The Greatest Fete

The Greatest Fete Wrap Up!

The stage and stalls were set, the weather Gods were on our side and the people came out in droves for The Greatest Fete at RPS on Sunday! It truly was a fantastic day, and worth the many hours and months of work that went into preparing for it. As usual, there were so many people who helped make this fete the huge success and the wonderful day it was. A huge thank you to all of our stall organisers, our stall volunteers and our fete set up and pack down teams. To Jim Russell for his tireless work running around the school all Saturday with his ladder and tools, getting us sorted with power and hanging bunting and cords, then bringing it all down Sunday afternoon. To Kym Smith for providing us with her delicious menu, and to all of those who helped prepare and serve that delicious food to the hungry throng of folks lining up outside snack shack and the BBQ area. To Trene Walter and her team for spending hours making cordial and making sure we were staying true to our “No Soft Drink” promise, and Susie Condron for organising our fabulous silent auction with its array of enticing items. To Bronwyn Weingott and her team for spending countless hours sewing tote bags in the lead up to the fete, and to Mike McLeish for doing such a spectacular job as M.C. on the day. Of course, there are many more people who gave up their time to set up stalls, find us donations, carry and set up tables, and stick signs to walls and marquees, and to all of you we say a massive THANK YOU! This event could not have happened without your help.

And as per usual, there are always a handful of core folks who put a lot of work and time into making a day like Sunday as special and enjoyable an occasion as it was, so it’s only right to give those very important and awesome people a special shout out here.

Let’s start with the creative design genius that is Michelle Loft! So many people on Sunday were heard to comment on how “pretty” and “colourful” and “AMAZING” everything looked. The colourful bunting flapping in the gentle breeze (thank you again to those Weather Gods), the stunning Greatest Fete stage banner, as well as the bunting and curtains framing it, and Sideshow Alley in its colourful splendour was all the work of this amazing woman. The many MANY hours Michelle put into sewing, cutting, painting and drawing were totally worth it as far as the entire community are concerned (not to mention a few other schools who were eyeing our bunting off and asking to borrow it for their fetes…) as she magically transformed our little school into a colourful carnival spectacular, admired and appreciated by all who were there. We could not be more grateful to her for her incredible talent, enormous efforts and hard work.

Sally Russell is one of the smartest, most efficient, reliable and positive women I’ve ever had the pleasure to organise an event with. If you ask Sally to do something, you can bet your life that it will be done quickly, efficiently and thoroughly, and all with a huge smile on her face. No job is too hard, no task too difficult and no disgruntled Officeworks manager too grumpy to take that grin off Sally’s face! I’ve had so much fun working with this wonderful and talented woman, and all of her hard work - the endless hours she spent driving all over Melbourne, sending emails, organising donations, handing out icy poles and clearing out filthy dusty spider-ridden sheds – was there for all to see and enjoy on Sunday!

Now…I need to take a minute to talk about and acknowledge Kylie Jeffares, which is WAY less time than this ridiculously wonderful woman deserves. The Greatest Fete is just one of many events Kylie has been involved in organising, and it was no different from any other she’s done over many years at RPS in that she gave it her all; sending countless emails, making up endless spreadsheets and rosters, staying on top of dates, deadlines and job allocation, as well as keeping everything and everyone on track to make it the best day it could be. And on Sunday we all saw the fruits of her labour. “Running like clockwork” is a term that comes to mind, and Kylie is a big part of the reason for that.

Kylie Jeffares is a force of nature. With three kids and a four day a week job, it’s not as if this is a woman with a lot of time on her hands, but when Kylie commits to something she gives it 100% and we could not be luckier, or more grateful, that she has committed herself to Ripponlea Primary for the past almost 10 years (and Ripponlea Kinder before that!)

The school would not be what it is today if not for her and her superhuman efforts. Anyone who knows her will tell you that Kylie is always the first to arrive and the last to leave any and every event she is involved in organising, which is a lot of them! People are always talking about the amazing community at Ripponlea, and how wonderful and supportive the parents are, and a lot of that has to do with Kylie Jeffares. She is a shining example and an inspiration to us all in the Ripponlea community. Kylie cares. She cares A LOT. About her community, her school, her family and her friends, and will always do the best job possible every single time.

If you don’t know Kylie (how could you not???) she’s the woman you may have seen scurrying across the school yard on any given day, always busy getting things sorted. Whether it’s a job for the fete, a school council duty, stocking snack shack, coaching Ripponlea Netball Team or organising an event…the list goes on. If you want to say hi you have to be quick! Kylie walks at a pace across that playground, whether she’s on a mission or not, but when you do finally manage to catch up to her she’ll give you her full attention and help you out with whatever you need, which is why we all adore her. She’s reliable in a way that many people these days don’t seem to be anymore, and if that means getting way less sleep than she should be getting then that’s what she’ll do.

Finally, apart from being a powerhouse when it comes to getting stuff done and making our school and community such a wonderful place to be, you are a kind, funny, generous and awesome woman and I am so proud to count you as one of my best friends. The Ripponlea Primary community is in awe of all the amazing work you do for it. THANK YOU!!

Kylie will HATE that this has been printed in the newsletter, because despite the fact that she does SO MUCH for SO MANY, she is the last person to ever expect or want thanks or praise of any kind for how truly amazing she is. Well, bad luck, Jeffares! A huge pat on the back is well overdue for you, my friend.

Thank you again to everyone who helped make this year’s fete The Greatest!

Fiona Harris

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