Boarding News

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the boys, families and our staff for another great term. We look forward to welcoming boarders back to the College on Monday 12 July, ready for the first day back at College on Tuesday 13 July. Residences will be open from 1:00pm.

Tea and coffee will be available for parents and guardians in the Cyprian Pavilion, we encourage you to take this time at drop off, this was an initiative recommended by our Boarder Parent Network and a great opportunity for boarding families to catch up and touch base.

Boarder Parent Network – Term 3 meeting

The Term 3 Boarder Parent Network meeting is tentatively booked for Tuesday 20 July at 5:00pm. Further information will be sent out early in Term 3.

Around the Grounds

La Valla Residence

A busy last 17 days within the La Valla residence! Due to the abrupt end of Term 1, many were experiencing their first real end of term assessment buzz. Boys worked hard to remain focused, positive and on task with many students helping each other with study and on time submissions.

On Tuesday, MCA Boarding was privileged to take part in the National ‘Think U Know’ (TUK) Cyber Safety student program, facilitated by the Australian Federal Police. This program is delivered nationally by law enforcement and industry to educate young people about the risk of online exploitation.

Focus then moved to the next round of AIC sports, with trials for Rugby League and Basketball taking place over the weekend. It has been noted by many staff that the support the La Valla boys give each other is second to none!! Leroy enjoyed having his own HIVE cheering his every movement during his trials for Basketball!

Lastly, it is with an element of sadness we say goodbye to the boys for a couple of weeks. We wish the boys a safe trip home to spend some quality time with their families. Each boy in La Valla brings their own sparkle, humour and energy. La Valla certainly will be a quieter place without them for the next two weeks.

Montagne Residence

A busy week with lots of comings and goings happening in the residence. In the middle of last week, the boys were given a presentation by Acting Sergeant Paul Bagnall. Some really good information for online safety which also made myself and other supervisors sit up and think about the way boys use technology. We welcomed Ms Maggie Wasson into the dorm last week as well. Ms Wasson will be starting in Montagne residence in Term 3 and she got to meet all the boys and run through a typical night with the gents. She has been given a big thumbs up by the boys already who are looking forward to her supervising!

Mario Kart has become the number one game in the residence now. The boys have shown great empathy when their mates lose (not quite) and sharing the console well. We only have the one Wii remote at the moment, so if any families have one that is collecting dust and are willing to donate one to the residence, I know the boys who play it would be appreciative.

It was great to see Matt and Theresa Green arrive safely in Brisbane last week, surviving quarantine and turning up on Friday to see their son Sean. They brought a care package from the Mark family for young Talis which was very much welcomed! Rugby league and basketball trials occurred over the weekend to round off what has been quite the busy end to Term 2.

We hope that all families and friends of Montagne Residence have a wonderful break and come back in Term Three refreshed and ready to start again. Can I also please take this opportunity to thank all of the Montagne, Boarding and Marist families who offered their family homes up to Talis Mark for this break. It is amazing to see the generosity and support from the Marist community when someone needs our help.

Hermitage Residence

The busiest week of the term saw boys face up to nine pieces of assessment due this week. With the Term 2 sports officially concluded, this gave boys some more time to work on what was due. With the importance of these tasks in mind, the boys worked hard in study to ensure they earned their well-deserved holidays, which was great to see. They also held each other accountable for their work and encouraged one another to attend extra tutoring when possible.

With several boys taking the opportunity to head home slightly earlier, many departed on the weekend. Before departing, a number of boys trialled for AIC Rugby League and Basketball which commences in Term 3. The importance of participating in co-curricular activities is certainly not lost on our dorm with many boys engaging in a third sport for the year. This demonstrates the enormous amount of pride the boys have in representing the College.

In addition to the hectic term of sports, the majority of boys also kept themselves busy with various musical pursuits. As mentioned previously, the boys have a wonderful opportunity to learn a musical instrument with the support of Senior Supervisor, Mr Darian Johns. With this in mind, and with the end of the term upon us, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the supervisors of Hermitage for their efforts in looking after the boys. Thanks to Mr Kabel Dawes, Mr Callum Robertson and Mr Clancy Kuiters.

I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank the boys for their efforts in making this semester memorable and I wish Hermitage families a safe and enjoyable break.

Fourviere Residence

There may have been an air of anticipation for the holidays this week, but with assessment still pressing it was ‘noses in the books’ for the year 10 Fourviere lads, studying hard for their semester exams. A short break for a very informative discussion with Acting Sargent Paul Bagnall, on the topic of online safety, was very well received and offered some relevant insight into appropriate practices online. We also welcomed a new boarder, Beau Hayes from Barcaldine and entertained Michael Russell from St. George for an overnight visit.

The final weekend of the term saw us turn our attention towards trials for the Term 3 sports of basketball and rugby league and we wish all trialists the very best for selections next term. Good luck also goes to Connor Lyons, and all of the boys representing the College at the Confraternity Rugby League Carnival which will be contested over the holiday break. For the Year 11s, there was added excitement with a number of the gents invited to attend Stuartholme and St Margaret’s semi-formal functions.

The boys and I would especially like to extend a big thank you to Mr Andrew Fogarty who finishes up this week after an exceptional three and a half year commitment to the boarding community at Marist. Well done Andrew!

Finally, we would like to wish all of our families a very relaxing time over the upcoming holiday period and we look forward to seeing all the boys fresh and ready to go for the second half of the year in July.

Br Terence Residence

Nearing the end of term, most of the conversations in and around the residence have focussed on the boys’ holiday plans this week. There has been much excitement and anticipation amongst the boys leading into this well-earned break. At the beginning of the week, our resident bull rider Joe Macqueen returned victorious from the Tabulam rodeo to record back-to-back victories over the past two weeks. Joe was also busy this week by offering his assistance as a waiter at the Year 5 Band and Strings Concert along with Ishy Bond. With Term 2 sport completed, the boys turned their attention to the rugby league and basketball trials that were held during the week, while Ethan Schnaubelt, Zen Sakai and Sunny Lam continued with their external sporting commitments. Dwayne Ludwick’s rugby performances this year saw him receive an opportunity to train with the QLD Reds Academy this week and to compete in a trial match over the weekend for further selection opportunities.

As always at the end of term, there are numerous assignments, exams and work placements that the boys continue to work diligently on. Year 11 students Frank Baker, Archie Forbes and Michael Nolan have been putting in plenty of extra hours on their Specialist Maths assignments that are due at the end of term and hopefully, their noticeable efforts will be rewarded in their results. I would like to wish all Br Terence boarders and their families a safe and enjoyable break.