We are Heart people The

Newsletter of the Alumnae Association of the Our Lady of the Sacred Heart College, Bentleigh
We are Heart people
The
Seed
December 2011 Vol.3 No.2
ISSN 1837-5316
Cathrine D.
At OLSH we are Heart people
who touch the Hearts of Others
These words remind us of our identity as
members of the OLSH College Bentleigh
family.
Over recent months, we have had the
opportunity to confer the inaugural Flame
Scholarship Award for a Year 10 student on
Bianca Fernandes. The award has been made
possible because of the generosity of members of
our alumnae. This is a significant contribution to
building the tradition that is our College. Indeed
it is about touching the Hearts of Others.
The ability to articulate who we are as OLSH
College and what is foundational to our spirit
is the way that we keep this spirit alive in our
hearts. The symbolic use of the name “Flame”
for the scholarship award continues to build the
connections between past and present students.
It is a privilege for the College community to have
the example and inspiration of our alumnae who
carry the flame of the OLSH spirit with them.
This flame is about touching the hearts of others
because we ourselves have experienced what it
is to love and be loved. In our OLSH spirit, the
flame means we ask the questions about God’s
love. It means we walk the journey of life and
deeply listen to God’s spirit in our hearts. It
means that we come to know that:
“Faith is more about openness of heart
to take the journey to keep moving forward
than it is about reaching any
imagined destination”.
(Michael Hansen SJ “The Land of Walking Trees”)
Regnet Christus!
Anne O’Loughlin
College Principal
Project
Sam D.
In term 3, the Year 11 Visual
Communication students, with the
wonderful support of their teacher,
Ms Chris West, participated in a
design exercise called The Seed Project.
The purpose of this project was to
create “thank you” cards based on
the concept of a seed to send to donors
to the Flame Scholarship Award.
Hannah W.
All students were given a design brief
and then experimented with a variety of
media and methods including freehand
drawing, photography, lino cut, intaglio
and collage. The fruits of their labour
are displayed here and on pages 12-13.
Although it was very hard to choose
from all the ideas that the girls came
up with, five students were selected as
finalists to develop their concepts to
the end stage of ready to use cards.
The girls are Catherine D’Amico,
Samantha Didulo, Grace Falvo,
Sarah Ferris, and Hannah Williamson.
Congratulations to these five.
And thank you to all 12 students
for participating in the spirit of the
exercise and for making their own
contribution to “keeping the
flame alive”.
Sarah F.
Grace F
.
E . D . I . T . O . R . I . A . L
Alumnae
Events in 2012
Secretary
Class Reunions
From the
An exciting new development for the
Alumnae Association in 2011 has
been the granting of the inaugural
Flame Scholarship Award to Year 10
student, Bianca Fernandes.
This award would not have been
possible without the generous gifts,
large and small, of donors to the tax
deductible Flame Scholarship Fund.
While every gift is valued, special
mention must be made of two
recent large donations.
A sum of $1,000 was given by a
kind regular sponsor and donor, an
alumna from the 1960s. Another
significant donation of $5,000 was
made by the parents of three girls
who attended the College in the
1990s. This couple, as do other
donors, believe very strongly in
the ethos of service and wish to
remain anonymous.
The class of 1961 is also
acknowledged for their two
group donations this year.
We thank all our alumnae donors
for their special contribution to the
education of other OLSH students
who will benefit greatly from their
great spirit of generosity.
As well as our committed donors,
the Alumnae Association also
benefits from the kind support of
sponsors and volunteers.
This year we thank Morea (Stevens)
Reid, 1961, of SalonQuip; Rosa
and Patrick Warren of The Present
Cupboard; Louise Brock (teacher)
and Louise (Oldham) Rayner, 1990.
Thank you for being Heart people.
Shane O’Neil
Alumnae Secretary
All reunions are open to every past
student who was part of a particular
class for any period of time, be that
one year or six years, or any number
in between.
Class of 1957-1962
Plans are afoot for a 50-year reunion
next year. Please contact Marcia
(née Bretherton) Clohesy on
[email protected] or 03
9808 2245 or 0407 922 210 or
Margaret (née Brunton) Ellis on
[email protected]
or 03 9722 2668 or 0407 556 834
if you’d like to get involved.
