The Headmaster’s new Senior Leadership TeamPage 2
Challenges at the Annual Cadet CampPage 7-8
Dr George Fielding Award for Diligence and ApplicationPage 15
Volume 27 No.3 November 2017
1
A publication of Toowoomba Grammar School PO Box 2900, Toowoomba Qld 435024 Margaret Street, Toowoomba Qld 4350Tel: 07 4687 2500 Fax: 07 4687 2582Email: [email protected] Web: www.twgs.qld.edu.auCricos Registration No: 00525D ABN 86 510 299 250
Incorporating Balliwanga, the newsletter of the Toowoomba Grammar School Old Boys’ Association Inc.Email: [email protected] Web: www.tgsoba.org.auABN 38 614 918 181
The Headmaster’s new Senior Leadership TeamPage 2
Challenges at the Annual Cadet CampPage 7-8
Dr George Fielding Award for Diligence and ApplicationPage 15
Volume 27 No.3 November 2017
www.twgs.qld.edu.au Toowoomba Grammar School @toowoombagsDownload the TGS App
Editor: Toowoomba Grammar School Publications Department
Photography: TGS Publications Department and various students and staff members & Mr W. McRae
Front Cover: 125th Anniversary of the Toowoomba Grammar School Cadet Unit March Out Parade
Inside Cover: 1986 TGS Athletics Captain, Simon Taylor pictured with his son Matthew, the 2017 Junior School Athletics Captain
CORRECTION In the August edition, on page 5, we provided an Address by Mr Richard Hodgson wherein he recalled his father speaking of Old Boys including ‘the late “Twang” Dunbar’. We apologise for the misinformation – Mr Dunbar is alive and well and living in Melbourne and the school has apologised to him for this inaccuracy. Further, on page 23 in the ‘Deaths’ section, Old Boy Julian Elms’ (1967-71) name was misprinted.
From the President ..............................................................................................23
Reminiscences, Trustee John Handley ................................................25
Old Boy News ...........................................................................................................27
From the Headmaster ...........................................................................................2
Former Senior Prefect Assembly Guest ..................................................3
Artwork donation to the School ..................................................................4
Academic Success in Science ..........................................................................4
Major Queensland Student Art Award ....................................................5
Annual Cadet Camp ...............................................................................................7
Sony Foundation Children's Holiday Camp ........................................9
GPS Swimming Honour Board ....................................................................10
Third in Australia in Football (Soccer) ...................................................11
The O'Callaghan Cup (Rugby) .....................................................................12
Free Rugby Boots!! ..............................................................................................13
New Academic Diligence Award Created ..........................................15
The Performing Arts Drama ..........................................................................16
Oliver The Musical ................................................................................................17
From the Junior School ....................................................................................19
2
A feature of a highly successful
independent school is its ability to have
extremely talented staff being offered key
educational appointments in other schools.
Such has occurred at Toowoomba Grammar
School with the promotion of our Deputy
Headmaster, Mr Timothy Kelly, being invited
to become the next Principal of Townsville
Grammar School commencing 1 January
2018. The entire Toowoomba Grammar
School community congratulates Mr Kelly
on this most senior
posting in one of
Queensland’s eight
original Grammar
Schools. Mr Kelly
has been the
Deputy Headmaster
of our School since
2007 and his work
ethic, performance
and educational vision have been exemplary
throughout this period. Mr Kelly will be
appropriately thanked in more detail in the
School’s annual report and school magazine.
A most successful school should also
have the ability to promote from within
under certain circumstances. The School
should have staff of sufficient quality to be
promoted to more senior roles. With Mr
Kelly’s promotion to Principal of Townsville
Grammar School, the position of Deputy
Headmaster arose and has now been filled by
Mr John Anderson,
the School’s
current Head of
Senior School.
Prior to coming
to Toowoomba
Grammar School
in 2005, Mr
Anderson was
the Acting Principal of Blackheath and
Thornborough College. Upon transferring
to Toowoomba Grammar School Mr
Anderson held the senior management
role of Director of Sport and Activities.
Later, in 2013, he was promoted to a newly
created position as Head of Senior School.
Another most positive consequence
of a school operating at an optimal level is
its ability to attract capable staff as future
employees. Toowoomba Grammar School
can provide countless examples of this in
recent years. With the internal promotion
of Mr Anderson to the position of Deputy
Headmaster, the School has been able to
attract one of its former teachers back to the
School to fill this
position. I refer to
Mr Mark Oliphant
who was a teacher
of Health and
Physical Education
and Science at
Toowoomba
Grammar School
from 2005-
2011. For three years he was the Boarding
Housemaster of Boyce House and he also
held the role of Acting Director of Sport
and Activities for one term. Mr Oliphant
then transferred to one of the GPS member
schools in Sydney, Newington College,
where he was a senior Housemaster.
Three years later he decided to return
to Queensland to undertake his current
employment as Director of Boarding at
Anglican Church Grammar School, ‘Churchie’.
Mr Oliphant holds a Masters degree
in Education and is a Director of the
Australian Boarding Schools’ Association.
In earlier years he was a member of
the Australian triathlon team and a
Queensland champion in duathlon.
Another example of Toowoomba
Grammar School having the ability to fill key
management positions is in the successor
to Mr Ian Young who, until his retirement in
September, had been the School’s Business
Manager for thirty years. With a wealth of
experience in school operations, finance
and corporate governance it may have
been a major concern for the School to find
a suitably experienced replacement. The
School has been most fortunate in being able
to attract the former Chief Financial Officer/
Business Manager of Ipswich Grammar
School, Mrs Debbie McCourt. We wish Mrs
McCourt a long and successful career with us.
In summary, the boys of Toowoomba
Grammar School and I are extremely
fortunate in having the services of
such a talented and committed
teaching and non-teaching staff.
With best wishes,
Peter B HauserHeadmaster
Dear Readers,
HeadmasterFrom the
The boys of Toowoomba
Grammar School and I
are extremely fortunate
in having the services
of such a talented and
committed teaching
and non-teaching staff.
Mr Timothy Kelly
Mr John Anderson
Mr Mark Oliphant
3
On Thursday, 27 July, Mr Mark Horstman attended the School for the Academic Honours Assembly. Mr Horstman was a dayboy from 1978-1982. He was active in the diving club, biology lab, debating teams, school plays, cadets, and as Senior Prefect. He studied zoology and marine biology at James Cook University, served as president of the Student Union, and graduated with a science degree. During the nineties, he worked in environmental management and protection throughout Northern Australia with organisations as diverse as the Cape York Land Council, the Australian Conservation Foundation, the Queensland Premier’s Department, and the Kimberley Land Council, while living in many different parts of the country.
Mr Horstman left the red sands of Broome for the bright lights of Sydney to join ABC's Radio National as a cadet science journalist in 2002. He went on to make award-winning TV
stories for Catalyst from Antarctica, Africa, the Asia-Pacific region, and throughout Australia, until ABC-TV's weekly science program was cancelled in 2016. Now based in Hobart with his wife and two children, he works as a freelance science journalist and producer.
Mr Horstman’s address to the boys was an honest reflection on his career, including
the recent redundancy experienced when his show was cancelled by the ABC. His message of resilience was reinforced with his focus on the driving forces for his career; his passion for science, in particular environmental issues, for social justice and his determination to bring those passions into his career.
Old Boy, Mr Mark Horstman and Headmaster, Mr Peter Hauser
Mr Mark Horstman
Queensland Business Awards
Two Year 10 Commerce students, Sam
Pegler and Rajdeep Singh, have been
placed first and second in Queensland
in Division One of the 2017 CPA Plan Your Own Enterprise. Sam will present his
business plan to a group of judges in the
national finals in Melbourne in October.
Academic Honours Assembly Guest
Sam Pegler and Rajdeep Singh
The Brisbane Valley Rail line was progressively constructed between1884 and 1913, providing a vital rail link from Wulkuraka (just to the west of Ipswich on the Ipswich/Toowoomba line) eventually to Yarraman. The entire line was finally closed in 1991. It has since been converted to a recreational trail catering for walkers, cyclists and horse riders.
The trail provided the ideal setting for a two-day cycling expedition for a small number of boys from Years 7-8 who volunteered to participate in this Adventure Club activity. On the first day the boys, together with TGS teachers Mr Brodie Bassingthwaighte and Mr
Paul Sullivan, set out from Toogoolawah on Saturday morning aiming for their overnight stop at Lowood. By its very nature, the gradient of a rail line is not usually steep so the riding was easy. Reminders of a time past were evident along the trail – speed signs, ‘w’ for whistle signs and siding name signs in the typical black on white timber. Day one cycling involved 55 kilometres with an overnight stay in tents at the Lowood Showgrounds. Day two involved riding from Lowood to Wulkuraka (31 kms). The boys enjoyed the ride with the only complaint being bumpy trails over time with the resultant sore backsides.
