In the second last week of Term 1 the Year 7 Year cohort visited Valley Homestead, in Myrtleford/Ovens which is part of the high country, who hosted both camps from Nazareth College.

Camp 1 – Mannix, McAuley and Knox, Monday 24 - Wednesday 26 March

Camp 2- Chisholm, McCormack and MacKillop, Wednesday 26 – Friday 28 March

We had quite a hot week of weather all week with the sun shining each day. Luckily, I had spare hats and water bottles for those who forgot to bring these essential items.

The students participated in the following activities- Vertical challenge, Free-Fall slide, Climbing, Dual Flying Fox, Bush Skills, Camp cooking, Camp fire, Singing and games by the campfire, Trivia night and Night Reflector trails.

I am very proud of the students who found some of the activities challenging and yet gave them a go anyway and for many others who overcame their fears of heights, too. I witnessed leadership, kindness, teamwork, new friendships, bravery and courage over the course of the week from both group of students. For some students, just being away from home was a challenge that was overcome too. The venue hosts great activities, and all the cabins have an ensuite in each room. It is certainly worth the drive to get there.

I would like to thank the following staff who gave up their time, classes and their families to support the camp and myself as Camp Coordinator.

Camp 1- Mr Peter Nathan, Mrs Gabby Spano, Ms Mary Green, Mr John Powell, Mr Joe Melhem, Miss Antigone Kappas, and Miss Tiffany Blake,

Camp 2 - Mrs Hayley McMillan, Mr Brendan Hermon, Mr Brendan Newcomb, Mr Lachlann McDonell, Ms Gill Coyle, Miss Alyssa Florio and Miss Olivia Giblin

A big thank you to both Miss Caitlin Trustum and Mr Matt Bough (First Aid) who, like me, were on both camps.

Miss Trustum was there as the LSO support, and I am most grateful for her commitment for both camps once again. Matt, who is a trained paramedic, was awesome dealing with the variety of medical concerns over the five days. He is super capable, calm, and qualified First aider and very much appreciated for the big commitment. Having an experienced medical staff member attending on camp is very reassuring in addition to our staff who are all first aid trained.

Over the week I asked the staff leaders of each group for both camps to nominate students who for different reasons deserved a certificate/award.

Camp1:

Mannix - Sebastian Giannopoulos, Ayoolaluwa Ladeinde, Ilyana Viskas

McAuley - Havana Blight, Niranjhan Venugopal, Olivia Veselinovic

Knox - Ruzie Kosakyan Evie Papas

Camp 2:

McCormack - Xavier Du, Delina Gebremeskel, Jordan Petridis

Chisholm - Lincoln De Kauwe, Madison Putt, Imogen Teh

MacKillop - Geelong Dang, Matthew Luckfiel.

Congratulations to all these students.

Ms Sue Formanek

Camps Coordinator

On 26 March 2025, three Year 7 Houses (McCormack, Chisholm, and MacKillop) went to Valley Homestead. We were there for 3 days, and we had lots of fun. On the first day, my house (McCormack) did a freefall slide and the zipline. For dinner, we had Butter Chicken Curry with rice, and for dessert, we had caramel pudding with ice cream. Later that night, we had a night walk which we also had roasted marshmallows and milo. On the second day, we had bush cooking which we made damper and nachos. We also did rock climbing, and for dinner, we had Lasagna, and for dessert, we had chocolate mousse with whipped cream. On the last day, we had vertical challenge, which was fun but tricky. Overall Year 7 camp was enjoyable, and we learnt so much.

Nikolina Davidovic

McCormack 7

Day 1. On day one we went on a four-hour drive from Nazareth to Valley Homestead. When we arrived, we had afternoon tea and headed to our cabins. We all then had our first activity. Everyone got split up into house groups and were assigned activities. Chisholm - Vertical Challenge, McCormack – Dual Flying Fox & Free fall slide, MacKillop - Rock climbing wall. The Vertical Challenge had some car tyres, nets and all sorts of obstacles. We had butter chicken, broccoli, rice and nan bread for dinner. The Dessert was ice-cream with pudding. After that we headed back to our cabins to get ready for night activities. Firstly, we ventured off in the bushes to follow a track. Some trees had reflectors on them to guide us around. We all had milo and a marshmallow by the campfire after the walk.

