaps another school choir), then please click here to ensure your name is on our list. If you can’t find your name, then please click here to email the OBA and let us know how you were involved. We are particularly interested in hearing from Old Boys pre-1972  to assist however possible to update some incomplete records, including sending in names of chorister they knew.

Furthermore, please search St John’s Cathedral Choristers’ Alumni on Facebook to join the group and find out more details about the reunion.

Please click on the link below to view a short silent movie showing celebrations in the streets of Brisbane as the end of WWII was announced in 1945. About halfway through the video Churchie boys can be seen getting involved in the festivities. Can anyone identify any of them?

Peace Parade: Brisbane, Australia 1945

AUSTRALIAN AIR FORCE CADETS

No 3 FLIGHT CEGS / No 3 FLIGHT ATC ACGS / 203 SQUADRON

If you can assist by providing any Cadet Under Officer group photographs for the years listed below, our School Archivist Mr Peter Collin would be very appreciative. Any photographs lent to Archives will be scanned, added to the digital collection and returned promptly to the owner. These contributions will enhance the permanent display of photographs in the AAFC office area located  in The Campbell Centre.

– 1942, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949
– 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1957
– 1973
– 1989
– 1995, 1996

In honour of Maryborough artist, Old Boy Lex Frank (1957), the Lex Frank: A Retrospective exhibition celebrates light, landscape, the versatility of watercolour and his extraordinary artistic life. Spanning paintings from Lex’s boyhood, right through to his final works, the exhibition draws from private collections and paintings never exhibited before. The exhibition is on display at Gatakers Artspace Gallery in Maryborough until Sunday 28 April 2019. Opening hours each day are 10 am – 4 pm.

Owing to the success of the sale of all 100 Limited Edition OBA Centenary Watches, the OBA Committee have again commissioned Adina Watches to create this beautiful bespoke timepiece. Whilst it doesn’t carry the OBA centenary logo, it does exhibit all the features and functionalities of the limited edition watch. It is beautifully presented in a timber presentation box boasting a stylish new design. If you would like to purchase one of these premium timepieces, which has been designed and hand finished, then please click here. Purchase price is $500.

A Pictorial History of Churchie celebrates 100 Years of Churchie Old Boys. Past Staff member Mr James Mason OAM was commissioned by the Old Boys’ Association to author this  magnificent publication. With only 100 copies remaining, if you haven’t already purchased your copy will want to act now. Please click here to order online for only $50 (plus $5 if postage is required). When ordering, please indicate your preferred method of collection. You can also see if you feature in this centenary publication, by clicking here to view the Index.

A Pictorial History of Churchie, commissioned by the Old Boys’ Association, celebrates 100 Years of Churchie Old Boys. It is selling fast, so click here to order online and secure your copy now for only $50 (plus $5 if postage is required). When ordering, please indicate your preferred method of collection. To see if you feature in this centenary publication, then please click here to view the Index.

Entries for the churchie national emerging art prize are now open, until the 14 July 2019. All Australian emerging visual artists (over the age of 18), serious about developing their professional arts practice, are encouraged to apply. The overall prize winner will be awarded a $15,000 non-acquisitive cash prize. Old Boy Sam Cranstoun (2004) is the newly appointed Patron of the churchie and the Churchie OBA are proud to continue their long association with the event as a Major Sponsor. The Official Opening + Prize Announcement will be held at the Institute of Modern Art, one of the country’s leading independent art galleries, on Friday 13 September from 6 to 8 pm. Please click here to read more.

In June 2018 we featured an article about Old Boy John Flower (1982) who was born with two medical conditions, spina bifida and hydrocephalus. The invitation is again open to help John and his colleagues at SBH QLD to raise much-needed funds for children and adults with spina bifida and hydrocephalus through the 2019 Wheel & Walk Fun Run & Community Event

Date: Sunday 21 July 2019
Location: Orleigh Park, 6 Hill End Terrace, West End
Times:
8.30am SSKB Wheel & Walk Community Day
10.00am SSKB Wheel & Walk Fun Run

In 2019, Churchie Foundation is again awarding the Old Boys Overseas Study Scholarships. Applications are now invited from Old Boys and current Year 12 students wishing to attend colleges or universities in the UK or USA. The application process will close on Friday 31 May. To find out more information or apply for a scholarship then please click here.

On Friday 26 July, commencing at 11.30 am, the annual Churchie Rugby Luncheon will be held at Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre. Hosted boy Fox Sports’ Greg Clark, this year’s guest speaker is author, writer and rugby commentator Mick Colliss. To secure your seat, please click here – $1950 per table of 10 or $195 per person.

Please join us for this memorable occasion.
Tickets are on sale now, so please click here to purchase.

There also some volunteer roles that need to be filled.
If you are able to assist, then please click here to register.

The churchie national emerging art prize 2019 finalists’ exhibition officially opened on Friday 13 September at the Institute of Modern Art. This year’s judge, Amy Barrett-Lennard (Director of Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts) selected Nadia Hernández as the Winner and recipient of the non-acquisitive $15,000 cash prize donated by BSPN Architecture. The Special Commendation Award valued at $5,000, sponsored by Fardoulys Constructions, was awarded to Ben Soedradjit for his three acrylic paintings. Two artists each received Commendation Prizes valued at $1,000 each, sponsored by Rob and Roz Whiteley, Sarah Poulgrain for her work, A Set of New Skills, and Shireen Taweel for her hand-pierced copper installation, Razing Legacy. The work of all nineteen finalists will be on display at the IMA until 21 December 2019.

Image: Nadia Hernández, Remezcla #2 (Remix #2) 2019, paper cut, 71cm x 90cm, framed. Courtesy of the artist and Blackartprojects.

Exhibition dates for the churchie national emerging art prize for 2019 are 10 September to 21 September 2019. The overall prize winner will be awarded a $15,000 non-acquisitive cash prize. Old Boy Sam Cranstoun (2004) is the newly appointed Patron and the Churchie OBA are proud to continue their long association with the event as a Major Sponsor. The Official Opening + Prize Announcement will be held at the Institute of Modern Art, one of the country’s leading independent art galleries, on Friday 13 September from 6 to 8 pm. Please click here to read more.

The Churchie Shop is currently taking pre-orders for these fantastic new Churchie Water Bottles.

Nalgene water bottles are a durable, leak-proof, wide mouth bottle.