Class of 1967-1972
Soon we will be 40, so we are going
to celebrate. Contact Patrica O’Hare
on [email protected] or
0418 558 463 or Maureen
(née Wilson) Malone on
[email protected] or
0400 030 040.
Class of 1977-1982
Class of 1987-1992
Class of 1997-2002
Next year, you will be 30, 20 and
10 respectively. If you’d like to help
organise one of these reunions, please
contact Shane O’Neil by Friday 2
December 2011.
Class of 1986-1991
Did you complete Year 12 at OLSH
in 1991 and/or Year 11 in 1990 or
spend any time in this class from 1986
onwards? We’re going to be 21 next year
so planning has started to get this group
reconnected. Contact Amanda Benson
on [email protected] for more
information.
Girls’ Big
Day Out
At the Races
After the success of the first OLSH
Girls’ Big Day Out at the Races
held at Caulfield Racecourse last
July, we have decided to make this
a biennial event open to all alumnae,
family and friends to attend.
If anyone is interested in helping to
organise this gala event for 2012,
please contact Shane O’Neil.
Sorry
Apologies for two errors in the last
edition of Flame.
In the Vale notice for Ilona
Zimmerman (Vol.3 No.1), we
inadvertently forgot to mention that
Ilona’s daughter, Megan Probyn,
1994, also attended OLSH.
Megan now has her PhD in
Physiology and works in the School
of Biomedical Sciences at the
University of Queensland.
Also in the “Flame Girls” section,
Anne Lopez was incorrectly listed
as being from the class of 1990.
She graduated in 1980.
Enquiries
For more information about alumnae
events, please contact Shane O’Neil,
Alumnae Secretary, on 03 8520 9263
or [email protected].
R . E . U . N . I . O . N
Class of 1961-1966 Reunion
Back row (L-R): Lorraine Hammam, Maureen (Cosgriff ) Dawson, Margaret (Adams) Board, Helen (Webster) Sully, Dawn (Healy) Simpson,
Christine (McWilliam) Stephens, Val (Mueller) Cooper, Anne (Harkin) Jenkins, Renata (Kugler) Bodecky, Linda (Henderson) Bruce, Anne (Vaudrey) Felmingham,
Helen (Banfield) Overend,Susan Best, Catherine (Gaynor) Russell, Christine (Ahern) Spence, Karen ( Jopling) Ferguson, Sr. Norah (Dominic) Hanrahan,
Julie (Morris) Luiten, Christine (Wilson) Wakeling, Janis (Wishart) McCaffrey, Maureen (O’Hare) Garvey Front row: Rita (Smyth) Humphreys,
Pauline (Dugan) Spitzer, Marie (Domigan) Davidson, Helen (Boyd) Tonking, Dorothea (Mueller) Kassell, Jill (Harkin) Ward, Catherine (Donovan) Scantlebury,
Suzanne Hammam, Pat (Mulraney) Holcombe, Margaret (Ryan) Ford, Josephine (King) Leunig, Clare Dewan.
On a glorious autumnal day, when the appropriate
colours were brown and gold, 32 “OLSH Old Collegians”
gathered in the multipurpose room at 111 Jasper Road
for a trip down memory lane. Reminiscing, renewing
acquaintances and catching up with old friends were
all to be the order of the day.
To give this reunion a lasting impression, a visual
experience became the objective.
The afternoon began with girls mingling in the foyer,
laughing and chatting as they recognised each other,
glass of champagne in hand. In their midst were six
mannequins, adorned in the summer, winter and sports
uniforms of the past and present, standing to attention
like the old days of assembly. Noticeboards covered with
old school photos and articles depicting the changes in
house patrons, curriculum and sports program, not to
mention the offerings at the canteen, were on show for
everyone to see.
a conducted school tour. This was a highlight of the
day and a real eye-opener for everyone to realise OLSH
had become an amazing learning environment with so
many modern facilities – like a circuit room, for instance.
Such was the enthusiasm created by the afternoon’s events,
that many of the girls carried over into the night at the
McKinnon Hotel and continued reminiscing.
Since our April reunion, we have caught up twice
more – so let’s keep the reconnections going.