Cycling the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail
4
Ian R. Copeland attended TGS from 1947-1950 and was involved in cross country running and representing the School as a member of the shooting team, receiving School Colours. In his professional life Ian was an industrial chemist. On the evening of Saturday, 9 September the Annual Reunion Dinner for Old Boys was held at Rumours
International. 219 Old Boys and partners attended the function which was primarily held for those Old Boys concluding their schooling from 1947, 1957, 1967, 1977, 1987, 1997 and 2007. At the dinner Ian recounted to the Headmaster that years ago he had won an oil painting of School House in a raffle which he has now kindly donated to
the School in memory of his brother Old Boy Geoffrey Copeland (1951-1954) who was also a teacher at TGS 1957-1959.
Artwork donation to the School
Academic Success in Science
Boys in Year 7 through to Year 10 performed creditably again this year in The University of New South Wales (UNSW) International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS) Science Competition with 19 boys receiving Distinction awards. Senior Chemistry students performed particularly well, with five High Distinctions in the Australian National Chemistry Quiz. High Distinctions are awarded to students scoring in the top ten percent of Queensland.
After an outstanding performance at the Darling Downs regional level of the Science and Engineering Challenge, the Toowoomba Grammar School Year 10 team progressed to the State Final held in September at which they were placed fourth overall in Queensland.
Old Boy, Mr Ian Copeland and Headmaster, Mr Peter Hauser
The National Youth Science Forum (NYSF) is a national program that supports students with an interest in Science-based tertiary studies. Three of our Year 12 students were accepted into this program and two Year 11 students have been selected for the 2018 NYSF program.
5
The School is delighted to congratulate one of its Year 12 students, Austin Reed, on his “Excellence Award” at this year’s Creative Generations Visual Art Awards (formerly known as The Minister’s Award). Austin is one of only approximately 40 students in Queensland presented with this honour. He has been invited to hang his work in an exhibition at the Gallery of Modern Art in Brisbane next year.
Austin is one of the School’s top academics and is studying English, Mathematics B, Mathematics C, Chemistry, Physics and Art. He combines an academic passion for Mathematics and is considering a number of options for his tertiary education. These include submitting an application to study a Bachelor of Mathematics with Honours at Cambridge University in England next year. In describing his self-portrait, Austin said:
Major Queensland Student Art Award
Artwork by Austin Reed, Year 12 TGS – to hang in an exhibition at the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) in Brisbane in 2018
I painted the self-portrait as an outlet, a vehicle by which I can express my inner emotions in their truest, most transparent form. It is the first in a series of works exploring my personality and in particular the duality that exists. This work focuses on my darker side, that I describe as hardworking, perfectionist and analytical.
I attempted to convey this theme through various elements within the composition, including the
clothing and the high contrast of colour and tone.
The School was thrilled to welcome back to TGS Young Old Boy, Matt Denny (2011-2013) who represented Australia in discus at the 2013 World Youth, 2014 World Juniors, 2015 World University Games, 2016 Rio Olympics and who was also selected in the 2017 World University Games. The occasion was the Track and Field Camp at Emu Gully wherein 44 boys attended.
It was a double victory for Toowoomba Grammar School in our boys winning both the Open Division and Junior Division Championships in the 2017 Toowoomba District Teams’ Chess Championships. The School’s Open Team was the overall champion team of the competition gaining 22 points out of a possible 24 points. Our boys and staff also congratulated the team representing St Joseph’s College (Toowoomba) on securing second place. Our winning team will now represent our region in the Queensland Secondary Schools State Chess Finals in October. Of interest, the TGS Junior School
team accrued more points than every other secondary school team in Toowoomba with the exception of the team from St Joseph’s College gaining second place.
TGS Old Boy Olympian Assists at the Track and Field Training Camp
Toowoomba District Schools’ Team Chess Champions
Captain of Chess, Connor Hill
6
Three of the School’s Year 12 Art students had samples of their artistic work displayed at a regional exhibition at the Toowoomba Regional Art Gallery: Austin Reed, Ryan Deacon and Flynn Eadie.
Ryan and Flynn’s entries are shown
here. At a function at the Toowoomba
Regional Art Gallery were the School’s
two Senior School Art teachers, Mr Giles
Murfin (Teacher-in-Charge) and Mrs
Leanne Penberthy, both of whom were
extremely proud to note the talent and
success of their students.
Flynn Eadie, Year 12
Ryan Deacon, Year 12
Further Art Success
7
During the period 16 -23 September, forty-
nine cadets and two staff members attended
the South Queensland Brigade Annual Camp
at Greenbank Training Area south of Brisbane.
The structure of the camp for this week was
in two tiers, with over 1000 cadets plus staff
assembling at Greenbank from as far north as
Bundaberg, as far west as Charleville, down to
St George and the NSW border. The first day
was very trying for the cadets as they waited
seven hours to be admitted to the camp and
their Battalion areas.
Cadets in Tier 1 included two nights and
two days in the field doing day and night
navigation and field activities. They also
had a trip to Gallipoli Barracks at Enoggera
where the 2/14 Brigade put on a display of
vehicles and armoury for the cadets and
they had the opportunity to shoot at the
WTSS facility with the standard military
rifle, the F88 Steyr. Other activities included
team building activities, archery, inflatable
obstacle course, rock wall climbing and radio
communication on the Raven RTF200 the
latest cadet communication equipment.
Tier 2 had a different structure of activities
this year and cadets had been given the
option to choose a specialisation prior to
the camp. The specialisations included:
Robotics with lego where the cadets built
their machines and then programmed them
to do a function; Re-con which improved
the reconnaissance skills for the cadets; first
aid where the cadets received a certificate;
communications where they learnt advanced
radio communication skills on the Raven
RTF200; Survival where cadets skinned a
rabbit and quall and cooked them on an
open fire; the highlight for some cadets
The School is proud to have its Cadet Unit as the longest continuously serving Unit in Queensland with this year celebrating its 125th year in operation. Cadets at Toowoomba Grammar School is a voluntary activity but is well supported by many boys.
Other activities included team building activities, archery, inflatable obstacle course,
rock wall climbing and radio communication on the Raven
RTF200 the latest cadet communication equipment.
AnnualCadet Camp
8
was the drone experience where they
operated drones on a number of tactical
activities. The Tier 2 cadets also had training
on the operation of the F88 Steyr and the
opportunity to shoot on an open range.
The overall comments from cadets
when questioned prior to their departure
from the Camp were that they enjoyed the
activity; were exhausted with early morning
starts at 4.45 am or earlier; dusty from the
clouds of dust created by the movement
of cadets and vehicles; looking forward to
a shower and their own beds and getting
back their mobile phones which had not
been allowed at camp for the whole week!
For the period 23 September to the 27
September 3 cadets and TGS staff member
and Co-ordinator of Cadets Mrs Ann Hallam
stayed on for the Tier 3 camp which was
to provide a military experience for the
cadets. The cadets participated in sections
under the command of a platoon ADF
commander with an Army Cadet Staff to
supervise. The scenario was a humanitarian/
peace keeping based exercise which
provided some confronting situations such
as food distribution; casualty evacuations,
vehicle check points; negotiations; security;
navigation and patrolling and shooting with
the F88 rifle and F89 machine gun on an
open range. The cadets were challenged
the whole time and were expected to
function like an ADF section in the field.
9
For three days and two nights, 35 young guests with some disability were cared for by their Year 11 TGS companions. The majority of the guests live locally, attending schools including Toowoomba West Special School, Highfields State School, Gabbinbar State School, Wilsonton State School and Clifford Park Special School. Over the three days, the companions (46 from TGS, 12 from The Glennie School and 12 from Fairholme College) did a fantastic job of caring for their guest. For many of the companions this is a considerable undertaking as few would have had the responsibility of caring for someone else over an extended period of time. They should all be very pleased with how they looked after their guest. Whilst there are plenty of activities on offer during the camp including swimming, arts and crafts, music making, a disco, and a show day complete with rides, it is the quiet times where everyone has a chance to relax and get to know each other that seem to stand out. This year Sony artist and Eurovision contestant, Isaiah Firebrace, also visited which caused
a great deal of excitement. As per previous years, the organisation of the camp is a significant undertaking and this year’s camp was most ably led by the Deputy Headmaster,
Mr Timothy Kelly, and a committed group of Year 12 students as well as Mr John Anderson, Mr Jim Noble, Mrs Jenny Bazley and Sr Sharon Morgan.
Sony Foundation Children’s Holiday Camp The School hosted its eleventh Sony Foundation Children’s Holiday Camp over the first weekend of the September holidays.