To order your water bottle for $30, please click here to email the Churchie Shop, or call on 07 3896 2256.
Churchie Shop
14-18 Oaklands Parade
Open 8 am to 2 pm on school days

The Churchie Shop currently has some cycling gear which was used for Ride to Conquer Cancer.
They are now selling at reduced prices.

Pants and bib have been reduced from $135 to $100, whilst Jerseys are $85 down from $105.
Be quick to order so you don’t miss out as the range of sizes available is limited.

To place your order please click here to email the Churchie Shop, or call on 07 3896 2256.
Churchie Shop
14-18 Oaklands Parade
Open 8 am to 2 pm on school days

The Churchie Business Network (CBN) is an online platform that provides all Old Boys with the opportunity to reconnect with each other, list businesses, job search (either as an employer or employee) and also register for tutoring and/or mentoring (either as a mentor or mentee). To set up your profile and register your business on the CBN is absolutely free. If you would like to join over 1,600 Old Boys who have already done so, then please click here.

Support those who Support Us!

                                        

                 

    

Job Search
Harriss Chartered Accountants & Business Advisors (owned and operated by a Churchie family) are looking for either a graduating student or Old Boy who would be interested in a position with their firm. The candidate must be able to research and problem solve, gather background client information and apply both technical and commercial skills.

• Business Services and Taxation background
• Experience with XERO, MYOB etc
• Strong accounting skills
• Technical taxation
• Willingness to have face to face access with clients and build direct relationships with them.
• Manage your own portfolio of clients day to day

If you are interested in this exciting opportunity, please contact the OBA office by email at oba@churchie.com.au or by phoning 07 3896 2203.

The Churchie Business Network (CBN) is our online platform that provides all Old Boys with the opportunity to reconnect with each other, list businesses, job search (either as an employer or employee) and also register for tutoring and/or mentoring (either as a mentor or mentee). To set up your profile and register your business on the CBN is absolutely free. If you would like to join over 1,600 Old Boys who have already done so, then please click here.

For ease of reference and access, here are some links that will take you directly to frequently viewed pages on the Old Boys website.

Vale

Lost Old Boys

Reunions & Events

Churchie Business Network

2020 GPS Schools Sports Calendars

For ease of reference and access, here are some links that will take you directly to frequently viewed pages on the Old Boys website.

Vale

Lost Old Boys

Reunions & Events

Churchie Business Network

2019 GPS Schools Sporting Calendars

David Abrey (1998)
David has completed his Run Tassie For A Cure campaign by running 372 kilometres in 6 days, from Southport in the south of Tasmania to Devonport in the north. In doing so he has also raised $11,000, well and truly exceeding his target of $10,00 for the Charlie Teo Foundation. Please click here to view Dave’s appearance on Channel 7 earlier in the journey.

Clint Steindl (2006)
Clint was a member of the Perth Wildcats team who recently won the 2019 NBL Championship.

Nathan Aspinall (2007)
Nathan Aspinall led a sold out concert performance as conductor of the Queensland Symphony Orchestra on 10 March at QPAC. Nathan had his mind set on becoming a conductor when at school and it is wonderful to see that he has achieved this goal.

Old Boys Recognised in 2019 Australia Day Honours
Congratulations to Old Boys Mr Rex Wild AO (1964), Mr Richard Gower AM (1957), Dr Ian Airey OAM (1965), Mr Grant Cassidy OAM (1984), Dr Frank Grigg OAM (1958) and Mr Bruce Shearer OAM (1959). Please click on the following link to read more about their outstanding achievements. https://churchieoldboys.com.au/…/Australia-Day-Honours-2019

Colin Sinclair (2012)
Congratulations to Colin on winning his first pro circuit tennis tournament recently in Claremont, California. Colin defeated Frenchman Lucas Poullain 6-3 7-6 in the final. His  ITF (International Tennis Federation) ranking is currently sitting at 75 in the world and 483 for the ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) tour.

All Old Boys are invited to the inaugural Churchie Volleyball Old Boys’ Day on Saturday 9 March at the Sir John Pidgeon Sports Complex. This is a top of the table clash against strong rivals Brisbane Boys College. On the day there will be a free hamburger for each Old Boy who shows their Old Boys key ring. These, along with other items of OBA merchandise, will be available for purchase on the day. The First VI game commences at 1:30pm, which is preceded by a drum line performance from 1 pm.

Be sure to get along and support the boys as they strive to secure Churchie’s fourth straight GPS Volleyball premiership.

The Churchie Community Footy Tipping Competition for 2019 kicked off last week with the commencement of the Super Rugby season and yet again is attracting strong interest and participation. If you haven’t yet registered – it’s not too late! This year The Brisbane Golf Club have again come to the fore and are again providing the major prize. This prize, for the tipper finishing with the highest over all score across the Super Rugby, NRL and AFL competitions, is a round of golf for four players (including two motorised buggies) at this private golf course located at Yeerongpilly. Thank you to Old Boy Patrick Dixon (1972) for donating this wonderful prize for the fourth year in succession. Prize money will again be provided by Churchie for each of the three tournaments and has been allocated as follows: $100 for 1st, $50 for 2nd and $25 for 3rd.

You can register for each competition by using the links below, or by downloading the Superbru app then searching for the pool and using the code listed in each instance.

Super Rugby code: beatbump
NRL code: loselock
AFL code: vinooath

To view photos from the recent events and cohort reunions, please click on the relevant links below.

2018 Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament
Saturday 15 December
Click here

Graham Boardman (1959) & Lex Boardman (1956)
Friday 25 January 2019

Book presentation to the Prep School, The Great Billy Cart Grand Prix, authored by Old Boy Michael Johnston (1996)
L-R: Mr Michael Dunn (Prep School Headmaster), Belinda Booth (Prep School Librarian), David Miles (Old Boys Manager)

View the full Photo Gallery

To celebrate the end of another year and the start of the festive season, all Churchie Old Boys are invited to the 2018 OBA Christmas Drinks to be held from 6 pm – 8 pm on Thursday 13 December at Friday’s Riverside. Get a group together and join us for what is always a fantastic evening.