Anne (Vaudrey) Felmingham
Sports Captain, 1965 and 1966
The visual experience was enhanced with a
“Class of ’61-‘66” reunion banner and the dominant
shades of mission brown, old gold, royal blue in the
serviettes, balloons and cup cakes resplendent with
the College crest on top. Afternoon tea, catered by
Toni Angelopoulos (OLSH class of 1984) and
Maria Galati, looked and tasted fabulous.
Midway through the afternoon, like excited little
schoolgirls beginning our first year at OLSH some 50
years earlier, we studiously followed Sr Liz (College
Chaplain) and Shane O’Neil (Alumnae Secretary) on
Science Lab Form 3A, 1962: (L-R) Jill Bunyard, Susan George,
Judith Boyce, Frances Scott, Sister Madelina, Christine Danaher,
Robyn Healy, Mary Stewart, Marie Domigan.
F . L . A . M . E
Nicola Marsh, 1986
Prior to becoming a bestselling
author, Nicola worked as a
physiotherapist for 13 years until
she tired of saying “I’m going to
write a book one day” and actually
did it. She started writing in late
2001 and found once she started
she couldn’t stop! Nicola currently writes for Harlequin
Mills and Boon Romance and Modern Heat/Presents
series. She has published 29 books and sold over 3 million
copies worldwide. Nicola has fond memories of her days at
OLSH and credits her early love of writing to Joy Carver.
“She was an amazing English and English Lit teacher and
I remember her fostering my penchant for creative writing.
I may have taken a detour down the physiotherapy career
path, but I’m rapt I’m now in my dream job, writing fiction
I enjoy.” http://www.nicolamarsh.com.
Pat O’Sullivan, 1961
I’m sitting in my classroom in
the remote Northern Territory
indigenous community of Ngukurr.
It’s third term break and most of
the teachers are flying out in a small
one-engine plane for the 700km trip
to Darwin, then heading onward to
the ‘bright lights’. Me, I’m driving over the two big rivers
that keep us shut in for six months of the year in ‘the wet’,
and then going on to camp along the Savannah Way on
the Gulf of Carpentaria. I’ve been up in the Top End for
the past 14 years teaching, mostly in remote indigenous
communities, sometimes as principal, other times as class
teacher. At the end of 2011, I’m retiring to my little farm
in the Strzeleckies in South Gippsland, Victoria, to grow
vegies and bottle fruit – and to catch up with all of the
family and friends I’ve missed so much.
Stephanie Sotirakis, 2003
When she left OLSH at the end
of Year 10 in 2001, Stephanie went
on to complete Level 1 VCAL
Certificates in Work Education and
Transition Education at Holmesglen
TAFE. She has worked in retail
and travelled to France and says
Paris and Normandy were her favourite places. She is also
an accomplished pianist. At present, Stephanie is part
of a School Ambassador Program organised by Marriot
Support Services. She presents her story about what it
is like to live with Asperger’s Syndrome to students in
special schools and increasingly to audiences in mainstream
schools. Stephanie recently returned to OLSH to give an
inspiring talk to Year 10 students about her journey.
4
G . I . R . L . S
Debbi Arpini, 1985
After completing Year 10 in 1983,
Debbi studied a TAFE Art course
and went on to work for an art dealer.
In her early twenties, she suddenly
discovered a talent for singing and
started performing and working
in various studios as a session
vocalist. For the past 15 years, Debbi has been a professional
singer, MC and band manager, specialising in weddings
and corporate events. With her current band Citrus, she is
winning awards and doing some great high-profile corporate
events with companies like Mercedes Benz, Microsoft and
Eastlink, etc. This year Debbi was awarded “Best Ceremony
Music” at the 2011 Australian Bridal Industry Awards for
Victoria. Married with two young boys, Debbi also runs a
recording studio in Bentleigh East with her husband,
Petros. www.weddingsinger.com.au.
Mary (Donovan) Smith, 1967
Bradshaws Business College was
Mary’s destination after leaving
OLSH in Year 9. At 19 she moved
to South Africa with an OLSH
classmate, Trish ( Jennings) Lucas,
and later to England with older
sister, Cathie (now Scantlebury),
1964. There Mary met her husband Terry Smith with
whom she travelled the overland trek from England to
Australia. In her early 30s, Mary with Terry and their two
children, Christian and Lara, moved to the United States
where she has lived for the past 24 years. After first an Arts
Degree, then a Masters in Social Work, Mary decided to
specialise in mental health. She now has a private practice
as a clinical social worker and shares her professional and
personal life with her partner Marty and two corgis. Hiking
in the Sierra Nevada mountains is her favourite activity.