The School is enthusiastic in attempting to record the names of boys who have distinguished themselves in GPS Swimming over the years. An Honour Board will be prepared and erected in the Aquatic Centre to display the names of all TGS boys who have won an Open event at the GPS
Swimming Championships or won three or more individual events in an under age group or broke a GPS record at the GPS Swimming Championships. A draft of the names of the swimmers to be honoured appears in the following table. The School would be very grateful to hear from any Old Boys who can
identify any omission or inaccuracy in the detail included. Any communication can be directed to the School’s Director of Sport and Activities, Mr David Bell, on 4687 2500 or [email protected]
Year Student's Name Event1928 Max Muller Open 50m breaststroke
1931 Ken Macalpine Open 100 yards freestyle
1934 Thomas Muller Open 50 yards freestyle
1935 Thomas Muller Open 50 yards freestyle
1935 Thomas Muller Open 100 yards freestyle
1935 Thomas Muller Open 50 yards backstroke
1937 Chisholm Bernays Open 50 yards breaststroke
1937 Douglas Moreton Open 400 yards freestyle
1945 Gordon Card Open 50 yards freestyle
1945 Gordon Card Open 50 yards backstroke
1949 Don Trenerry Under 14, 3 events, freestyle and backstroke
1950 Don Trenerry Under 15, 3 events, freestyle and backstroke
1969 Kent McGregor Open 100 metres backstroke
1971 James Ferguson Open breaststroke
1973 Des McGovern Open 100 metres backstroke
1977 Craig Seawright Open 100 metres breaststroke
1996 Grant Chandler Open 100m backstroke
1997 Grant Chandler Open 100m backstroke
2011 Alan Gibson, Patrick McNab, Braiden (BJ) Oates, Charles Carswell Under 13 Medley Relay GPS Record (from 2002)
2011 Braiden (BJ) Oates Under 13, 3 events, freestyle
2012 Braiden (BJ) Oates Under 14, 3 events, freestyle
2016 Benjamin Clarke Open 50m freestyle
2017 Dylan Stevens Open 200 metres freestyle
2017 Dylan Stevens Open 100 metres backstroke
2017 Dylan Stevens, Joshua Smith, Fraser Stewart, Simon Geldenhuys Open 4x200 medley relay
2017 William Salmond Under 13, 50 metres butterfly GPS Record (from 2003)
GPS Swimming Honour Board
The Aquatic CentreGPS Open Medley Winners
L to R: D. Stevens, S. Geldenhuys, J. Smith, F. Stewart
11
The ‘Bill Turner Cup’ is a national football/soccer knockout competition for school teams with players aged 15 years and under. Toowoomba Grammar School submitted an Under 15 football team in this competition and was delighted to see our boys win the Queensland final. Following this the boys were involved in the national tournament to identify the top Under 15 football team in Australia. Our boys came third in this national competition, being beaten by the eventual winning team representing Westfield Sports High School, Sydney.The Patron of Football at Toowoomba Grammar School is Mr Rale Rasic, the coach of the Australian Socceroos and Australian Sports Hall of Fame inductee. Mr Rasic joined the TGS staff at the tournament and he organised a visit by Ray Baartz who played for the Socceroos under Rale Rasic’s tutelage. Ray, who was born in Dalby, was also the first foreign player ever signed by Manchester United. Unfortunately, a severe injury against Uruguay stopped him playing in the 1974
World Cup. Ray spoke to the boys at length and each boy hung off his every word.The Director of Football at TGS, Mr Peter Broadfoot, together with football coaches, Mr
Chris McLeod and Mr Paul Kalinowski, were full of praise for our boys. Their national third placing made this TGS team as the best team north of Sydney in the Bill Turner Cup.
Photographed below is the Captain of the School’s 1st XV Rugby team, Tom Dickenson – playing in his first U13s game in 2013 and also leading the Firsts team this year. The Firsts had a frustrating year with many close losses but were extremely competitive and determined throughout the season. Somewhat typical of the team’s ability was the fact that they lost to the eventual Co-Premiers, St Joseph’s Nudgee College, by only three points in a game that could have gone either way. Being so close to Nudgee in front of Nudgee’s home crowd on Ross Oval and not winning the game was disappointing but everyone in the crowd was extremely proud of our boys’ strength of character, sportsmanship and commitment to training throughout the year.
From 13A Rugby Captain to School Prefect and Captain of the 1st XV
Third in Australia in Football (Soccer)
12
A Big Win in the O’Callaghan Cup
This annual competition involves the Rugby teams representing Toowoomba Grammar School and Downlands College.
The photograph of the TGS 1st XV captain, Tom Dickenson, tells the tale as does the accompanying results table.
This is the second successive year in which our School has won every rugby game in all age divisions against Downlands College.
TEAM RESULT TGS DOWNLANDS
First XV Win 31 26
2nd XV Win 45 12
3rd XV Win 44 7
4th XV No Match
5th XV No Match
6th XV No Match
16A Win 55 0
16B Win 47 5
16C No Match
16D No Match
15A Win 22 12
15B Win 67 0
15C Win 65 0
15D No Match
14A Win 45 7
14B Win 61 10
14C No Match
14D No Match
13A Win 62 0
13B Win 34 7
13C Win 60 0
13D No Match
12A No Match
12B No Match
11A No Match
11B No Match
The O’Callaghan Cup was established in 1950 and named after five brothers attending Downlands College.
12
13
Zavier wrote a letter to the Headmaster outlining what happened on this day, the letter is reproduced here:
Dear Headmaster
My name is Xavier Lindemann.
I am in grade 5 at Grammar. I was at Grammar Downlands day, and I was there for six hours watching every single game. When the first XV were playing I watched Grammar go up 26-0 at half time and I thought to myself this is going to be to [sic] easy and then in the second half Downlands came back and scored 26 points but we still won. Before they did the presentations my friends and I were getting signatures from the 1sts and then after the presentations I went up to the number 10 Harry Leerentveld and I asked him for his boots and he said, they are a bit banged up but you can have them, so I walked home with a smile on my face. I feel very privileged to have his boots and could you please say a big thankyou to Harry for me. Thank you.
Please Respond From Xavier Lindemann
Could you please give this to Harry
Rugby Boots!!Readers of Omnibus should enjoy the story of a Year 5 boy in the TGS Junior School, Xavier Lindemann, watching his rugby heroes for six hours straight on Grammar Downlands day and what happened after the match!
Harry Leerentveld (Year 12) and Xavier Lindemann (Year 5)
Free
The 1st XV player referred to in
Xavier’s letter is a Year 12 boarder,
Harry Leerentveld. When Harry was
asked by Xavier’s mother about him
giving away his expensive rugby
boots to Xavier, Harry replied that
he had bought them with his own
money and was happy to make
young Xavier proud of TGS Rugby.
14
Pictured are the winners of five perpetual trophies. They are the Most Promising Player awarded to Greg Spurgin; the Most Improved Player (Jason Spurgin); Defensive Player of the Year (William Harmsworth); Most Valuable Player (Joshua Ozegovic); and the most prestigious award, the Graham Copeland Award presented to the Captain of the 1sts team, Samuel Mundell.All boys in the School studying Health and
Physical Education and all with an interest in Basketball, Volleyball, indoor Cricket, indoor Football (Futsal) and general fitness, are eagerly awaiting the completion of the new Gymnasium. It is anticipated that the building comprising three indoor courts, classrooms, teachers’ work stations and general cardio equipment will be completed by early February of 2018. Once the construction work has been completed, Trustees Oval
will be returned to a fully functioning playing oval with direct access to the new Gymnasium. The new Gym will also provide wonderful viewing areas for spectators for both the indoor court sports and also for cricket, football and rugby games on Trustees Oval. The current Trenerry Gymnasium will represent a fourth court for the Senior School boys and also be most effectively utilized by the Junior School boys during the school day.
In a strange twist of fate, the 2017 Toowoomba Grammar School First XV front row has been playing together since their 13A days back in 2013. Rueben Lindsay and Rory Kuskie hastily set the record straight that their fellow front rower, Will Wigan, does not have their breadth of experience because he did not debut in the 13As until Round 3 against Brisbane Grammar School. That game holds happy memories for Rory, who scored two tries in a solid win.Whilst an attempt to claim telepathic understanding of each other’s games is a stretch, the boys feel there is an unspoken awareness on the field developed through many tough encounters in training and games.Will and Rory’s best memories of TGS Rugby are from a hard fought win over GT in the 15As and Reuben enjoyed the satisfaction of a 5-0 victory over Churchie in the 16As, with the men in Blue and Gold defending their line
for a full ten minutes to seal the match. All of the boys nominated mastering the basics of their position as their key advice for younger players aspiring to make the First XV in the future.There are a wide variety of influences on their rugby careers to date. Will nominated the advice of First XV Coach Enfantie as the cornerstone of his success. Reuben said his dad, a former prop, was his most honest and supportive critic and Rory cited 2015 Old Boy and current Queensland Reds player Hamish Stewart and his leadership by example as his biggest influence.
Probably as a result of their close quarters experiences at TGS, all boys see themselves at King’s College UQ, after they graduate. The Downlands match at home in Round 9 was their last time as team mates. In 2019, Rory will play for University after a Gap Year, Reuben will be at GPS Club in 2018 and Will is still undecided.
Basketball Awards Ceremony
Triple Trouble
At the end of the GPS Basketball season, our TGS basketball players and coaches enjoyed a celebratory awards ceremony.