On Saturday 15 December, the second Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament will be held at the David Turbayne Tennis Centre. Meet and have the chance to play with tennis professionals, Old Boys John Millman (2006) and Colin Sinclair (2012), as well as Churchie’s Director of Tennis, Ian Malpass. This event is open to the whole Churchie community, so current students, parents (past and present), staff (past and present) and Old Boys are all invited to play and compete for the John Millman Shield. It is encouraged that at least one player from each doubles pairing is either a Churchie Old Boy or current Churchie student.

Starting at 2 pm and finishing at 5 pm, this is a fantastic opportunity to play some social tennis and make new connections. The format for the day will be 24 doubles teams competing in a round robin format. Numerous raffles will be held throughout the afternoon. There will also be a sausage sizzle for players and spectators. Registration fee per player is $50, so if you’re interested in participating then please click here to register. Alternatively, if you simply wish to come and spectate we look forward to seeing you at what promises to be a great event.

This year we welcome Your Tennis Mate (YTM) as our event sponsor. This exciting new online platform is an initiative of Old Boy Federico Keil (2012) and his business partner Charl Van Den Berg. YTM allows tennis players of any standard to view court locations and availability anywhere in Australia based on ‘real-time’ and easily book a court or service offering.

To view photos from the recent events and cohort reunions, please click on the relevant links below.

Annual Lunch – 1958 cohort
Thursday 29 November
Click here

New Old Boys Night – 2017 Seniors
Thursday 29 November
Click here

View the full Photo Gallery

Working as an acquisition manager for a residential property developer a few years ago, Old Boy Lachlan Spedding (2011) found himself investigating the constraint mapping on different parcels of land, which in some instances included dozens of maps. Looking at properties in different local government areas he was amazed that all systems and maps were different. He quickly discovered that much of the process of navigating these systems and finding development opportunities was inefficient and slow. The complexity of existing tools and legislation meant town planning consultants and property researchers were wasting huge amounts of time on processes and systems that could be simpler, faster, and more consistent across local government areas.

After engaging a team of experts to develop a bespoke web-based application that could handle the huge volumes of complex data, Orbmaps was born. Twelve months later, it is rapidly becoming the go-to platform for Instant Research Reporting and in so doing saves councils, property developers and town planners hundreds of hours and resources. Key features include a simplified property scanning platform, constraint risk heat mapping, instant property reports, regularly updated satellite imagery and a property management system. As a unified set of tools, up to date local and state government mapping, town planning and property information is combined into one easy search.

Recently Orbmaps were runners-up finalists in the Australian Property Institute (API) Innovation in Property awards. Lachlan says: “Innovation doesn’t require millions of dollars, only hard work!”

It’s time for the annual billy cart grand prix and everyone is excited – even the parents! Davey is determined to win, but when his choices start hurting his friends, what will he do? Is winning more important than friendship?

Old Boy Michael Johnston (1996) is still a kid at heart. Now Director of Corporate Finance at Morgans in Sydney, Michael has drawn inspiration from his days as a Prep School student here at Churchie to write and publish a children’s book. The book is loosely based on the annual Churchie Prep Billy Cart Grand Prix which was first held in 1986 and Michael has fond memories of competing in 1990 and 1991.

At the heart of the story are his two school mates, David Gillespie (1996) and Tom Anning (1996). Michael, Tom and David are still close mates today. The adventures of Michael’s childhood evolved one evening into a bedtime story, which was shared with Tom’s kids, Ellie and Fred. The other children in the book are based on Michael’s nieces and nephews.

​When he is not working in finance or writing kids books, Michael enjoys cooking, travelling, spending time with his friends and family and is currently studying his MBA at the University of New South Wales. David now lives in Melbourne and is the Chief Financial Officer at Jemena, whilst Tom is based in Sydney and is the Managing Director of Intermediate Capital, a London Headquartered private debt, credit and equity firm.

The Great Billy Kart Grand Prix will be released later this month. Please click here for further details.

As a member of the Royal Queensland Aero Club, Old Boy Peter Boughen (1980) recently took part in their 2018 Battle of Britain Dawn Patrol to commemorate the Battle of the Coral Sea. This year saw the highest number of participating aircraft for over three years, with Peter competing in his Cessna 310 VH-JQK. Pilots, navigators and passengers all gathered for a rendition of Winston Churchill and a brief history of the battle that occurred in the skies over Britain.

Whilst starting his Cessna, Peter noticed the western end of the runway rapidly disappearing in a sea of fog and before long the windsock had also disappeared. The intrepid pilots and their crew were left with no option but to shut down and wait 30 minutes for the fog to clear.

After a flight briefing, the crews scrambled to take their positions and the aircraft departed in turn heading to the south east to Surfers Paradise before heading north along the coast to Point Lookout and then up the eastern shoreline of Moreton Island. For the observant among them, there were many dolphins, sharks, stingrays and the occasional whale to be seen. Whilst some pilots took in the scenery at a higher altitude, others took the opportunity to wake campers and disturb fishermen along the beaches. It was then time to climb to the obligatory 3500’ for the crossing of Moreton Bay from Moreton Island to Bribie Island before descending – tracking to Caboolture airport, through the Samford Valley when the predicted westerlies started to make their presence felt, passing the television towers on Mt Coot-tha and then back to Archerfield.

As all the aircraft were participating in a time trial to decide the winner of the perpetual trophy there were some very interesting manoeuvres carried out as aircraft returned to Archerfield to ensure they came close to their planned flight time. Peter was declared overall winner, landing his Cessna in a time of 1h 10m 02s, only two seconds later than his planned time.

If you have any photographs that you would like to share with us, then please contact our School Archivist, Mr Peter Collin on 07 3896 2137, or click here to email the OBA. You don’t need to part ways with these treasured memories. Should you wish to keep your photographs, they can be digitally scanned and returned to you.

Donaldson House Boarders
Thank you to those who contacted us last month to help identify the Donaldson House Boarders in the photograph below. Their name are now listed below.

Back Row standing (L-R): Jeffrey Gurney (1982), Bradley Wright (1982), Anthony Farrell (1982), William Beresford (1982), Kristopher Davies (1982), James Baldwin (1982), Robert George (1982)

Front Row sitting (L-R): Michael Paul (1980), Richard Graham (1982), Robert Nott (1983), Patrick Hanly (1982), Alexander Richards (1980)

On the LinkedIn platform, schools are now acknowledged as education entities. This means you can now officially add Anglican Church Grammar School as an education item in your LinkedIn profile and in doing so have the school crest feature alongside. It will also help you more easily find and connect with fellow Churchie Old Boys. For instructions on how to update your Education accordingly, please click here or on the image below. While you’re at it, to connect with the OBA profile and/or join the OBA group, please click here or on the above image.