Chris (Butts)
van ommen Kloeke, 1989
When she left OLSH in 1989,
College Captain Chris took a gap
year, and worked for the ANZ Bank.
In 1991 she began studying nursing, a
career that took her around the world
including a year as a private nurse for
an Omani prince. In his employ, Chris was able to enjoy
a dream life with private jet flights, trips to Oman several
times, her own limousine drivers, trips to the Ritz in Paris
(to visit the dentist, of course!) yachting holidays around
the French Riviera and so on. She met her Canadian
husband, Gerard, in Rome in 1996, and they now live in
Sydney with their four children, who Chris says, “give me
the best experiences of my life, whilst causing most of my
grey hairs too!”
F . L . A . M . E
Tania (Marshall) Murray, 1987
Tania finished Year 12 in 1988
then took a year off to decide what
she ‘wanted to be’. She completed
an Applied Science Degree in
1991, majoring in Environmental
Management. Unsure of job
opportunities in that field, in 1992
Tania joined Victoria Police. In 2003, she bought a 50 acre
farm in Hallora, West Gippsland. She married in 2005 and
in 2008 went part-time with the police force and started
up her own egg business. She began with five hens and
discovered that she loved them and so her hen numbers
have now grown to 450. Tania sell the eggs to cafés, B&Bs
and pizza shops during the week and at various farmers’
markets on the weekends.
Joanna Vrontzos, 2007
After OLSH, Joanna completed a
Bachelor of Business at Monash
University in 2010, majoring in
accounting and marketing. Whilst
studying, she worked part time at
Bunnings Warehouse, first in Port
Melbourne and then at Moorabbin.
When she had finished her degree, she successfully applied
for a role as the national buyer’s assistant for building
materials and steel. Her job now involves working closely
with the buyer of her category, suppliers and all Bunnings
stores in Australia. Joanna’s duties include the maintenance
of the price file (raising new items and changes of costs and
retail prices in the Bunnings system), prompt processing of
advertising material and preparation of material for supplier
submissions, product reviews and trading terms.
G . I . R . L . S
Christina Cesario, 2003
A Bachelor of Communication in
Advertising (Creative) at RMIT
was Christina’s chosen field of study.
when she finished Year 12. After
that, she freelanced for a boutique ad
agency, Venus Advertising, and also
for a developing charity organisation,
Breaking Through Barriers, before
gaining employment at Henderson
Greetings. She designs greeting
cards and also produces advertising
and graphic design material for the
company. Outside work, she hopes
to have an exhibition of illustrations
and paintings in 2012. Sister Marisa,
2006, is also a creative type working as the Performing Arts
Programming Coordinator at the Kingston Arts Centre.
Angelina Mercuri , 1999
Following her graduation, Angelina
completed a Bachelor of Biomedical
Science at Monash University in
2002, then a Masters in Radiation
Therapy in 2005. She currently
works as a radiation therapist at
Peter MacCallum, where she plans
and administers radiation treatment to cancer patients. In
her free time, Angelina does freelance makeup artistry for
weddings and special occasions. She also uses these skills
in the workplace, volunteering for initiatives such as
Look Good... Feel Better; a free community service program
in Australia that helps women manage the appearancerelated side effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Sisters
Salvina, 2004 and Josephine, 2000 also attended OLSH.
Angelina is on the right with sister Salvina on the left.
Super
Seniors
Standing (L-R): Anne Sullivan, Joan Ahern, Helen (McCarthy)
Whyte, Andrea Morgan, Verion Stroud, Shane O’Neil, Patrice (Brown)
Heffernan, Dianne (Hicks) Catterall.
Seated: Jan (Collier) St. Lawrence and Margaret (Bull) Kelly.
py
ap h
H 60t y
Birthda
Ten women from the class
of 1968 gathered for lunch on
Saturday 3 September at the
Dingley International Hotel. The
occasion – to celebrate multiple 60th
birthdays. It was enough of a shock to
actually acknowledge that we were all now
officially Senior Citizens and therefore
eligible for the cheap meals, but faces
visibly paled when it was pointed out that
2013 would be the 50th anniversary of the
group’s Year 7. A big reunion celebration for
all is being planned for two years hence.
