Victorian All Schools Cross Country Championships

Charity Onley, Sports Captain

On 21 June seven DCC students competed in the Victorian All Schools Cross-Country Championships - displaying their God-given talents and participating with humility and grace.

Huge congratulations to Annabel and Halle Messer, Brienna Coffey, Lewis and Hamish McLennan and Alfie and Sawyer Onley, who represented DCC on the day.

All these students had very strong races, showing amazing determination and achieving some exceptional times!

Annabel Messer (Under 14 Girls 3km) – 10:39 (5th in her age group)

Halle Messer (Under 14 Girls 3km) – 12:17 (15th in under 12s)

Sawyer Onley (Under 14 Boys 3km) – 10:00 (8th in his age group)

Brienna Coffey (Under 15 Girls 4km) – 15:16 (16th place)

Lewis McLennan (Under 15 Boys 4km) – 13:40 (16th place)

Alfie Onley (Under 17 Boys 6km) – 18:36 (8th place)

Hamish McLennan (Under 17 Boys 6km) – 22:00 (42nd place)

It was exciting to watch these students push themselves, and achieve multiple, significant Personal Bests on the day, but even more so to see the amazing sportsmanship and encouragement they displayed towards each other and the rest of the competitors.

Best of luck to Annabel, Sawyer and Alfie, all of whom have qualified for nationals and will be representing Team Vic at the Australian Cross Country Championships in August.

A Sweet Tradition: CAW Cake Decorating Competition

Katherine Cameron, Food Studies Teacher

One of the long-standing highlights of Donvale’s Creative Arts Week is the much-loved Cake Decorating Competition, and this year was no exception! We were thrilled to see so many new and talented students rising through the ranks, supported wholeheartedly by their families.

A huge thank you to all the students who took the time to enter. Once again, we were blown away by your technical skill, imagination, and the incredible effort poured into each creation.

Some of this year’s standout entries included:

A life-size Peter Rabbit sporting a Donvale Dunkers uniform
A stunning hand-painted cake capturing the whimsical world of Peter Rabbit set against the backdrop of our iconic Donvale grounds
Bright and colourful Octonaut-themed designs
Paddington’s suitcase recreated in delicious detail
Delightful Peppa Pig cakes
Intricate creations from Ben and Holly’s Little Kingdom
Charming Thomas the Tank Engine masterpieces

Congratulations to all our entrants — your creativity continues to make this event a true celebration of community and artistic expression.

Year 9: Health Experience

Taimi Buchan, Year 9 Teacher

Last week, our Year 9 students spent time focusing on health and wellness. After a term exploring how “The Fall” continues to affect our lives, students had the chance to think about what it means to care for the bodies we've been given. As temples of the Holy Spirit, looking after ourselves is one way we can honour our Creator.

We started the week by using the “Eight Dimensions of Wellness” to reflect on our own health and set personal goals. Throughout the week, students took part in a range of activities - listening to guest speakers, watching performances, creating budgets, planting trees, mapping emotions, dancing, stretching, bouncing, and sharing meals.

While the week was full of learning and activity, our hope is that each student left feeling encouraged and better equipped to take steps toward improving at least one area of their wellness.

Student reflections

“In our Physical wellness session, I realised that I wasn’t eating enough healthy stuff every day, and I need more of it. I also learnt about the importance of my sleep schedule, and I relearnt about getting away from screens at least one hour before I go to bed because screens activate my nervous system and can make it really hard to go to sleep.”

“This experience has further improved my connection with God, and I realised that our bodies are a more lot complex than we think they are, and that God truly wants us to grow and flourish, be in shalom with the people and things around us and keep our bodies happy and healthy.”

“Health Experience impacted my overall health goals by teaching me how to have a better and more nutritious diet and the six main disciplines of spiritual growth. I now feel more equipped to live a healthier lifestyle and actually take steps to achieve it.”

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