With significant experience in theatre, ballet and opera production, major events and architectural lighting, Old Boy Jono Perry (1994) joined the team at the acclaimed Sydney Theatre Company (STC) in 2015. As Director, Technical and Production, Jono is excited to be the Project Director of a renewal project that will transform Sydney’s iconic early 20th-century pier at Walsh Bay. This incredible 8500m2 piece of Sydney’s Heritage, which originally opened for shipping in 1921, is home to the Sydney Theatre Company and after an initial STC fit-out in 1984, it is about to undergo its first major facility upgrade in 30 years.

According to Jono, respecting the heritage of “The Wharf” (as it is affectionately known) and staying within the confines of a timber building has been a real challenge but he is confident that they have respected and added to the building’s character, whilst ensuring that the wharf still looks and feels like a wharf. It’s also an incredible opportunity to enhance the visitor experience, not just within the theatres. With an Artistic Panel of leading Designers, Directors, Lighting and Sound Designers, who have drawn upon international experience and inspirations, Jono and his team are very excited about the design of the theatres for artists and audiences alike.

Jono’s previous experience includes eight years with Opera Australia’s lighting department before taking up the role of Technical Director at the Brisbane Festival, where he was the Producer of the city’s largest and most iconic free public event, ‘Riverfire’ and Creative Director of the G20 Cultural Celebrations comprising ‘Colour Me Brisbane’.

On Friday 16 November, along with seven fellow QUT optometry students, Old Boy Leo Liu (2014) will be travelling to Ciudad Guzmán, Mexico. The two-week trip is held by the Volunteer Optometric Services to Humanity/International (VOSH) who have designated the mission to combat blindness and to provide high quality optometric services to all developing nations. The placement, which entails approximately 80 hours of clinical work, will help with screening and the examination of the Mexican locals. Leo and his colleagues will experience real world practice in eyecare and embrace the opportunity to apply techniques developed over their four years of study. Furthermore, they will share ideas and best practice with doctors, optometrists and optometry students from the United States and Canada.

Ciudad Guzmán is a small city of approximately of 100,000 people. Its demand for healthcare and eyecare is not unlike the rural and remote regions of Australia. However, under Mexico’s limited healthcare systems, there is a prevalence of sight threatening diseases (such as diabetic retinopathies, glaucoma, macular degeneration, sun related damage) that go undetected. Thankfully, with early detection and proper management, the blindness and vision loss incurred by these conditions are readily preventable with early detection and proper management.

Leo and his colleagues have set their sights on two primary goals: to create awareness of this situation in rural communities of Ciudad Guzmán and to provide assistance to screen, detect and combat the eye conditions in those with the greatest needs. Although they acknowledge that their contributions may be small in the grand vision of things, through their advice, management, measures of prevention, supply of therapeutics and aids (including spectacles for vision correction, sunglasses for sun protection and eye drops for symptomatic patients) they are taking important steps to build momentum for future like-minded endeavours.

Feel free to help Leo and his colleagues create awareness by sharing their mission with any interested family or friends! You can also support them with a financial contribution by clicking on the following link:
https://www.gofundme.com/volunteering-in-mexico-vosh

Old Boy, Dr Robert ‘Bob’ Molesworth Goodwin OAM (1937) was born on Friday 25 February 1921. On this same day, Georgia again lost its newly gained independence after an invasion by Russia’s Red Army, whilst at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Australia defeated England by nine wickets in the fifth match of the 1920-1921 Ashes Test Series to win the series 5-0.

Bob was an insurance clerk in Brisbane before he enlisted in July 1940. Following his training in Brisbane, he served in Malaya and Singapore. Bob was taken prisoner when the garrison surrendered on Sunday 15 February 1942, in what is now referred to as the Fall of Singapore. At the time of his capture Bob was a young Lieutenant and Regimental Survey officer for the 2/10th Field Regiment. In Thailand, he worked on the Burma-Thailand Railway, including at Hellfire Pass. In December 1943, when work on the railway was finished, he was sent back to Singapore and spent the remainder of the war in Changi. He was liberated in September 1945 and discharged in December 1945.

Following the war, Bob completed grade 12 (senior) in 1946, later graduating as a Doctor from the University of Queensland in 1952. He practiced as a GP in Brisbane from 1952 to 1959 and then in Warwick until 1970, before returning to Brisbane as Specialist Physician (Cardiologist). He was Medical Director of the Queensland National Heart Foundation for 25 years and in 1993 was awarded an OAM for his services to medicine.

In 2013, at the age of 92, Bob joined three Australian Second World War veterans on a return journey to Thailand for Anzac Day. The visit coincided with the 70th anniversary of work starting on Hellfire Pass, a notorious part of the Burma-Thailand railway. As prisoners of war, enduring sickness and starvation under appalling conditions, they cut a railway pass through the Tenasserim Hills by pick, shovel and dynamite.

The Anzac Day march in Brisbane is an occasion Bob rarely missed. In 1996, he was proud to be invited to Churchie as the Reviewing Officer for the school’s annual commemoration service.

Bob and his wife Marie, who married in 1947, had three sons (George, Chris and Jim) and one daughter (Lois). George attended Churchie in 1968. Bob and Marie retired to Highfields in 2004.

Bob passed away on Friday 31 August 2018 and will be dearly missed.

Featured Image: Bob being interviewed by Churchie students in May 2015.
L-R:- Sam Goldberg, Alex Rowe, Mac Trimmer, Jamie Richardson, Archie Allen

Pictured Above Left: Bob as a young bombardier during his training at Redbank Camp circa 1940. He is pictured (left) with his good friend and future brother in law Jack Boyd. Jack sadly died at the very young age of 37, so Bob was like a second father to Jack’s three sons who all attended Churchie – John (1966), Don (1967) and Geoffrey (1968). George, one of Bob’s three sons and another four nephews who also attended Churchie are David Brand (1967), John Brand (1970), Graham Brand (1971) and Ross Brand (1971).

Pictured Above Right: Bob (superimposed) in front of “Hellfire Pass” where he and many other POW’s were forced to work on the infamous Burma / Thai railway during his 3½ years of captivity during World War II.