5
A . L . U . M . N . A . E
Weddings
Rosa Carta,
2001
The Lou Lou
Bar in Knox
City was where
Rosa first met
Nicolas Barbotin
in 2006. They
married at St Paul’s in Bentleigh
on 27 November 2010 with Rosa’s
sister, Daniella, 2002, as maid of
honour. Following a reception at the
Brighton Savoy, the happy couple
honeymooned on the Gold Coast in
Queensland. Nicolas is a supervisor
at Ceil Motive Power in Hallam and
Rosa is a childcare assistant at Pelican
Childcare in Moorabbin. She says she
“loves her job with her heart and soul”
and is forever grateful to her teacher,
Mrs Harms, for suggesting this career
path. Rosa is absolutely convinced she
couldn’t be doing anything better as
her work brings her such pride and joy.
Vales
Megan
(Burgess)
Millman, 1979
Megan born
29 April 1962,
passed away
suddenly on 13
February 2011
from a brain aneurism. She was 48
years old and leaves behind husband
Rick, and children Monica 21, Ethan
19, Caleb 14 and Katie 12. Megan was
the daughter of Ray (dec) and Carmel
and loving sister to 16 siblings: Ray,
Kathleen, Patricia, Marie, Christine,
Tony, Greg, Jamie, Bernadette, Therese,
Peter, Gerard, Brian (dec), Susie, Paul
and Louise. Older sisters Marie 1966,
Bernadette 1973, Therese 1975 and
younger sisters Susie 1982 and Louise
1989 also attended OLSH. Megan
is remembered as a very community
minded person, great party-goer and
wonderful dancer. The family all miss
her ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­terribly.
Rachael
Siebel,
1992
Rachael married
Mark Powers
on 27 February
2010 at Mt
Buller Chapel.
Rachael’s sister, Natalie Siebel (now
Archibald) 1994, along with Rachael’s
close friend, Bronwyn Fox, and
Mark’s daughter, Jessica, made up
the bridal party. After the reception
at the Black Cockatoo Restaurant,
Rachael and Mark honeymooned in
Bali for six days and then in Morocco,
Spain and Kuala Lumpur for four
weeks. They are living in Moorabbin.
Rachael and Mark now work together
in their own mortgage broking
business (Finance Mentors) which
operates from Port Melbourne. www.financementors.com.au.
N . E . W . S
Lisa-Maria
Johnstone,
2004
Lisa first met
Jason La Porte
when she was 5
and Jason was 7
years old. They
lost touch for 12 years but Facebook
brought them together again. On
Saturday 18 December 2010, they
married at St Paul’s Church, Bentleigh.
The bridesmaids included two of Lisa’s
classmates, Lauren Wyllie and Alisha
Johnson. The wedding day was even
more emotional and memorable than
expected with Jason being involved in
a motorbike accident the day before
and going straight from hospital to
the church. Lisa currently works as a
program officer for WorkSafe Victoria
and Jason as a customer service agent
with Emirates Airlines.
Carmel O’Brien, 1971
Carmel, born 6 June 1954, passed
away just after her 57th birthday on
19 June 2011. Following her OLSH
education, Carmel completed a
Science degree and Dip Ed at
Monash Uni. She began her
professional life as a maths/science
teacher working at schools in Victoria
and Queensland. In later years she
moved into systems development
work with Fujitsu. Carmel was noted
for her commitment, work ethic and
no nonsense approach, but ultimately
she will be remembered for her ability
to always put others before herself.
Carmel will be sadly missed by her
husband, Dave Stevens, and her
children, Jack, Matt and Kim, her four
brothers and sister Kath (also class
of 1971).
.b.
Janina
WoodwardMillikin, 1981
Born 14 January
1964, Janina
passed to eternal
life on 25 August
2011. She was
part of the class of 1981 and her three
younger sisters Karin, 1981, Melissa,
1987 and Tanya, 1989, also attended
OLSH. Janine’s final year report notes
that she had participated actively in
many sports, including netball and
swimming, but says she “revealed
rare talent especially in production
of dramatic representations”. Janina
had been working as School Adviser,
Teaching and Learning at the Catholic
Education Office, Southern Region,
so was well known and respected in
her professional capacity by many at
the College. She was married to Geoff
with two daughters, Jenna, 14 and
Isabella,12.