William Wigan, Rory Kuskie, Reuben Lindsay
15
The School has always promoted the desirability and expectation of hard work from its students. We do this in many ways both in academic studies and in the co-curricular areas of sport, music, drama, cadets, community service and the outdoors.This year the School has initiated a new award to recognise sustained hard work in academic studies by the boys. The Award is to be known as the Dr George Fielding Award for Application and Diligence and this was awarded to 31 young men in Year 12 who have consistently won academic diligence prizes throughout their Senior School years. This award is based on the qualities of hard work and persistence in study and not purely linked to academic achievement.
New Academic Diligence Award CreatedDr George Fielding Award for Application and Diligence
Dr George Fielding was appointed Senior Prefect at Toowoomba Grammar School in mid 1947 when the then Senior Prefect left the School. George Fielding was also the Senior Prefect in the following year, 1948.
George Fielding was the only son of Lillian and Harold Fielding of Indooroopilly, Brisbane.
He entered Toowoomba Prep School as a boarder at the age of seven and went on to Toowoomba Grammar from 1944 until 1948.
When Dr Fielding goes back to visit the School and walks through the avenue of beautiful jacarandas, he is reminded of people and events that meant so much to him as a student at the School, and throughout his life.
On his first Saturday night at Toowoomba Grammar, in 1944, George, and all new students, had to sing a song. He chose to sing “Waltzing Matilda”, which was very well received, and all the boys joined in. Then MJ Sainsbury, later to become the Senior Prefect in the following year sang “Love Divine, All Love Excelling”. It was beautiful singing, and had a wonderful, happy effect on the entire boarding house. In previous years, it was a practice for senior boys to “crow peck” the younger boys, especially the small new boys. In his year as Senior Prefect, Maurice Sainsbury declared that this would be no longer tolerated, that all boys must be treated with kindness. This had a great influence on the feeling in the boarding house, that the younger boys would not be hurt. Maurice Sainsbury went on to study Psychiatry in Brisbane and later moved to Sydney.
In his first days at TGS, George Fielding met Charlie Moore, who grew up in Bollon, in western Queensland. They shared the same birthday. They studied together in the same rooms all through school and were very warm friends. Charlie played in the First Grade teams for both cricket and tennis. George Fielding believes Charlie was the best cricketer the School has ever seen.
At the end of 1948 George returned to Brisbane to take up studies in medicine at the University of Queensland. As a result of his study, on the 10th of December 1954, George graduated and became a doctor. After graduating Medicine, Dr Fielding became a Resident at the Royal Brisbane Hospital. In 1958 he moved to the newly opened Princess Alexandra Hospital.
In 1958, Dr Fielding (and later his wife Barbara and their two small children) travelled to the United Kingdom where he trained and became a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons, England, in 1959. He worked as a surgeon in Wales until 1962, when he was invited back to Brisbane to head Surgery at the Princess Alexandra Hospital.
He received his Fellowship to the Royal Australian College of Surgeons in 1963. Dr Fielding worked as a consulting surgeon at the P.A. Hospital until his retirement from the Public Hospital in 1995. Dr Fielding was one of the first surgeons to work at the Wesley Hospital that opened in 1977 and was instrumental in creating the Wesley Breast Clinic.
He was President and Examiner of the Royal Australian College of Surgeons, and in 1989 received a medal from the College for his service to the College. In the 1996 Australia Day Honours List, Dr Fielding was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for “service to Medicine, particularly as a surgeon”.
Relevant to this particular Toowoomba Grammar School award, Dr George Fielding clearly demonstrated application and diligence throughout his life. In addition to his application and diligence to his medical career, Dr Fielding also showed great diligence by returning to tertiary study when he was aged in his late 60’s. In this regard Dr Fielding completed a Bachelor of Arts degree with a Double Major in History.
The School is extremely proud to have Dr George Fielding as a distinguished Old Boy.
Microsoft Innovative Educator EXPERT PROGRAM
The Head of the Information Processing & Technology Department, Mr Paul Barton, has been selected as a Microsoft Innovative Educator (MIE) expert, one of only 90 in Australia (and including another TGS teacher, Mr Michael Cocks). This group of 90 Australian Information Technology educators joins over 6000 world-wide in enabling these innovators to share ideas, try new approaches and learn from one another. These educators have achieved excellence in education using technology and social media. Mr Barton is also one of only 39 in Australia who is a ‘Google for Education Certified Trainer’ having completed a range of courses in 2016.
16
Both ensembles consisted of twelve Grammar students, with the Senior TiGAA troupe also including four young women from Fairholme College and St Ursula’s College. Early in the year TiGAA members performed at the Welcome Concert, successfully competed in the Toowoomba Eisteddfod, and facilitated the highly entertaining Read My Lips Lipsynching competition.
Within the Welcome Concert a variety of hilarious scenarios were performed around the theme of Learner Drivers, in which our teens were instructed by riotous driving instructors and terrified parents.
The annual Read My Lips competition raised funds for the Sree Belbenjhyang primary school in Nepal. An audience of over 700 screaming teens were entertained by the winning Pitch Perfect crew - The Treble Tones, and The Groomsmen from Groom House, in addition to numerous other acts from Toowoomba Grammar, Fairholme College and St Ursula’s College.
After much comedic action the students of Senior TiGAA then set their mind to presenting their annual dramatic performance. This year students were extended dramatically in presenting The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time written by Mark Haddon, and adapted for the stage by Simon Stephens.
The auditioned ensembles which comprise the Toowoomba Grammar Acting Academy (TiGAA) welcomed twenty- eight members this year.
The Performing Arts Drama
Patrick Thomson in The Curious Incident of the Dog int he Night-time
This award winning production, recently performed on West End and Broadway, was presented by Senior TiGAA members at the Armitage Centre, Empire Theatre, on Thursday, 26 October. As a testament to the quality of this script, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time will have its professional premiere in the new year by the Melbourne Theatre Company.
In addition to this the young men from Junior TiGAA held their comedic
showcase on the evening of Monday, 13 November at the Henderson Arts Block.
Within the subject Drama, an exciting contemporary production of Macbeth was performed by the talented men of Year 11 Drama over two nights – Monday, 6 and Tuesday, 7 November. In this extraordinary task the boys were asked to reimage Macbeth in three parts with the audience moving through the space in interaction with each of the scenes. Battles raged within the walls of the Henderson Arts Block as our 11th Century warriors sharpened their swords in bringing a youthful engaging interpretation of Macbeth.
Drama students in Year 10 also performed their annual Australians at War performance to coincide with the School’s ANZAC Day ceremonies. The Year 10 class interpreted the plays, Snapshots from Home, by Margery Forde, and Loyal Creatures by Morris Gleitzman. Both of these performances took place in the Henderson Arts Block, which is proving to be a fantastic space to explore contemporary dramatic texts in addition to traditional ones.
The Teacher-in-Charge of Drama and the Head of Arts is Mrs Eylece Blaikie. Together with other Arts staff, she is to be congratulated on motivating the boys and co-ordinating such a useful program for their benefit.
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The Musical August 17-19, Empire Theatre
OliverEvery 2 years, Toowoomba Grammar School and Fairholme College join forces to create a magical experience for our student cohort and the Toowoomba community, namely a combined musical staged at the incredible Empire Theatre over 4 special performances. We began the process well over a year ago when the decision was made that the 2017 production would be the ever popular ‘Oliver-the Musical’, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart and based on the famous novel ‘Oliver Twist’ by Charles Dickens.
At the beginning of the year we began the audition process and with over 170 students clamouring to be part of the show it was clear we had so much talent to choose from and the decision to double cast all the Major and Minor leads resulted in, not one, but two incredible casts working together to bring the story to life.
A musical is an epic production that requires many dedicated staff, creatives, students and community members to bring it to life and we were certainly not short of wonderful people to assist.
Through an extensive rehearsal period, initially separated into Chorus, Principals. Orchestra and construction crew sessions, each area of the show worked separately and then as the weeks progressed joined forces to bring about the amazing final product. Countless hours were given to the Production and we were appreciative of everybody who helped make the dream come true.
None of this could have been possible without a vision from the start and that vision came from Artistic Director, Katrina Bailey. With experience working with the students from both Fairholme and Grammar, Katrina quickly established a magical rapport with all concerned and, with the assistance of many talented staff, allowed this vision to be realised on the stage.
We would like to thank all the staff who comprised the team behind Katrina; however, a few deserve special mention. The Producers Tim Kelly (TGS) and Alex Dixon and Nancy Macks (Fairholme), my vocal direction assistants Mary Louise
Fraser and Martin Paroz (TGS), Orchestral Director Rod Egerton (Fairholme) and the staff who contributed to the Orchestra, Repititeurs Melissa Buchholz (TGS) and Chris Lebsanft (Fairholme), Choreography Brigid Baker (Fairholme), Stage and Set Design and construction Grant Lehmann, Karen Hayward (Faiholme) and Ray Morgan (TGS)
When opening night finally came about we were rewarded with thousands of spectators from our two schools and the much wider Darling Downs community and we are proud to say our show did not disappoint, as all walked away staggered by the standard of the students and the stunning visual effects, mastery of the orchestra and all other components of the musical production.