Pictured below at Bobs funeral (L-R): Chris Goodwin, Jim Goodwin, John Boyd, Graham Brand, Ross Brand, Lois Speed, Don Boyd, George Goodwin and John Brand

Kalyn Ponga (2015) polled second in the 2018 Dally M Awards in recognition of his outstanding season for the Newcastle Knights in the NRL.

Brodie Croft (2015) made his NRL Grand Final debut playing for the Melbourne Storm.

Jeremy Markey (2017) has been awarded QRRA Junior Referee of 2018.

Steve Pilcher (1980) and Paul Worroll (1985) qualified to compete in the 2018 Ironman World Championship which was held on Saturday 13 October at Kona, Hawai’i.

Quade Cooper (2006) has been named the National Rugby Championship Player of the Year for 2018

John Millman (2006) defeated Roger Federer to reach the quarter finals of the 2018 US Open and is now ranked #37 on the ATP World Tour.

Kalyn Ponga (2015) was voted RLPA Players Champion and is the youngest player in history to be bestowed this honour.

Ian McIntosh (1974) was recently presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Institute for Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage in a ceremony at the University of Santiago de Compostela in Spain.

Often described as the ‘Donald Bradman’ of speechwriters, Old Boy Graham Freudenberg (1951) wrote over a thousand speeches for several leaders of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). During a career that spanned almost 50 years, the most notable leaders for whom Graham wrote were Gough Whitlam and Bob Hawke, which encompassed their prime ministerships. Graham’s influence has always extended beyond speechwriting and his powers of expression not only inspire but have played an essential part in the formation of policies that have redefined Australia. One of his finest speeches is Arthur Calwell’s response to the announcement by Robert Menzies that Australia would send combat troops to Vietnam in 1965. It also remains the one of which he is most proud.

For the past few years, Graham has also generously given of his time to visit Churchie to speak to Year 12 Modern History students. His insights and personal experiences from one of the most tumultuous periods of Australian politics, the constitutional crisis and dismissal of the Whitlam government by Governor-General John Kerr, are an invaluable contribution to their studies.

The Scribe is a compelling new documentary by Ruth Cullen (herself an accomplished writer, director and producer) that in part explores Graham’s professional life as a journalist, press secretary, speech writer and author. It also explores the craft of political speech writing and examines the changing language of the political landscape, from the introduction of TV until today.

Please click here to read more about The Scribe, which premiered at the Canberra Writers Festival on 26 August 2018 and will screen at the Antenna Documentary Festival in Sydney from 9-14 October 2018.

On Tuesday evening 31 July it was indeed a pleasure to welcome Old Boy Adam Walton (2016) back to Churchie. Fresh from a training session earlier in the day with fellow Old Boy and now 2018 US Open quarter finalist John Millman (2006), Adam joined the boarders for dinner in School House Dining room before meeting with the boys from Goodwin House. A former Goodwin boarder himself, Adam is on a four year tennis scholarship at the University of Tennessee.

Since the age of five, tennis has always been a big part of Adam’s life. So, to hear that he is now studying Kinesiology really comes as no surprise. Adam’s discipline, focus and strict daily regime really proves that persistence pays. To get noticed, whilst still at school Adam played a lot of international tennis matches across the world. He chose to pursue the scholarship offer from the University of Tennessee on his coach’s recommendation and because he rates their facilities as second to none. Balancing study and a hectic training schedule is challenging, especially when the playing schedule (including nights and weekends) involves travelling across the whole of the United States.

Adam’s key messages that really resonated with the boys were to use their time wisely and to keep pushing through, particularly when the going gets tough. He then impressed on them that their school years will be some of their toughest years, but to always keep in mind that hard work does reap rewards. Furthermore, Adam acknowledged that his time at Churchie was a major influence on his ability to effectively and efficiently manage his time.

In the collegiate system, Adam is currently ranked at 90 and he has made it his aim to make the top 30. He rates meeting Andre Agassi as one of the highlights of his tennis career so far. Adam says that when he reaches the age of 22 it will be his turn to have a shot at making it onto the pro tour.

Pictured Below: Goodwin House Resident Master, Mr Ron Stanley with Adam Walton.

In the May 2018 edition of Viking Spirit, we took a brief look at the exciting new business of Old Boys Anthony Angeli (2011) and Michael Angeli (2014). The concept of Avgeli centres around watches that can instantly be restyled, allowing you to re-create a whole new look and feel, with the simple switch of a band.

It was family history that sparked the idea. In the early 1940s during a time of war and conflict, their grandfather Antony and his family fled their home in Greece on a small fishing boat into the great Mediterranean Sea. With no direction or destination in sight, he distracted himself from the unknown by weaving fishing line into different patterns. To share the significance of their grandfather’s inspiration and to pay homage to his journey to freedom, Anthony and Michael set about creating a range of simplistic, elegant and clean watches for both men and women. Every watch case is engraved with a man on a fishing boat and the double-weave perlon bands reference Antony’s woven fishing line, whilst also serving as a constant reminder of the preciousness of time.

Stay up to date with the launch of their E- store at www.avgeli.com

To check out their Avgeli Kickstarter Film please click here.

To Like Avgeli on Facebook, please click here.

The President of the Churchie Old Boys’ Association, Dr Daniel Pitt and the Executive members invite all Old Boys to attend the 2018 OBA Cocktail Evening to be held in the stylish Porsche Centre Brisbane showroom at Newstead.

Date: Friday 12 October 2018
Time: 6.30 pm – 9.30 pm
Venue: Porsche Centre Brisbane
Dress: Cocktail

Tickets:
Please click here to purchase your tickets online.

OBA members: $75
OBA non-members: $80

RSVP:
no later than Sunday 30 September 2018

Beverage Suppliers:
Green Beacon Brewing Co.
Marc Chrismas (1994) & Adrian Slaughter (1994)

Hayes Family Wines
Brett Hayes (1988)

Post Event Venue:
Green Beacon Brewing Co.
26 Helen St, Teneriffe, Queensland 4005

View the full Reunions and Events Calendar

The Headmaster Dr Alan Campbell and the President of the Churchie Old Boys’ Association Dr Daniel Pitt invite you and your partner to the Churchie Old Boys’ 2018 Melbourne Reunion.