Day 2. We woke up to a bright and sunny morning as we got dressed to prepare for the morning activities. We headed for the dining hall to have some toast and cereal. Afterwards, we all went up to the campfire, so that the staff there could tell us how to make a fire, damper and some delicious nachos. We all got split into nine groups to make a fire each. This is one of the life skills we gained during the experience. After countless seconds to find sticks and get the fire going most groups got their Billy boiling. Once the fire was ready, each group received a mixture of dry flour and other ingredients plus the water to make the damper. We had to mix and squeeze the ingredients to make the dough. Then people used their dough to put it on top of the stick. The tip of the stick was covered and slowly turned on the fire. As everyone finished the damper, groups moved on to make the nachos. We started to add the rice onto the pan, we also added some cheese. Then we put the rice onto our plates and added nachos, cheese and salsa. It tasted delicious, we learnt how to make a fire, cook and clean up.

There are tennis courts, and a board game area available for during free time. Once afternoon tea was ready, we all went to the dining hall to get some fresh fruits and some small biscuits. The flying fox and vertical slide were extraordinary. The flying fox was a dual flying fox so two people can go at the same time. When we came back, we had some cabin time and went to get some dinner. We had lasagna with some salad and garlic bread for dinner and for dessert we had chocolate mousse + whipped cream. After dinner we had a trivia night. There were three sets of questions and some bonus questions like name the song and singer and make the longest paper chain using just an A4 page. At the end The Pickles won the show.

Day 3. As we woke up sad that it was the last day of camp, we got our luggage ready to go onto the bus. We got some cereal and toast and went to our last activity. We all had an amazing time at this incredible camp. We had some morning tea and said our last goodbyes as we hopped onto the bus and enjoyed the movie on way home.

Dexter Fan

Chisholm 1

Going on Year 7 camp was very different than any of my other camps due to the fact I didn’t know many of my peers and teachers very well. Although I didn’t know many people, I came away with plenty of new friendships and got to know lots of people really well. All of the activities we did were filled with all sorts of different emotions but once it was over it ended up being really fun. One of the most challenging activities was most definitely the giant slide because of how high up it looked. I’m so grateful for the opportunity I got to go to camp and for the amazing new friendships I made that just make school so much more enjoyable.

Havana Blight

McAuley 2

During our Year 7 camp, everyone had the chance to try some exciting activities that pushed people out of their comfort zone. The vertical climb was the first activity and it pushed people to go higher as their friends belayed them on the ground. I was really nervous at first, but once I started climbing it was really fun! All the activities were thrilling and enjoyable. Overall, the camp was an unforgettable experience. I learned that trying new things can be scary, but it’s always worth it giving it a go!

Olivia Veselinovic

McAuley 2

50 Word Year 7 Camp Moments

Students in 7W English who returned from Camp 1 were challenged to recreate a moment at camp in exactly 50 words, making use of the literary devices we have been studying this term.

The Camp Fire

The air was absolutely still and the stars glistened brighter than diamonds in the pitch-black sky as everyone was gathered around the toasty, bright orange campfire.  Sparks and ashes flew up through the dancing, flickering flames.  I could hear the faint crunching of people walking across the dusty, uneven path. 

Jesse Frederick

McAuley 5

The Flying Fox

While hiking up to the Zipline, the anticipation was killing me.  Finally, I got hooked on, excited as ever, then I jumped. The air ZIPPED past me as I glided through the forest. As the trees blurred, I felt an exhilarating sense of freedom. I was alive. I was free. 

Ruzie Kozakyan

Knox 2

I get harnessed to the zipline, my heart beats fast - Ba bump, Ba bump - I can feel my body shake and tremble. “3, 2, 1 GO!” I sprint off the ledge and take a big step of faith, and for a few seconds I am stepping on clouds.

Audrey Nguyen

Knox 5

As I stepped onto the platform for the flying fox, I felt like a trapeze artist high on a thin rope. Suddenly, the word, “Go!” was ringing in my ears, and I sprinted off the platform. It was like I was flying gracefully in the sky, the green trees all a blur.

Jude Padayhag

McAuley 1

The Sunset

I stood outside the old cabin in awe, looking at the divine lavender and lemon sunset, a moment of appreciation for the beautiful nature of camp, Elena whipped out her camera, Maddy and I posed for the photo. “CLICK!” Suddenly we heard a noise, “GET TO DINNER RIGHT NOW” …oopsies.

Elise Witte

Mannix 7

Year 9 Business Expo