Thank you to all who came out and supported ‘Oliver – The Musical’. The amazing feedback we have received from parents, members of the community and professionals involved in the industry reinforces our opinion that this was a truly spectacular production of the highest quality and once again its back to the drawing board to plan the next exciting Musical in 2019!
Neil Roche-KellyDirector of Performance (TGS) and Vocal Director (Oliver-The Musical)
A musical is an epic production that requires
many dedicated staff, creatives, students and
community members to bring it to life and
we were certainly not short of wonderful
people to assist.
Fagin (Joe Smith) being towed by gang members Finbar Murphy and Joshua Brown
18Nancy (Anna Roche-Kelly) sings ‘As Long As He Needs Me’
Chorus members Cameron Cardillo and Ila Torrence Fagin (Jeremy Egerton) and gang picking a pocket or two.
Full company – Cast, Crew, Creatives and OrchestraOliver (Henry Heslop) asks Mr Bumble (Seb Hand) for more!
The Artful Dodger (Emma Johnson) with Oliver (Henry Heslop) and members of Fagin’s Gang.
Fagin (Joe Smith) reviewing the situation
Curtain Call with the company
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School should be a happy and engaging place for primary school students. Finding your passion, be it in the classroom, in music, with sport or another co-curricular activity is only possible if the opportunities are provided. I like to think that this is something in which our school excels, ensuring we provide boys with multiple and diverse opportunities. This article provides a window into some of these possibilities.
The Junior School Writing Competition is an annual event. Every boy from Prep to Year 6 enters this competition, writing text types that have been taught in class. First place in each class is awarded a trophy and a book
voucher, with medallions being given to boys who place second and third. The boys are presented with their prizes at a special Academic Awards Assembly.
The Junior School orchestra consists of nearly
50 musicians from Years 3 to 6, covering
strings, woodwind, brass and percussion. The
boys were very excited to be awarded first
place at the Toowoomba Eisteddfod for their
performances in Term 3.
Junior School Writing Competition
Junior School Eisteddfod Success
The Headmaster (far right) and Mr Campbell (far left) with the Writing Competition first place recipients. Back row, L-R James Watson, Jackson Smiddy, James Nicholls, Angus Dann, George Clifford, Andrew Shelton, Samuel Gladwin and Thomas Dixon. Front row, L-R Zac Brown, Ethan Thompson, Joseph Ramia, Devan Pokharel, Noah Brannelly and Aseel Eisa.
L-R back row: Junior School Orchestra representatives, Thomas Dixon, Mrs Jayne Davidson (music teacher and conductor) and Bede Davis (Captain of Music), L-R front row: John Ridgway and Gabriel Schubert, with their Eisteddfod trophy.
Toowoomba Grammar School
From the Junior School
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Book Week is promoted by the Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) and in our School this is an important and special time. As part of Book Week we had visits from children’s book authors and illustrators, including Nadia Sunde (author / performer) and Samantha Wheeler (author). Boys and staff come to school dressed up in costume as characters from children’s books, with various prizes being
awarded. Our annual Doorways Competition also occurs at this time with classroom doors, entry areas and classrooms decorated with children’s work, all based around books for children. As a school for boys, we know how important it is to celebrate learning to read and the enjoyment associated with reading. This was an awesome week in the Junior School!
Charlie Randall, a Junior School student in Year 6, has had a most successful year on the track. Charlie is a three-times State Champion, placing first in cross country, 1500 metres and 800 metres. Charlie subsequently went on to become a National Champion, finishing first in the 11 years’ Cross Country at the Australian titles in Hobart. Charlie
will next compete at the National Athletics Carnival in the Christmas holidays. The nicest part of this story is that Charlie is pure home-grown talent, having commenced in Mrs Morgan's Prep class in 2011, the same year he became Cross Country Age Champion as a 5 year old. Congratulations Charlie!
Book Week
State and National Champion
3M dressed as their favourite book characters for dress up day.
Charlie Randall now holds three State and one National titles.
(L-R) Archer Black, Charlie Randall, Matthew Taylor and Cooper Harm all represented the Darling Downs at the Queensland Primary Schools’ Track and Field Carnival in Brisbane. Charlie won the 800m and the 1500m events. Matthew placed third in discus. Congratulations to all four boys.
5W boys showing off their winning doorway.
By Scott CampbellHead of Junior School
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Toowoomba Grammar School
From the Junior School
Junior School fathers, grandfathers and boys enjoyed a Fathers’ Day breakfast in and around the Pavilion in September. This annual event is always a happy and enjoyable occasion. The photographs help tell the story. Following this, our Year 3 boys and their fathers made billy carts
across the day and then raced them in the main school driveway. This allows fathers to spend a day at school with their son, not something that commonly occurs in schools.
Junior School Fathers’ Day Breakfast
Prep boys and their Fathers gathered for the annual Fathers’ Day Breakfast at the Pavilion. The four Prep fathers are wearing their ties made by the boys.
Ashton Reedy racing his billy cart.
Steve and John Tinkler before starting on their billy cart. Steve is holding his Toowoomba Grammar School toolbox, a project he undertook in his time at the School.
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By Scott CampbellHead of Junior School
The Junior School hosted a combined Junior Schools’ Orchestra Day during third term. Members of the Junior School orchestra, along with girls from The Glennie School’s Junior Orchestra combined in sectional
workshops and full ensemble rehearsals. The day concluded with performances at our Junior School assembly. The was a wonderful day for the students and staff.
Junior School Combined Orchestra Day
Combined Orchestra rehearsal.
Glennie and Grammar Junior School Brass Ensemble having fun practicing before the performance.
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How fast this year has gone. Personally I will see my youngest boy, Max, graduate bringing to an end twelve continuous years of being a parent at TGS, after both his oldest brothers, Bryce and Karl, went through as well. Whilst I’m not sad I have finished paying fees, I am a little sad that I am coming to an end as a parent at the school. The friendships that I have developed and the times that I have experienced during this time have been fantastic. I will miss it.
The last quarter of the year has been a very busy time for the Old Boys Association. We had our reunion in the last week-end of Term 3 which started with the Friday Night Welcome, continued with Rugby on the Saturday, the Reunion Dinner on Saturday night and concluded with a school tour on the Sunday. All the events were well attended with over 150 Old Boys coming along for the Friday night and over 200 attending the Reunion Dinner. I am sure all Old Boys enjoyed catching up over the weekend. Thank-you to Jennifer Fordyce and the Committee for all their work and help in organising and running the reunion weekend.
Mac Stirling (TGS 1970-73), a Property Developer, Architect and Sport & Recreation Consultant, was our special guest speaker for the annual Business Breakfast in October. Mac has had thirty years of experience as a sports architect and is
now the Managing Director of his family property development company, Lauder Pty Ltd. This company has developed the Highfields Village Shopping Centre and is currently developing The Avenues of Highfields, a 524 lot residential subdivision.
Mac shared his memories of his time at school in the early 1970’s and reiterated the importance of teachers and their influence on you when you are an impressionable young man. He gave some wonderful insights on the future and the opportunities that are there for Toowoomba and local businesses as the numerous major infrastructure projects on our doorstep start to take shape. One of his most important messages however was to make sure you keep a balance in your life. Despite our busy lives we must stop and take the time to enjoy our families. His recollection of taking the time to go fishing in Alaska with his father, despite being so busy, was a poignant message for all of us especially when we learnt that his father passed away not long after the fishing trip. Over 50 people attended the breakfast and I thank those people who supported the event.
Recently the school hosted a wonderful reunion which was put together by Mick Storrs (TGS 1959-62, OBA Life Member). Mick met up with Rod Hard (TGS 1958-61) on a recent trip to North Queensland and discovered that he had never received a Colours pocket for his blazer and he
decided to address this. He organised for a pocket to be embroidered and framed and this was presented to Mr Hard by the Headmaster at this reunion. Approximately 15 Old Boys who had attended school in the early ‘60s and those who had played rugby at that time came together to see the Headmaster present Rod with this special award. Rod Hard was a member of the 1st XV Rugby team in 1960 and captained the 1st XV in 1961. In 1961 he was selected to play in the QGPS 2nd XV. Rod earned Colours for Rugby in 1961, but because of certain situations, he did not get a Colours pocket. Congratulations to Rod who is a perfect gentleman and was a very humble man on the day. Many thanks also to Mick Storrs whose brainchild this was to hold the event.
As we wrapped up the year, the Old Boys hosted the Year 12s Pizza lunch during their last week. This, as you can imagine, was a huge logistical exercise given we needed to buy about 200 pizzas. Those boys can eat! We then had a key role in the Final Year 12 Assembly whereupon Old Boys who had sons in Year 12 handed out Old Boys ties and caps to all Year 12s. It was a special day and we always look forward to it.