Date: Friday 26 October 2018

Time: 6.30 pm to 8.30 pm

Venue: Royal South Yarra Lawn Tennis Club

Dress: Lounge Suit

RSVP: Friday 19 October 2018

Tickets:
Please click here to purchase your tickets online.

OBA members: $75
OBA non-members: $80

View the full Reunions and Events Calendar

For more details about your cohort reunion, please click on the relevant link below.

1968 – 50 Year Reunion
Saturday 20 October 2018
Click here

1949 – 70 Year Reunion
Friday 30 August 2019
Click here

View the full Reunions and Events Calendar

To view photos from the recent events and cohort reunions, please click on the relevant links below.

OBA Cocktail Evening
Saturday 8 September
Click here

1968 – 50 Year Reunion
Saturday 20 October
Click here

View the full Photo Gallery

To view photos from the recent cohort reunions, plus Old Boys Day, please click on the relevant links below.

2008 – 10 Year Reunion
Saturday 25 August
Click here

1998 – 20 Year Reunion
Saturday 8 September
Click here

Old Boys Day
Saturday 8 September
Click here

1958 – 60 Year Reunion
Thursday 13 September
Click here

View the full Photo Gallery

Please have a look at this image and if you can assist by identifying Who, When or Where, then please contact our School Archivist, Mr Peter Collin on 07 3896 2137, or click here to email the OBA. Please reference the image/s when replying.

Donaldson House Boarders

Please have a look at the images below and if you can assist by identifying Who, When or Where, then please contact our School Archivist, Mr Peter Collin on 07 3896 2137, or click here to email the OBA. Please reference the image/s when replying.

1966 – Under 16 C – end of season dinner

The 2019 Churchie Cricket Test Luncheon will be held at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre on Wednesday 20 November 2019 from 11.30 am.  The event features guest speaker Wayne Phillips, a panel discussion by ‘The Sultans of Swing’ Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, and the MC is Ian Healy. View the event invitation for further details and to book a seat/table.

On Wednesday 21 November, commencing at 11.30 am, the annual Churchie Cricket Luncheon will be held at Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre. Guest Speaker Kerry O’Keeffe will be sure to entertain. Please click here or on the above image to secure your seat – $1950 per table of 10 or $195 per person.

On the evening of Friday 8 September, the annual churchie national emerging art prize (‘the churchie’) Official Opening and Prize Announcement was once again held at the QUT Art Museum. The evening was an outstanding success with over 400 people passing through the exhibition. The overall winner is Caroline Gasteen, a Brisbane-based artist, for her series of three small oil paintings. An exhibition of the finalists’ work can be seen at QUT Art Museum in Brisbane until Sunday 4 November.

Offers are made two years prior to the student’s commencement date in Reception (Prep) to Year 6 and three years prior to the commencement date in Years 7 to 12. Please be advised that intake years are Reception (prep), Year 3, Year 5, Year 7 and Year 10. For more details, please click here or to start your enrolment application, please click here. If you have any questions about enrolments at Churchie, please call Churchie Admissions on 07 3896 2158 or email admissions@churchie.com.au.

For Old Boy Jonathan Hamwood (1965), it seems that ‘striving to the best he can be’ has always been his motivation and meticulous planning his key to success. As a boarder in Gerald House he represented Churchie in Rugby (1^st XV – 1965), Swimming, Drama and Track & Field.

He subsequently forged a successful career in the Royal Australian Air Force and retired in 2008 as a Group Captain. Career highlights included being appointed a Member (AM) of the Order of Australia in 1990, attending the USAF Air War College and serving as Defence Attache in the Australian Embassy in Germany. Since school, Jonathan has enjoyed success in the sporting arena, particularly in recent months.

After 33 years of triathlon racing around the world, the last decade for Jonathan involved mainly ironman and half ironman races, culminating with the world championship 70.3 race held locally here in Australia. With a left knee problem that finally forced him to stop running, he turned his focus to Aquabike (i.e. swim and bike) and competitively speaking, decided that this type of racing was to be his future.  So last year, in order to gain some experience and check out the level of competition, he competed in the inaugural Aquabike world championships in Canada. He discovered that it attracted some really fast swim/bikers in the mature age groups who, like him, could no longer run but have very good engines. He knew then that his best shot at a world title was going to be in July 2018 at the world International Triathlon Union age group championships in Denmark, when he moved up to the 70-74 age group.

Having built his own race bikes for years, Jonathan spared no expense in preparing what was going to be the ideal bike – lightweight, aerodynamic and comfortable. In the weeks prior to the event, when the organisers released the names of competitors, Jonathan researched his rivals and identified Great Britain’s Michael Smallwood as the man to beat.

On race day his preparation went as planned and he was as relaxed and well-prepared as he was ever going to be. Despite having his goggles bumped from his head at the start of the swim Jonathan completed the 3km swim leg in 54min 54 sec. Out on the bike leg he saw Smallwood race past him like a rocket at about the 5km mark and knew he had to give it his all to reel him back in. His moment finally came in the last 25 kilometres when Smallwood opted for a banana at an aid station. Knowing that they are difficult to peel and consume whilst racing, coupled with his own ‘go hard or go home’ attitude, Jonathan seized on the opportunity and delivered an outstanding 3hr 30min 50sec bike leg over the 121km road course to win by two minutes from Smallwood.  In doing so he secured himself an age group world championship and describes it as his best and most challenging race ever. “I think I will retire from competition now – how could I top that?”

They shake the business world by day and rock the stage by night. Resembling a reunion of businessmen and musicians, Jurassic Jam is a fabulous line-up of local bands moonlighting with music from the 80s and early 90s. Performing at The Triffid, in a converted WW2 hangar that merges industrial style with state of the art technology, this annual event helps to create a lifetime of opportunities for children with autism by raising money for AEIOU Foundation. Now in its fourth year, Jurassic Jam has become a highlight on the calendar for AEIOU who provide life-changing early intervention and deliver high-quality therapy and care for children with autism.