The priests of the St Columban Mission Society have offered a memorial mass for the repose of each of these souls.
We entrust them and their families into the gentle care of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart.
6
R . E . U . N . I . O . N
Class of 1963
Reunion Lunch
On Saturday 14 May this year, 12 girls from the class
of 1958 – 1963 gathered with Sr Therese (Canice), one
of our former teachers, for a lunch at the home of Liz
(Child) Freeman-Hume. Apologies were received from
another seven girls. Shane O’Neil, Alumnae Secretary,
was there to meet the girls and also take photos for us.
It was our first face to face contact with Shane and now
we feel an extra connection to OLSH.
It was a happy day with much laughter and chatter.
Everyone was enthusiastic in their greetings, exchanging
memories and stories. Some brought photos and spoke
of their families. As we get older, thoughts turn to the
experiences of the past and school days are often fondly
remembered. Appreciation was expressed for the good
education received at the College and the instilling of
strong values and sense of self. After a most pleasant few
hours, we agreed to meet again later in the year.
It was lovely to be joined by Pam (Sullivan) Robins
who has been living in the UK for 40 years and who
was in Melbourne for a family reunion. We also had the
company of Mary (Rudd) Dowling for the first time and
all the girls were delighted to catch up with her after 50
years. Ildi (Zimmermann) Probyn who had recently died
in April was remembered and we were happy that many
of us had seen her at a lunch last year.
We were recently put in touch with Gerrie (McNamara)
Wonnacott who has been living in Toronto, Canada for
40 years. She now enjoys our email contact and will try
to see us on her next visit to Australia.
We are in touch by email with 22 ex-students but would
love to hear from anyone else who receives Flame and
would like to be included in our bi-annual gatherings.
Liz (Child) Freeman-Hume
Back row (L-R): Mary (Rudd) Dowling, Margaret (Lorkin)
Borrett, Pam (Sullivan) Robins, Helen (Fields) Stevens, Eileen
(Horan) Carter, Jan (Bailey) Campbell
Front row: Dina Ferraro (formerly known as Leonarda
Costanzo), Mary (Power) Black, Sr (Canice) Therese Farrell
and Liz (Child) Freeman-Hume.
In loving memory of Ilona (Ildi) Zimmerman
who was also Class of 1963.
7
O . L . S . H
G . I . R .
From OLSH to London it’s a long way to come for dinner,
but seven OLSH alumnae (including two sets of twins) meet
there regularly to compare notes about their blossoming
overseas careers as well as the good old days at OLSH.
Maya Knight reports on the London Chapter of the
OLSH Alumnae Association.
•••
Throughout the past few years, a group of us from the 1997
class have found ourselves living overseas. Via a myriad of
ties we have all managed to stay in touch, not only at home
but also across the seas.
Here’s what we have been up to since we left OLSH
College 14 years ago.
May 2011
elbourne, 2007
10 Year Reunion in M
Maya Knight, Emily Dowling, Lauren Chaberka,
Filia Garivaldis, Lara Dowling, Gina Robinson
Maya Knight I have been living in
London for two and a half years now.
After studying public relations and
journalism, I worked in media at home
in print, radio and television. I then
decided to join family and friends in the
UK for work and travel opportunities and have travelled
extensively, as have all the girls. Some of the highlights
included Russia, Egypt, with Italy a favourite, and St
Tropez too. I have been freelancing at Sky News and
Associated Press as a producer on World News. Having
just returned from a short secondment in New York,
I am now looking to move to the US to pursue media
work there. I have high hopes for the US but also look
forward to eventually returning to Oz.
Back row (L-R): Caroline Ricardo, Shelley Franklyn, Liz Benco, Amb
row: Christine Boutros, Michelle Worthy, Carmelina La Rocca Front
Worthy, Anna Rhea Yu, Maya Knight, Angelica Wszola, Lauren Chab
Lauryn Cooke (left) has
been in London for around
four years. She works as a
senior account manager in
public relations within the
hospitality industry, looking
after some of London’s world-renowned restaurants such
as The Ivy, Le Caprice and Scott’s in Mayfair. This has
meant some special visits to Michelin star restaurants.
