From the Deputy Principal 

Celebrating Community

Community is a vital aspect of our lives, shaping our sense of belonging and providing a platform for social interaction, support, and growth. From local neighbourhoods to global networks, communities offer us a space to connect with others who share our values and aspirations. They foster collaboration, empathy, and the exchange of ideas, empowering individuals to achieve common goals and address collective challenges. In both moments of celebration and adversity, community plays an essential role in enriching our lives, enhancing our well-being, and strengthening the fabric of society….. and school life.

Between Kinder and Year 12 our children are involved in no better a community than that of a school community, specifically the Moama Anglican Grammar community. Being involved in a community is what gives us purpose, direction and happiness. In fact, there is much research supporting the benefits of being involved in community and how much happier it makes us all feel.

Proactively doing things for others and being involved in activity groups as part of community is a great way to foster strong communities and support others to lead happier and more fulfilled lives. Today we had a casual clothes day with a gold coin donation which raised much needed funds for the Cancer Council. I am constantly reminded of the good in our young people as I move around the school seeing what our students are doing to improve themselves and the lives of others. There is much to celebrate in our community.

Recently we participated in the Campaspe Shire and Njernda Walk for Reconciliation. This was a great opportunity to show our support by walking together with many members of our wider Indigenous and non-Indigenous Echuca-Moama community to “Be a Voice for Generations”. 

Last week we had teams selected from both Primary and Secondary to compete in the Riverina Da Vinci Decathlon. Not only did our students do particularly well in this competition (see later in this newsletter for the results), they also represented our school community with honour and excellence and had the opportunity to be involved with other school communities. 

Another celebration of the Moama Anglican Grammar community, last evening, was the Young Performers Concert where our Primary musical student community and their families came together to celebrate our Extra-Curricular music program. Before I presented our students with their certificates to congratulate them all on their outstanding performances I said to the parents, carers and friends who attended how my face was so sore by the end of the evening from smiling through every performance. It was an especially enjoyable evening. I am now very much looking forward to our next sub-school musical community event with the Secondary Springtime Concert coming up in the last week of next term.

Being part of this great school community means that it is particularly sad when one of our members leave. We deliberately include any student who has attended Moama Anglican Grammar at some stage of their schooling life to be part of our Alumni whether they graduated in Year 12 here, got an apprenticeship at the end of Year 10 or 11 or finished their education at another school or TAFE. Although, not part of our Alumni as such we are also sad to see staff leave and we are saying farewell to two of our staff at the end of this term.

Stuart Martin has been with the Moama Anglican Community since 2011. Since then he has been everything from Careers Coordinator to Chaplain and taught many (if not all!) of our current students and Alumni. Stuart and his wife, Wendy, are relocating to Albury to embark on new adventures now that their four boys, Samuel, Benjamin, Johnathon and Andrew have finished school - who are all, by the way, Moama Anglican Grammar Alumni.

Dean Walton started at our school in 2016 and has been the most extraordinary “fix it”, “maintain it beautifully” and “I’ll create it if you need it” person for our school. As the highly valued Property Manager of the Moama Anglican Grammar community he will be sorely missed. As is with many of our community who prioritise doing things for others, Dean is going on to a new role in working with disengaged youth as a mentor. We have no doubt he will be wonderful in this role.

We wish Stuart and Dean all the very best for their future endeavours and also look forward to keeping in touch with them. It is hoped that they will find a community beyond our school as supportive, caring and enjoyable as a school community is. 

For those of us who are staff members of a school community, we are the lucky ones to be able to continue to be involved in a school community way beyond the years we attended school ourselves. To be part of the Moama Anglican Grammar community is particularly special. We are surrounded by students, teachers, staff and families who really care and support each other and cherish the community we are all an important part of.

Kathleen Kemp

Deputy Principal