JJAMM 2024

Wow! What an enlightening trip we have shared. As the school captains for 2024, we recently represented Mary MacKillop Catholic Regional College at the Sydney JJAMM (Julian, Joseph, and Mary MacKillop) Retreat. And wasn’t it JJAMM packed (pun intended)!

We met so many new and interesting people from various Josephite schools from all over Australia and New Zealand. The knowledge we were able to gain from these other leaders was invaluable. As a Josephite order school, we learnt how to apply and embody our Charism into our actions as leaders. Mary MacKillop said: “Never see a need without doing something about it”. We certainly learned how to advocate for social justice to carry out Mary’s mission. 

JJAMM provided us with skills to enhance our leadership styles. One key task included coming up with a short speech together and performing it to the other school captains and their teachers to immediately apply our newfound knowledge. We will use these presentation skills to embody our school spirit and follow our theme. “Be grateful for the little things; all will be right with time and a little patience”. These small tips that we were taught will greatly impact the effectiveness of our leadership. 

Significant moments: 

My significant moment from the entire trip was participating in the Eucharist with Fr Gavin. He created an engaging space that involved lots of active reflection on who we currently are as leaders and the goals of where we would like to be. – Dinisty.

A significant moment for me on the trip was visiting ‘Mary’s Place’ not only was this a nice hotel but also a place of worship where Mary spent the later years of her life. Throughout this venue, we developed a greater understanding of Mary and how she lived. This was represented through artifacts that were on display. We were also lucky enough to see Mary’s tombstone which is a good reflective place for prayer and a beautiful sight. - Jack

Key Takeaways: 

A major takeaway for me is the network of new friends I have made from the trip and the ideas that have come from meeting so many new people. JJAMM provided an opportunity to see what initiatives work well in other Josephite schools, to then take back to our own community and begin applying them to face social justice issues. – Dinisty.

My key takeaway was also definitely the people around us which made the trip heaps better, I also liked the variety of new or improved ideas to implement towards our school. The great food was also a big plus 😁- Jack.

Overall, we have grown spiritually and intellectually as we intend to move forward into this school year with the vital skills needed to be the best leaders we can be. There is no limit to the gratitude we feel for being able to experience this retreat. Our individual and community potential has exponentially expanded, and none of it would be possible without our amazing teachers Ms. Dudman and Mr. Blencowe who gave up their time to care for us on this trip every step of the way. A special thank you is also necessary for Mr Freeman who made this whole opportunity possible, and especially for driving us to and from the airport.