Lauryn previously worked in radio in Australia at Austereo
(Melbourne’s Fox FM and Triple M), where I bumped into
her only to discover I was going to be working with her!
Twin sister, Lynda Cooke (right), has been in London
for around five years. She leads the marketing and
communications department at Prescott & Conran, the
London-based restaurant and hotel group, part-owned by
legendary designer Terence Conran.
Both girls live in Notting Hill, always know the best of
the best when it comes to dining out and they still look
exactly the same – 19 years since we all met and we still
can’t quite tell them apart!!
8
L . S
A . B . R
? . . ?O. .? .A ?. . D? . ? . ? . ? . ?
Gina Robinson works as an account
manager for a worldwide luxury lifestyle
concierge company called Quintessentially.
It’s the world’s leading private members’ club
with a concierge service around the clock to
its exclusive members, providing specialist
advice and insider benefits for absolutely anything you can
think of, from property, art, bespoke fashion and fine wine,
through to luxury travel. She has recently moved to Hong
Kong and before that lived in London for five years where
she made the most of her proximity to Europe. Gina now
plans to see as much of Asia as she can whilst living and
working in China.
Leanne Abriani has been living overseas
now for five years following a three year
stint in Sydney. In London she spent a fair
bit of time working very successfully in
project management roles for RBS (Royal
Bank of Scotland), Barclays and Lloyds.
She has travelled all over – including Central and South
America, Asia, India and Italy for a cooking course. She
lived on the famed Portobello Road in Notting Hill for
some time above an antique store, but has since moved
on to greener pastures in the US where, after taking some
time out from travel in America, she has started a project
manager job at Google in Mountain View, California.
ber Roth, Jyoti Singh, Fiona Duncan, Claire Taylor Middle
row: Rochelle Juriansz, Deborah John, Amanda
berka, Joelle Chaperon (red bandana), Nadia Gendron.
Since coming to London at
the end of 2006, Emily
Dowling, (left) has lived
between London and
Dublin with a six-month
stint back home. For the
last two years, she has been working in London with a
project management company as reporting coordinator on
Crossrail, which is the new high frequency, convenient and
accessible railway for London and the South East. She
lives in Putney with her husband Ed whom she married
in 2008. They intend to remain in London for the next 10
years convinced that “the world is your oyster!”
Emily’s twin, Laura Dowling, (right) has also been in the UK
for almost six years and works as an account director for an
advertising/marketing agency in central London. She has just
left for an extensive trip around Central and South America,
travelling for six months before she returns home.
Both Emily and Laura were recently home on a visit to
Melbourne for Caroline Ricardo’s wedding – also class of ’97,
where Ellen Stuart (fellow OLSHie) was a bridesmaid.
Another OLSHie, Lauren Chaberka recently joined us
in London for a visit on her way to Russia. She works in
Melbourne at Cruiseabout, a new brand of Flight Centre.
Monika Ciurej and Filia Garivaldis also live in London
and joined us for our catch up in June.
And finally….a little shout out to some of our good
friends still on the “home front” – Rowena Vilar, who
lives in Sydney and has established herself as a successful
performer – singing and dancing in shows such as We
Will Rock You, Miss Saigon, Boy From Oz, and most
recently Fame, where she played the main role of Carmen.
Also in Melbourne is Amanda Worthy, a qualified
massage therapist, who is currently working as a lab
technitian in the Physiology department at Monash
University. Anna Rhea Yu is married with two beautiful
children – Issy and Nathan, and Marianne Bilandzic, is
also married with two gorgeous girls and a new baby boy.
You might be able to tie a kangaroo down, à la Rolf
Harris, but you can’t tie an OLSH 1997 girl down!
A . L . U . M . N . A . E
Happy Birthday
N . E . W . S
In the Spotlight
Two of our 2010 alumnae who shone
in Italian while at OLSH have now
continued their illustrious careers
by strutting their stuff recently in
a production with the Melbourne
University Italian Theatre Group.