Property Developer and Churchie Old Boy John Wilson (1982) is a proud creator of Jurassic Jam. Among this year’s line-up of eight local bands are Roger the Cabin Boy, The Hanovers and The Manilows, each of which comprise of fellow Old Boys and all of whom have been playing in various line-ups and crossing paths musically since leaving school. With John in Roger the Cabin Boy is Nick Chancellor (1981), who is a Director of Chancellors Chartered Accountants. CEO of Clean Energy Finance, Ian Learmonth (1981) is in The Hanovers with Chris Battersby (1978) who is the Design Manager at Hutchinson Builders. Robert Mactaggart (1979), a Director at The Airport Group, is in The Manilows.

Nick says: “Jurassic Jam format is a chance for us all to get together with many of our mutual friends and contacts and play to them at a what is a fantastic band venue. The set lists include predominantly covers. These are from a variety of eras with the tendency toward songs we grew up with, that are slightly off mainstream. There are differing styles on offer, from Mardi Wilson’s beer garden acoustic set, to very popular local originals band Shag Rock who are our kids’ generation. In fact, one of the Shag Rock boys is the son of Old Boy Alex Cavdarski (1981).”

Jurassic Jam IV is shaping to be their biggest yet and will be held on Saturday 1 September at The Triffid, 9 Stratton Street, Newstead. The event commences at 2 pm and concludes at 11 pm. Please click here to book now and show your support.

Featured Image: Roger the Cabin Boy

It is always heartening to receive feedback from our feature articles, particularly when it relates to what Old Boys are achieving in life and more particularly when it relates to Community Service, one of Churchie’s four tenets. Through such feedback, the following achievements have captured our attention. So please enjoy reading of a few endurance challenges that some of our Old Boys have recently undertaken, which admirably have also entailed fundraising for worthy charities. The fundraising pages for all teams are still open. Simply click on the team names if you wish to contribute.

Noah Prowse (2015)
Noah recently took part in the Champions Challenge with a group of colleagues. His team, known as Matrix, trekked 42km in just over 10 and a half hours. In doing so they raised over $65,000 in support of AEIOU foundation who are doing wonderful things in helping kids with autism. The day started at 4 am with a briefing and being transported to the start point. During the walk each team of four had to carry a 9 metre long rope weighing 7 kilograms. For 15 kilometres during the hike, they also had to carry an 8 kilogram sand bag. Whilst everyone finished a little bit worse for wear with sore muscles and joints, Noah and his team found completing the challenge extremely rewarding.

Ben Foessel (2007)
Ben recently competed in the Oxfam Trailwalker challenge in Brisbane and only three weeks later competed in the Kokoda 96km Challenge. Ben’s team She Made Me Do It completed the Oxfam 100 kilometre course in 23 hours 42 minutes. His team Steak and Chips endured the Kokoda Challenge, coming in with a time of 23 hours 20 minutes. In doing so, they raised $1,680 for Oxfam and $1,589 for the Kokoda Youth Foundation.

Nicholas Filer (2007)

Nicholas featured in the July newsletter, ahead of the Oxfam Trailwalker challenge in Brisbane. He and his team, known as Charlie’s Angels, completed the trek in 33 hours 23 minutes and raised $2,863 in the process. Having trekked through forests and creeks and traversing many mountains, they can now rest their feet with pride.

Nicholas Abussi (2007)

Nick also competed in both the Oxfam Trailwalker and Kokoda Challenge. His Oxfam team, The Boulderer and Bandaid Brigade, completed the 100 kilometre trek in 33 hours 9 minutes and raised $1,625.  For the Kokoda Challenge, Nick’s team known as Not Fast But Furious completed the course and raised $2,193.

21 Club

In conclusion, all the very best to the 21 Club who we featured recently in our July edition of Viking Spirit. 21 mates, all 21 years old, training to run 21.1 km in an effort to raise $21,000. Having exceeded their fundraising target ($22,500 at last count), it is now time for them to put their feet on the street and complete a half marathon. This Sunday 5 August, at the 2018 Brisbane Marathon Festival, they will be doing just that.

Featured Images: Above Left (pictured left): Noah Prowse; Centre and Above Right: Ben Foessel

David Crombie (1961) has been awarded the Colleges’ UQ Alumni Award at the 2018 UQ Alumni Awards

Jonathan Hamwood (1965) secured a world title in the Aquabike world championships 70-74 category

Zac Stubblety-Cook (2017) placed second at the 2018 Pan Pac Swimming Championships in Tokyo. Zac swam a personal best time of 2:07:89 to finish second, only 0.14 seconds behind Japan’s Ittei Wattanabe.

The OBA Committee invites all Old Boys to the traditional annual Old Boys Rugby BBQ which will be held on Saturday 8 September 2018. At the conclusion of the First XV match v Nudgee College (which kicks off at 2.15 pm), please join us at the Brenan Pavilion end of the 50 m pool to enjoy your free steak burger.

Please have a look at the images below and if you can assist by identifying Who, When or Where, then please contact our School Archivist, Mr Peter Collin on 07 3896 2137, or click here to email the OBA. Please reference the image/s when replying.

IMAGE 1 – 1933

IMAGE 2 – CEGS U10B 1978

IMAGE 3 – CEGS U10C 1979

John Flower (1982) was inducted into the SBH QLD (Spina Bifida Hydrocephalus Queensland) Hall of Fame award at their recent Associations Forum Dinner. John is a very worthy recipient of this recognition for his tireless and selfless contribution to SBH QLD for 30 years.

Zac Stubblety-Cook (2017) has been selected to represent Australia at the Pan Pacs in August. To make the qualifying time, he shaved close to two seconds off his personal best in the men’s 200m breaststroke at the recent Pan Pac trials in Adelaide.

Formed in the Brisbane suburb of Oxley in 1974, The Saints are considered to be pioneers of the punk music genre and are widely acknowledged as one of the most influential bands of all time. Their first single, (I’m) Stranded, was released in September 1976. Old Boy and bassist Kym Bradshaw (1971) is one of those band members which also comprised of guitarist and songwriter Ed Kuepper, singer-songwriter Chris Bailey and drummer Ivor Hay.

To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the release of (I’m) Stranded and the original line-up of the The Saints, a giant mural (pictured above) was unveiled at Upper Roma Street in Brisbane on Wednesday 6 December 2017. Funded by Arts Queensland, it is part of a cultural heritage trail and Brisbane’s growing street art scene. Poignantly, it is located just around the corner from 4 Petrie Terrace which was a combined practice space and home for some members of the band. The project was coordinated by Dr John Willsteed, a creative industries lecturer at Queensland University of Technology (QUT) and former bassist for alternative rock band The Go-Betweens (which was co-founded with Robert Forster by Old Boy Grant McLennan (1974)) after whom Brisbane’s Go Between Bridge is named.