No doubt the Year 12s boys have been getting plenty of advice on life in general over the last few months and whilst I was acutely aware of “advice overload” there were some key messages that I delivered to the boys on the couple of occasions that I was fortunate enough to speak to them as a group.
The main message that I have left with them is that regardless of
The Official Old Boys’ Newsletter
From the PresidentBrett Priebe (1978-82)
By the time you receive this Omnibus we will have seen another 184 boys become Old Boys with the 2017 Cohort finally graduating.
24
what their background was when they first came to TGS, they all leave school in a very privileged position because the school has taught and prepared them in two vital areas.
Firstly the boys know how to set goals and objectives and they know that if they work hard they will generally achieve those goals. So whether they are going into an apprenticeship, working on the family farm or studying at University, if you set your goals and work hard you give yourself the best chance to succeed.
Secondly the school has taught the boys how to serve others. Whether it be in sporting or debating teams and playing for your mates, working at Sony Camp helping the disadvantaged, working in the Cadets or fund raising, all the boys have learnt that serving others is a truly rewarding experience. It is my belief that the rewards from serving others will in time outweigh anything you achieve personally. I think it is something that all boys who have “played the game” would agree with.
Some of you will know that Jennifer Fordyce (TGS Staff ) has recently taken ill and has a huge fight on over the next few months. Jennifer has been a wonderful support for the Old Boys and assists the Association in so many ways. Many of you have spoken to her and I think you would agree she is just a wonderful person. She needs to know she has
thousands of Old Boys cheering from the sideline wishing her a speedy recovery.
I wish all of the 2017 Cohort all the very best and to all Old Boys, have a merry and safe Christmas and please consider making 2018 a year in which
you have made contact back with the school. We would love to see you.
Brett PriebePresident TGS Old Boys Association
Rod Hard (right) receiving his Full Colours Rugby Pocket together with Mick Storrs (left)
Rod Hard at the lectern with his old school matesFront Row L-R – Neil Shand, Tom Dare, Rod Hard, Gary Lane, Rod (Fred) Campbell
Second Row L-R – Peter Martin, Ian Moore, John Edgar, Brian Frecker, Richard (Butch) Handley, Harry Gauvin
25
I attended this School from 1954 to 1957
coming from a subsistence dairy farm at
Murphy’s Creek. I was a boarder, which
seems strange today as Murphy’s Creek is
only twenty minutes away. However, in the
1950s, at least half of the road was unsealed
and in wet weather, was impassable. A trip to
Toowoomba in our old car was an adventure
with often a stop at the “saddle” on the range
to check the radiator etc. before the slow
climb up the single lane each way, the Toll Bar
as it was called. On each upward trip there
was always a vehicle or two stationary with
radiators boiling from the climb.
My birthday was in February. I had
started at the small one teacher country
school early to make up a class and jumped
a class when someone left so was very
young throughout my four years at TGS. I
was too young to
join cadets in the first
year (compulsory for
all) and in fact turned
sixteen in my senior
year. My youth is my
excuse for my poor
results and I did make
the same mistake with
my own children.
It is easy to rave on about the things
which were different at TGS at that time
and the stories abound about the standard
of food, the cold in the dormitories,
the use of the cane and the numbers
with the different balance between
day boys and boarders. Forgive me if I
mention just a few stories which may
not be as well-known as the above.
The Squirt Concert – All new boys had
to sing unaccompanied at a concert on the
first Saturday of the term. Nursery rhymes
and God Save the Queen were not allowed
and some of the masters of the school
attended. Boys who were very good – or
very bad – were asked to continue for some
time while those who were “average” were
dismissed rapidly with cries of “rhubarb,
rhubarb!” The above was one of the rituals
which qualified boys for the status of “Old
Boy” the following year. There was another
event, which I won’t go into, which was
also expected as part of the initiation and
shaped the culture of a fagging system based
on schools in England in years gone by.
This behaviour, and the severe
penalties for non-compliance, were
of course an extreme form of bullying
and were not restricted in any way
by the school authorities.
None of the culture of the school during
quite a long period is not mentioned in the
official history. It was not seen as wrong
and was the accepted environment of the
time. The cardinal sin for a boy was to “dob
someone in” and the code of silence was
expected. To break this rule resulted in severe
peer punishment in the form of being thrown
into the pool – fully dressed and in silence
witnessed by the majority of the school
assembly. Serious disputes between boys
were sorted out between the bike shed with
boxing gloves worn by the protagonists.
Church – Attendance at church was
compulsory each Sunday – Religious
Instruction periods were also held regularly
as part of the school day. Most boys were “C
of E” for the purpose of church attendance.
There was an advantage in this as a service
was held at St James at 7:30 before Sunday
breakfast. Boys dressed, walked to and from
St James and were ticked off at breakfast
at having fulfilled their obligation. The odd
few would dress, buy the Sunday paper and
“disappear” for the required amount of time
before reporting in as having been to church.
Attendance at St Stephens Presbyterian
Church swelled following dances with
Fairholme which we attended wearing
formal school uniform. (Two members
of my senior form married Fairholme girls
who they partnered to the Senior Formal.)
Pocket Money – Every Saturday
morning, the boarders attended a parade co-
ordinated by the prefects who handed out 2/-
or 20 cents pocket money. This needs to be
put into perspective – 7c was the admission
price to the Strand or Empire Picture
Theatre and the cost of a pie was also 7c.
Many boys (not me) had a bank account
operated by the School office where money
could be withdrawn on Wednesday at
lunch-time and on Saturday morning. My
parents would visit me every couple of weeks
and 2/- was a welcome financial top up!
Qualifications – Only a few of
the teachers at the school had tertiary
qualifications and the staff list in the School
Magazine (and in school photographs) listed
names followed by the letters Esq. In fact,
during my first year there were at least two
masters who
had no teaching
qualifications
whatsoever and
had progressed
straight from the
senior class at
the school to the
teaching staff. As
I recall, both did
an excellent job – their primary function
being as coaches on the sporting field.
Dress – The standard of dress was much
more formal than today. Dress was made up
of either sporting attire, everyday wear which
included a tie at all times and was worn also
at week-ends by boarders, a suit and “town”
dress which included the dark, piped blazer
with a long sleeved light blue shirt, hat and
badge. The current school blazer or Honour/
Colour blazer was awarded to those boys
who met certain strict criteria on the sports
field. What then was it about the school
that made it great, loved and respected
just as much today by the hundreds of Old
Boys who have passed through the doors?
Many things do not change. The
comradery and life-long friendships were
forged just as they are today. We were
probably even a closer “family” as there were
fewer of us, we seldom left the school.
REMINISCENCESBY JOHN HANDLEY Old Boy (1954-1957) and Member of the School's Board of Trustees from 1996-2017
Many things do not change. The comradery and life-long friendships were forged just as they are
today. We were probably even a closer “family” as there were fewer of us, we seldom left the school.
26
Town leave was allowed only on Saturday
morning and week-end leave was restricted
to one week-end per term. Hence we spent
a lot of time together. The quality of teaching
was, by and large, exceptional. There were
a number of teachers – in particular Len
Heenan and Joe Scott (who also taught my
father) whose results were outstanding in
the externally assessed Junior and Senior
Examinations of the time. If you were a
member of Mr Heenan’s Maths, Physics
or French classes you were nearly assured
of an A rating. The same applied to Mr
Scott’s Book-keeping class. Len Poulsen
was also a legend as a Maths teacher
and was not called Yogi for nothing.
The sporting rivalry between TGS and
Downlands was probably even more intense
than it is today given that Downlands was an
all boys’ school and so in direct competition.
It is interesting to note that to the best of
my knowledge, at that time there was not
one Catholic boy attending TGS and I doubt
there was a Protestant at Downlands!
Most of the 6th Form went to
Schoolies at the Gold Coast following
the Formal and Speech Day. Certainly
alcohol was not as big an issue as the
drinking age was 21 and we were only
17-18. There were certainly no drugs. We
spent most of our time on the beach.
Some of us contributed £10 to purchase
a car which we took to the coast for the
week. (It was sold later to one of the teachers
at the school.) The
number of passengers
generally exceeded the
legal limit as we cruised
backwards and forwards
between Surfers
Paradise and Southport.
As we passed out
through the school
gate for the last time our thoughts would
have been exactly the same as the boys
of today. We had to cram our TGS life into
four years (some who left at Junior only
two) rather than the six years present boys
enjoy. We had been given a wonderful
opportunity – particularly for those who
completed Senior. Most went on to
University which was, at the time, free, and
became the doctors, lawyers and scientists
of this era. A few of us went to Teachers’
College – one year only, and were assured of
a job – in our home town for the first year.
My first year was spent at South Boys
(now closed) and for the latter part of the
year, Harlaxton. Then began the compulsory
country service – Roma, a one teacher
school at Cockatoo Creek, Dalby, Bell, back
to Roma, and finally Toowoomba. The
return to Toowoomba followed the death
of my mother and a compassionate transfer
to care for my father and teenage sister.
