Winton Reflection

Our Wonderful Winton Retreat

The Winton Cluster Yr11 Students set out on a retreat to Gilwell Park in Gembrook, a well-known Scouts Retreat, thanks to the enduring connection between Scouts and our Principal, Brendan Watson.  Our cluster co-ordinator, Mr Ryan Noye, accompanied by cluster associate, Ms Emily McGuane, set the focus at the very outset – it was more important to learn about the person, not the student.

We set out by bus on 5 March 2020 in the morning and returned on 6 March 2020 in the afternoon. On arrival, we quickly got ourselves organised for the activities that awaited us.

The key learnings from the retreat were Teamwork, Perseverance and Leadership – these were required to successfully navigate the challenges such as the high ropes course, the crate stack and the flying fox!

We spent some time in reflection on the importance of continuously developing our character, with the aim of achieving a positive impact on our community.

A surprise guest at the retreat was Fr John O’Reilly who very kindly celebrated the Eucharist for us.  A passionate advocate of the Eucharist, Fr O’Reilly inspires everyone around him, and he was accompanied by Mr Brendan Watson.  It was a proud and satisfying time for us, having two visionary leaders on our Winton Retreat!

The retreat was a great opportunity that brought people together with the purpose of getting to know the person rather than the student. It was a great adventure and a memorable experience. At the end of the second day, we all came away with a different perspective compared to when we set out the previous day, and we are the richer for this experience.

We thank all the staff members for their support and guidance during the retreat and we hope that they had a pleasant experience, too. We are thankful for this outing, and together, we are confident of meeting whatever challenges that each of us will face in 2020 on our journey at CRC Sydenham.

Kester D’Abreo