50th Jubilee Celebrated!
The weekend of Saturday 25 November brought together more than 150 former students, staff and families as they toured our McAuley campus and reminisced about early days. A special part of this celebration was the planting of an Elm donated by former student, staff members and current principal of Emmanuel College Warrnambool, Peter Morgan. Peter’s donation recognises his personal connection to the school as well as the connection between Emmanuel College Warrnambool and Mercy Regional, both being Catholic secondary schools in the Diocese of Ballarat and both being schools governed or affiliated with the Sisters of Mercy and Mercy Education Limited. We thank Peter for his generosity to our school.
Peter shared the following in regard to his choice of tree:
The tree is an English Elm chosen because when I attended CRC there was one very large Elm in the school grounds that I believe is no longer there; I think it was removed to make way for buildings (our Science and Senior Buildings) The tree was substantial and significant. It was one of the only shade trees in the school grounds, it was a favourite place for students to sit and gather under at recess and lunch, and it was a meeting place for classes ahead of setting off on local excursions or to a class at another location. This Elm is a homage to that tree and that time, the foundation years of the College. It should also be suitable to the local environment given the historic avenue of Elms in Camperdown’s main street.
Our Jubilee Dinner saw an equally vibrant celebration with the induction of our inaugural Spirit of Mercy recipients. Their individual stories and achievements can be found on our website and we congratulate and thank recipients for their service and excellence: Jocelyn Bignold OAM (1979), Josh Hose OAM (2004), Rose Henry (1983), Prof. Mike Ryan (1987), Greg O'Shea (1989) and Mark O'Shea (1994) and Young Spirit of Mercy inductee Ella Gleeson (2019). Our final celebratory act for 2023 will be the burial of a time capsule to be opened in 25 years time.