My children attended Harristown
State School and the two boys were, of
course, always destined for TGS. The girls
were booked into Fairholme but both
attended Glennie following success by
daughter Annabel in obtaining a scholarship
when the primary school re-opened.
About this time, I became active
in the TGS Old Boys’ Association as I
saw this as a way of finding out what
was happening at the school beyond
brochures and newsletters.
When my second son Lachlan was in
his final year I was approached to ascertain
if I would be interested in contesting
a position on the Board of Trustees. I
declined stating that I would prefer to
wait until my boys had left the school.
I was approached again and the rest
is history. I did not think for one minute
that I would be successful and naively
thought that by showing an interest I might
be approached at a later date should a
vacancy occur for a ministerial nominee.
It was completely unfair that the
incumbent lost his position on the Board
– small thanks for years of dedicated and
time consuming service to the school.
A similar situation has occurred a few
times during my time on the Board and
I always feel for the loser in the ballot.
My small contribution to the Board of
Trustees is best judged by others but my one
big success was convincing the Chairman to
stay on when he believed he had to resign
over a matter of principle. Glen McCracken
is without doubt the best Chairman the
Board of Trustees at TGS has ever had. His
contribution to the Board over 27 years (with
18 years as Chairman) is not fully realized
by the school community. I admire his
thoroughness and his ability to tease out all
aspects of an issue have sometimes led to
changes of opinion and the decisions thus
reached have proved to be absolutely correct.
I have been involved in the selection
of a Headmaster of this great school and
decisions such as this are the most important
that any Board will ever be asked to make.
Selecting a person for an important position
is somewhat like purchasing a racehorse at
the yearling sales. It is going to a cost a lot
of money and it will be at least three years
before you know whether they are any good
or not! There is no
doubt we made an
excellent choice. I
am certain that
Peter Hauser will
be remembered
as one of the great
Headmasters at
this school.
I would also pay tribute to Graham
Woolacott, the School's Chief Finanical
Officer. His knowledge of the workings of
“the systems” is invaluable and his financial
skills in this complex business are the basis
on which the Board operates and plans.
Thank you also to my fellow Board
Members – both present and past. It has
been my pleasure to
work with the Board of
Trustees and the School
Senior Management
over the last 21 years.
As we passed out through the school gate for the last time our thoughts would have been exactly
the same as the boys of today.
Mr John Handley, Old Boy and Member of the School’s Board of Trustees for 21 years
BirthsDaniel Taylor (1997-2001) and
Hollie-Jay, a daughter, Scottie Grace in September 2017
DeathsBrian Thomason (1940-43)
in February 2017
Prof Herbert (Tony) Stevenson (1951-54) in July 2017
Ronald Nauschutz (1950-51) in July 2017
Robert Finlay (1986) in August 2017
Hamish Munro (2002-07) in August 2017
Stephen Dyett (1972-76) in August 2017
Geoffrey Jakins (1980-82) in September 2017
Thomas Rattray (1944-47) in September 2017
Colin Kruger (1942-43) in September 2017
MarriagesBrock McIntyre (1999-2006) to Peta Whatmore in July 2017
Pam Bligh, a member of the TGS Past Mothers’ Group, and her husband Kent purchased Old Boys’ caps to give to their sons when they visited for Mothers’ Day in May. The happy trio are L-R: Michael (1986-90), Ian (1976-80) and Bruce (1980-84) Bligh.
Brock McIntyre (1999-2006) and his wife Peta (nee Whatmore) featured in the Style Magazine, which is part of The Chronicle on Friday, 4 August. They were married at the Rangeville Community Church on 1 July and had their reception at the Highfields Cultural Centre. Brock works as an Accountant in Toowoomba and was the Treasurer of the Old Boys’ Association in recent years.
Rod Hard (1958-61) was touring North Queensland in July this year and had taken a tour of the Chillagoe Caves. One of the tour participants was a nurse at the same school where Rod’s sister was teaching and asked her maiden name. When she replied “Hard”, a voice piped up and said, “I went to school with a chap with that name… a blonde headed chap who played football”. It was Old Boy Greg Banks (1959-61) who had been on the tour but he and Rod had not recognized each other after 56 years. They spent a pleasant evening catching up.
Attending the Grains Research and Development Corporation’s update at Westmar were Brett Crawley (1985-89) and Brett Bidstrup (1994-98). More than one hundred growers from the district heard about the latest research and information updates.
Old Boy News
Births, Deaths, Engagements & Marriages
Do you have a story to share?We are always looking for articles to publish about our Old Boys. For more
information please contact Jennifer Fordyce in the School Associations' Office. Email: [email protected] Phone: (07) 4687 2579
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Bruce McConnel (1994-98) has been announced as Food Leaders Australia’s new general manager. Bruce’s vision is to shore up domestic horticulture supplies while expanding the region’s reach in south-east Asia. With the Second Range Crossing, inland rail and the Brisbane West Wellcamp Airport, Toowoomba and the Surat Basin has the optimism and infrastructure to reach the world with our agricultural products.
Nuffield Farming Scholarship recipient, Nigel Corish (1996-2000) spent sixteen weeks visiting China, the UK and US to meet with farmers, consultants, researchers and experts in their fields. He said that he learnt that there was more to farming than just maximising yields, stressing the importance of organic carbon in Australia’s soils to lessen compaction and erosion.
Jeff Bidstrup (1965-67), Brett McIntyre (1977-79) and Alister Persse (1993-97) attended the Queensland Country Life Food Heroes event at the grain property Coorangy at Toobeah in July.
Josh Poynter (2003-06) started his own business, JRP Building Services, in January this year. He said he specializes in renovating older homes which were much more difficult than building new ones, as everything is not usually square. Josh offers great service to his clients, even taking them to select tiles, fittings and paint colours. He has received wonderful feedback from his work and is receiving further work from the recommendations of his clients.
Rod Hard (1958-61 ) called in to see Mick Storrs (1959-62) in Caloundra in August on his way back from North Queensland. They had morning tea with Tom Dare (1958-61) and Don Helmrich (1958-61) at Golden Beach. In September Mick caught up with Duncan Trott (1959-60) and Jan Trott when they visit Duncan’s sister in Pittsworth. The Trotts currently live in the North Island of New Zealand.
Stephen Moss (1983-87) continues his impressive career in Triathlon coaching as he has been appointed to the position of Head Coach for Triathlon in Hong Kong, commencing at the end of September 2017. This appointment follows his coaching of the Australia National Team in 2011 and 2012, and being the Australian Olympic Committee National Team Triathlon Coach in London 2012. Stephen said that he and his family were looking forward to living in Hong Kong. Unfortunately he couldn’t attend the 2017 Reunion for his year group as he was coaching at the Triathlon World Championships in Rotterdam.
Ian Mathieson (1956-59) wrote to tell us that he was MC at an ANZAC Day ceremony at Trumpeter’s Corner near Warra in 2017. Guest of Honour at the ceremony was Dame Quentin Bryce who planted a pine tree derived from the Lone Pine at ANZAC Cove. Five plaques were unveiled, honouring people from the district who had made significant contributions in WWI and WWII. Ian was later challenged to Rest on Arms Reversed and was pleased, if a bit surprised, that after 57 years he was still able to executive this drill with a .303 rifle. Whilst at the School, Ian had taken part in the Honour Guard at the Mothers’ Memorial on ANZAC Day in 1958 and 1959.
Old Boys who have visited TGS since August 2017
3/08/2017 – Allan Douglas 1971-72, Warana
3/08/2017 – Ryan Douglas 1998-2002, Mountain Creek
4/08/2017 – Ian McLean 1992-96, Postman's Ridge
4/08/2017 – Michael Black 1986-90, Oakey
4/08/2017 – Ross Ecroyd 1987-91, Toowoomba
4/08/2017 – Jason Darlington 1983-86, Gayndah
5/08/2017 – D'Arcy Davidson 2011-16, The Gums
5/08/2017 – Lachlan Maher 2007-16, Wyreema
5/08/2017 – James Bell 2004-08, Brisbane
8/08/2017 – Neil Barton 1957-64, Paralowie
14/08/2017 – Graham Lee 1968-71, East Toowoomba
23/08/2017 – James Maher 1991-95, Japan
23/08/2017 – Tony Rooks 1963-67, Cairns
26/08/2017 – Matt Costello 1995-98, Toowoomba
9/09/2017 – Ross Edmonds 1983-87, Eight Mile Plains
9/09/2017 – Sandy Mettam 1984-88, Perth
9/09/2017 – Steve Norrie 1983-85, Karana Downs
9/09/2017 – David Patterson 1983-86, Pullenvale
9/09/2017 – Chris Wicks 1981-85, Paddington
9/09/2017 – John Rush 1973-77, Kings Beach
9/09/2017 – John Aiken 1973-77, The Summit
9/09/2017 – Colin Kofoed 1966-67, Ivanhoe
9/09/2017 – Tony Donovan 1983-87, Cambooya
9/09/2017 – Wallace McDowall 1983-87, Emerald
9/09/2017 – Ian Campbell 1983-87, Yelarbon
10/09/2017 – Shane Latcham 1984-87, Frenchville
10/09/2017 – Neil Schofield 1964-67, Beecroft
10/09/2017 – Hassan Isaac 1976-77, Nundah
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Old Boys who have visited TGS since August 2017
Some Old Boys from the class of 1980 met on 15 September 2017 at John Calcino’s hotel in Maroochydore (Post Office Bar and Beer Garden), the first time they have been together since they left the School in 1980. Their mid-day lunch finished at 11pm, so they had a lot of catching up to do.