Most of Kym’s working life however has been in investment banking in the City of London, the highlight of which was working for the ‘Royalty of Banking’, N M Rothschild and Sons. After six years at night school, Kym obtained a French Business Diploma from L’Acadamie Francais in Paris and later became a Fellow of the Chartered Securities Institute in England after a slog of ‘competitive’ exams. He says: “It just goes to show anyone can achieve anything if they are prepared to work hard enough. A lesson for today’s students at Churchie.”

Featured Image (L-R): Ed Keupper, Kym Bradshaw, Ivor Hay, Chris Bailey

To read more about Kym, please click here to visit his website.

Set aside an hour and click here to view Stranded (The Saints History), the ABC’s documentary from 2015.

Old Boy Gregory Howe (1988) attended Churchie in 1987 as a boarder in Gerald house. Whilst he played cricket and tennis during the year, he concedes: “I certainly didn’t set the world on fire – I was in the fifths for cricket and competed in the third team for tennis where my physics teacher, Mr Schultz, was coach.”

After Churchie, Gregory attended the University of Queensland (UQ) to study an arts degree and then teaching. Whilst there, he resided at St John’s College and played for the tennis team. Fascinated with sport and the idea of becoming good at it, by the time he left UQ he was ranked 16 in Queensland.

During the next decade, Gregory lived and taught in schools across London, all the while competing in small money tournaments. He had always dreamt of playing on the pro tour, so at 34 years-of-age he quit his teaching job and gave himself one year to make it onto the professional rankings and play the ATP tour. Whilst he grew up in Australia, Gregory’s birthplace was in Derbyshire, England, so he represented Great Britain on the circuit. He started his year-long journey in the minor leagues, initially struggling against younger, fitter aspiring pros. This saw him compete on the third-tier Futures tour in places like Pakistan, Sudan, Iran and Uganda, just to name a few. Along the way he encountered almost everything the tennis world has to offer, from rising stars racing to the top, to players whose hopes were slowly being shattered. Eventually, he managed to juggle competing on the ATP tour with holding down a nine-to-five job. By the end of the year he found himself in the qualifying of elite ATP events and sharing the locker room with players like Federer, Nadal and Djokovic.

While he travelled, Gregory kept notes of conversations and observations with the idea of trying to write a book about his experiences. Even though he was an English teacher, it was much harder than he had imagined. After eight years he committed himself to writing the story, which took six months and a year of editing. In May 2018, Chasing POINTS: A Season on the Pro Tennis Circuit was released. “In many ways, my book will give a good insight into the early stages of another Churchie Old Boy’s experiences, namely John Millman. John was on the Futures at the same time when my book was set. Unfortunately, I never met John whilst on tour, but I recall hearing the story that he used to turn up to tournaments simply with a backpack and a couple of racquets. Now that he’s an established ATP pro, I’m sure he has more racquets now.”

Gregory still regularly plays competitive tennis.

Chasing POINTS: A Season on the Pro Tennis Circuit is available in Australia in paperback from Booktopia and in kindle on amazon.com.au

21 mates, all 21 years old, training to run 21.1 km in an effort to raise $21,000. This is the 21 Club – a group of dedicated young men who have dusted off their joggers and are training hard in preparation to run the 2018 Brisbane Marathon Festival on Sunday 5 August. In doing so, the money that they raise will go to LIVIN, a charity with the vision of breaking the stigma of mental health in order to help promote wellness and positive living for all young people. The LIVINWELL program is designed to enhance mental health literacy and understanding around mental health challenges and suicide preventive measures among young people. Teaching people the skills at a young age, LIVIN’s fundamental goal is to make a generational change.

As young adults, the 21 Club make up part of the demographic that the LIVIN charity supports. Consequently, they decided it would be a positive symbol of their appreciation to raise money for those affected by a mental health challenge such as depression, anxiety and substance use disorder every year. Alarmingly, 1 in 7 young people are affected and due to stigma and lack of understanding, many of those live in silence.

The first major fundraising event for the 21 Club was in the form of a lawn bowls day. The event was held at the Camp Hill Bowls Club on Sunday 1 July 2018 and over $1,200 was raised.

All donations to the 21 Club through this platform will go towards LIVIN and will benefit the young Australians who are silently suffering with mental health challenges every day. Regardless of the amount, it all makes a difference! If you wish to support the boys and LIVIN with a donation, then please click here.

Please click on the links below to follow the 21 Club on social media and/or send messages of support.

Facebook

Instagram

Members of the 21 Club are:

Max Wenck (BGS Old Boy – 2014), Sebastian Kebby (2014), Ash Holmes (2014), Max Quigley (2014), Hugo Doessel (2014), Paddy Dooley (BGS Old Boy – 2014), Ben Volkman (2014), Sebastian Miros (2014), James Whyte (2014), Hugo Spencer (2014), Ben Hoskins (2014), Luke Thompson (2014), Harry Borger (2014), Ed Francis (2014), Hamish Foley (BGS Old Boy – 2014), Jack Todd (2014), Ben Miles (2014), Jack Larter (2014), Jordan Hall (2014), Jonathan Traves (BGS Old Boy – 2014), Josh Dickens (2014)

Featured Image (L-R): Max Quigley, Sebastian Kebby, Harry Borger, Ed Francis, Ben Hoskins, Josh Dickens, Ben Miles

The finalists for the churchie national emerging art prize 2018 have been announced. From a record number of entries, over 1000 individual artworks submitted, 35 artists have been selected as the nation’s top emerging visual artists.

The Official Opening + Prize Announcement will be held at QUT Art Museum on Friday 7 September from 6 to 8 pm. The overall prize winner will be awarded a $15,000 non-acquisitive cash prize sponsored by long-time supporters of ‘the churchie’, Brand + Slater Architects. The 2018 prize winners will be determined by guest judge Lisa Havilah, director of Carriageworks, Sydney. The finalists exhibition will continue until 4 November 2018.

Read more online at: www.churchieemergingart.com/news

Featured Image: 2018 finalist Harriet Body, Air Space 2017-18, Embroidery and gesso on canvas, 102 x 173 cm.
Courtesy of the artist.