Dear St Aidan’s Students, Teachers, Parents and Community,
2020 hasn’t exactly begun in the way we envisioned. This year has already delivered a lot of highs; with a fresh new theme – “Mission 2020”, Year 7 and 8 Camp, Senior and Junior school interhouse swimming carnivals, QGSSSA Swimming, Year 6 leadership days, sporting fixtures, Year 12 formal, many chapels, assemblies and Performing Arts Recitals and even a visit from the Governor of Queensland. May we add, QGSSA Swimming saw the most (and loudest) supporters St Aidan’s had had in many years, leading the swimmers to great personal successes! As you can see, we are only one term in and have already seen big and bright things happen. From numerous sporting achievements, academic excellence and an overall increase in positivity and spirit from the community, our school community is strong!
Even with all of these achievements and displays of community spirit at many events, St Aidan’s and the world has been hit with an unprecedented virus. COVID-19 has ended the term early for students, cancelled and postponed school fixtures, trips and events and caused a negative ripple effect across all of Australia. However, while it seems our world has been taken from us, let us not forget that we have so much more greatness to come! There will be more fixtures with your teammates, more assemblies, more lunch times filled with bursts of laughter that make your stomach hurt. There will be more adventure, with music blasting and spirit in the air. There will be more moments with the teachers we all love and more memories to make here at St Aidan’s. Whilst it may be hard to imagine how school will look in the coming weeks, know that we will continue to laugh, learn and be spirited. Our mission for 2020 remains the same – to remain connected, unified and spirited in all that we do. Where will your vision take you?
To every student, don’t be disheartened. We are all in this together. Focus on this; focus on coming out the other side of these tough times stronger than ever. You are St Aidan’s students and we never give up. We will remain connected.
To the teachers, support staff, P & F committee, members of ELT and everyone working behind the scenes, thank you. Thank you for all the time and effort you have put in to ensure that all of us are in the right position moving forward with our education. Thank you for adapting so quickly to a blended learning model and being able to teach and engage us. Thank you for staying positive for each and every student while we journey through this uncertainty together.
To the parents of all past and present St Aidan’s students, we appreciate you. Your resilience and courage to push through these tough circumstances is inspiring. Thank you for being our rocks, for keeping us steady and for smiling even when the world has thrown us a bit of a curve ball. These times are unprecedented, but you have always had our backs and made sure we are not alone in a time of isolation. We hope to repay you one day!
To the wider St Aidan’s community, your support has been out of this world. The positivity and assistance from you has been outstanding. From food drives facilitated by the P&F, the tuckshop making dinner packs for teachers who couldn’t get to the shops before items sold out and the continuous support via support packages, emails and phone calls, we thank you. We look forward to continuing our work with you in 2020.
With uncertainty in the air, we know a few things for sure. The sun always comes up tomorrow, rainbows always appear after the rain and there is always light at the end of a tunnel. We will make more memories, meet new people and start new journeys. We will be reminded of the beauty that life has to offer, we will live each day as if it is our last and we will not take any moment for granted. Please remember, you’re not alone. We are here for one another and we are strong when we remain connected as a community.
This year is not on pause, it is just a new chapter in a book that is still filled with adventure, love and new twists and turns.
For this break, your mission is to reach out to those who you might not always talk to, support each other and make new memories. And remember, we were all… born to fly!
All our support,
Lily Sullivan (School Captain) and Paris Teevan (Vice Captain)