PHOTO L-R: Danny Sinclair (1979-80 from Brisbane), John Calcino (1976-81 from Maroochydore), Rob McPhee (1976-80 from Brisbane), Scott Jones (1976-79 from St George), Stu Webber (1976-80 from California), and Scott Parker (1976-79 from Brisbane).
Toowoomba Cricket’s A Grade one-day competition started in October with Chris Webster (1985-87) captaining University and Matt Dennis (2000-06) the co-captain of Metropolitan-Easts. Matt Dennis said the key to their club’s successful season would be to start strongly in the one-day games and continue that form into the two-day format. Chris Webster’s University team has lost six veteran batsmen but gained eight young batsmen.
Richard Scarce (1985-89) brought the Bond University swimming squad to Toowoomba in October to compete at the Toowoomba Flyers Spring Meet at Milne Bay Aquatic Centre. Richard coaches dual-Olympian Cameron McEvoy and Cameron accompanied him to compete at the Spring Meet. He said that Richard mentions his time as a boarder from Blackall at Toowoomba Grammar School almost weekly and that he enjoyed seeing this part of Richard’s history with him. Richard also caught up with current student Dylan Stevens who swam at the meet.
Eric Donaldson (2000-07), Fraser Donaldson (2001-09), and Geoff McDonald (1984-88) took things seriously as their team, the Blush Bruisers, competed in a tennis competition for the charity Blush in October.
Over 350 people attended the Darling Downs Cotton Growers Awards at the Dalby Showgrounds in September. Andrew Johnston (1985-89) from Dalby Rural Supplies presented the Young Achiever Award on the night; Steven (1974-76) and Jacob Little (2010-13) took out the ANZ Highest Irrigated Yield Award; and Scott (1978-82) and Mitchell Seis (2003-07) collected the ANZ Highest Dryland Yield Award, overall a great night for Toowoomba Grammar School Old Boys.
It couldn’t be helped if you noticed the look of delight on the faces of the 1947 Reunion attendees when they held the O’Callaghan Cup aloft for a photograph. Colin Morwood, Glen Buchanan, Bunny Powne and Geoff Grundy (all 1944-47) obliged by showing off the Cup at the Reunion Dinner which was held at Rumours International on Saturday, 9 September.
Ian Rooks (1971-73) and his wife Di have sold their share in the family’s business, Toowoomba Tile Warehouse, after 27 years. They plan a trip around Australia in retirement and Ian said that he was looking forward to sleeping in after years of 6:30am starts.
Michael Irwin (2009-14) has been part of a five person engineering team at UNSW which has won an engineering competition called "The University Make Games Challenge". This has won them a trip to Silicon Valley in the USA with a value of $25,000.
10/09/2017 – Bill Ivers 1996-2006, Newtown
10/09/2017 – Graham Bell 1973-77, Jondaryan
10/09/2017 – Matthew Gilchrist 1985-87, Moonee Ponds
10/09/2017 – Col Morwood 1944-47, Kenmore Hills
10/09/2017 – Peter Thompson 1965-66, Cunnamulla
10/09/2017 – Rob Blackburn 1973-77, Lennox Head
10/09/2017 – Ranald Neal 1973-77, Highfields
10/09/2017 – Richard Birchley 1983-87, Tambo
19/09/2017 – Alexander Mason 1995-99, Indooroopilly
13/10/2017 – David Rosenthal 1990-94, Augustine Heights
20/10/2017 – Tom Dare 1958-61, Maclagan
20/10/2017 – Richard Handley 1958-61, Dalby
20/10/2017 – Gary Lane 1958-61, Palm Beach
20/10/2017 – Phillip Martin 1958-60, Toowoomba
20/10/2017 – Mick Storrs 1959-62, Kings Beach
20/10/2017 – Rod Hard 1958-61, The Ponds
20/10/2017 – Neil Shand 1958-61, Bardon
20/10/2017 – Bob Campbell 1958-61, Carseldine
20/10/2017 – Harry Gauvin 1952-54, Alexandra Hills
20/10/2017 – Keith Strain 1947-50, Rangeville
20/10/2017 – John Edgar 1958-61, Dalby
20/10/2017 – Ian Moore 1958-61, Sanctuary Cove
20/10/2017 – Brian Frecker 1958, Auckland
25/10/2017 – Bronte Smith 1987-91, Toowoomba
26/10/2017 – Simon Taylor 1982-86, Toowoomba
27/10/2017 – Brett Scott 1966-68, Port Macquarie
6/11/2017 – John Dunbar 1946-49, Mt. Waverley
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Graham Albion Wyatt was born on the 25 December 1927 and passed away on 29 August 2016.
After leaving school he gained a Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Queensland. He worked for various companies including Shell and was State Sales Manager at Hastings Deering (Caterpillar). He was actively involved with rugby union as a Foundation Member of the now highly successful Sunnybank Rugby Union Club and President of the Queensland Sub Districts Rugby Union.
His love of the military saw him rise to Captain in the Royal Queensland Regiment.
He also served as Captain Graham Wyatt, Regimental ADC to the Queensland Governor, Sir Henry Abel-Smith. In his later life he became a very active volunteer within the Whitsundays community in too many committees to mention.
He always maintained a love of the School and was very involved in the mid 70’s being President of the TGSOBA (Brisbane Branch). He maintained a wonderful relationship with Headmaster Bill Dent and in particular John Winn who mentioned him several times in the book Still Playing the Game.
Obituaries
GRAHAM ALBION WYATT (at TGS 1941-44)
Old Boy Ian Moore (1958-61) and his wife
Jennifer identified a beautiful tea-set badged
TGS from an antique dealer in Toowoon Bay
on the NSW Central Coast. The inscription
on the tea-set read: “From the Boys of TGS, 28/11/ 1947”.
The School history records that the tea-
set was presented to the 9th Headmaster of
Toowoomba Grammar School, Mr David C.
Griffiths, on Speech Day 1947. The School’s
Speech Days in those times were held
outdoors on the lawns by the camphor laurel
tree outside School House – except on this
day when rain marred the outdoor location
for the first time in 24 years and the Speech
Day was transferred indoors to Old Hall.
Mr Griffiths had only been in office for one
year, 1947, and left at the end of this year. He
succeeded Mr ‘Harry’ Roberts who had been
Headmaster for eleven years until the end of
1946. Mr Roberts resigned from TGS to become
the Headmaster of ‘Churchie’. Mr Griffiths
adopted a more “laissez-faire” approach to
the boys whom he trusted to “do the right
thing”. Unfortunately this didn’t always
work out and the Board of Trustees found
it necessary to terminate the Headmaster’s
employment at the end of the year.
When presenting the Griffiths tea-set to
the Headmaster in October of this year, Ian
Moore said: “Jennifer and I do not see this as a presentation nor a donation but a simple Return, it having gone full circle in 70 years of a tangible artefact of an extraordinary time in the history of this great school.”
You may see this beautiful tea-set
proudly displayed in the School Museum
and the School thanks Ian and Jennifer
Moore for their efforts in returning
the tea-set to our community.
TGS Tea-set
Coming Events2018
Sat, Jan 20 1st XI Cricket vs 1st XI 1998, Mills Oval
Wed, Feb 07 Old Boys' Association Management Committee Meeting, Old Hall, 7:30pm
Sat, Mar 10 Cricket Pink Stumps Day, McGrath Foundation
Mon, Feb 12 Past Mothers' Group Morning Tea, Pavilion, 10:00am
Sat, Feb 24 Headmaster's Information Morning for parents of prospective students, Old Hall, 8:45am
Wed, Mar 07 Old Boys' Dinner with boarders, Centenary Dining Hall, 6:00pm
Old Boys' Association AGM and Management Committee Meeting, Old Hall, 7:30pm
Thur, Mar 08 Junior School Open Day, 9:00am – 12:00pm
Fri, Mar 09 Old Boys' Association Generations Gathering, Old Hall, 6:00pm
Sat, Mar 10 Junior School Information Morning 9:30am
Fri, Mar 18 TGS Art Show Opening, Assembly Hall, 6:00pm – 10:00pm
Sat, Mar 19 – Sun, Mar 20
TGS Art Show, Assembly Hall, 10:00am – 4:00pm
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Please contact the
Enrolments Office to
discuss enrolling your son
or grandson at Toowoomba
Grammar School
Tradition | History | Respect | Integrity
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