Michela Poletta who received a 50/50
study score for Italian in 2009 and
Laura Colaianni with a score 49/50 in 2010, starred in
The Virtuous Burglar, a farce by satirical playwright, Dario Fo.
Celebrating Trish Lucas’s 60th birthday at Tucks Ridge Winery,
Red Hill, in January this year were two sets of sisters and close
OLSH friends. Back row (L-R): Margaret Stewart, 1967;
Catherine (Donovan) Scantlebury, 1965; Joanna ( Jennings)
Armstrong, 1965. Front row: Trish ( Jennings) Lucas, 1967;
Mary (Donovan) Smith, 1967.
Babies
Isabelle (Laville) Thomas, 2004
Amelia Patricia, born on 1 August
2011, is the second child of Isabelle
and Trent Thomas. She is adored by her
sister Sophie (born March 2010), who
showers her with many kisses. Trent
works for the ANZ. He and Isabelle
met through their sisters, Brigitte
Laville and Rachael Thomas, both from the class of 2005,
who were and still are very good friends. Isabelle was College
Captain in 2004 and Rachael had the same position in 2005.
Michela and Laura both study Italian as a Breadth subject
as part of their Melbourne Model degrees: Laura’s being
Bachelor of Science, and Michela’s being Bachelor of
Environments. Laura is also planning on crediting her Italian
studies to a Diploma of Language to accompany her degree. If you look carefully at page 15, you will see Laura and
Michela also prominent in the revelries at the 2010 Year 12
girls’ first year out cocktail party reunion.
Congratulations
We congratulate Jess Austin (class of 2010) on receiving
an Australian Vocational Student Prize and Prime
Minister’s Award for Skills Excellence in July. Students
nominated were those who demonstrated outstanding
vocational and employability skills, high achievement and
commitment while undertaking a Vocational Education
and Training (VET) in Schools program. Each winner
received a certificate and $2000. Jess has completed
her Certificate III in Animal Studies at OLSH and is
continuing her studies in veterinary nursing.
NEW OLSH Website!
With great fanfare, the exciting new
OLSH website was launched to the
College community at a whole school
assembly on the first day of term 3.
The design was created to capture the
feel and tradition of our community,
at the same time portraying where we
are heading in our future directions.
10
Parents and members of the public
have described the new website
as “beautiful”, “elegant”, “very
professional”, “easy to navigate” and
“truly reflecting the nurturing college
environment”.
But don’t take their word for it, make
sure you visit and explore our new site;
There is a section dedicated to
the Alumnae under the School
Community heading on the home
page and already there are items for
Class Reunions, Other Alumnae
Events and News. Provision for a
dedicated Alumnae portal is being
investigated. Watch this space!
Faye Jamieson, eLearning Leader
A . L . U . M . N . A . E
M . E . N . T . O . R . S
Shape Your Dreams
Year 9 Mentoring Breakfast
“Have passion and follow your heart” was the message
for success given to OLSH Year 9 students by Maria
McCarthy, Vice President of Corporate Communications,
BHP Billiton.
At a breakfast held on Monday 27 June to mark the
beginning of the College’s Year 9 Issoudun Week, Maria,
also a past student, (1978), talked to the girls about the
need to have the right attitude, stay focused and that it’s
never too late to start again and try something different.
Maria related many anecdotes from her days at OLSH
including the inspiration she received from a fellow
student, a sports captain, who wrote her a note saying:
“You can do anything but it’s your choice”.
This student is now a teacher at OLSH, Ms Maureen
Malone, and fittingly, she works in the Careers area.
Maureen and Ms Jyotika Singh, Year 9 Coordinator, were
the main organisers of the breakfast, supported by other
staff who attended the function.
The name ‘Issoudun’ designates the curriculum that
Year 9 students undertake. In using this title, we are
acknowledging that Issoudun is the foundation site of
the Congregation of the Daughters of Our Lady of the
Sacred Heart in France. This was the location of important
decision-making by young women, more than a century
ago. The significance of their decisions made then, impacted
on their future and ours. Our OLSH community in
Bentleigh is here because they lived their dream.
Back row (L-R): Jenna Grundy,
Michelle Czech, Daniela (Biviano)
Ascone, Melanie Scerri, Lauren
(Crew) Savage, Tess Sweeney, Laura
Mattmann, Laurie Walker, Leanne
Tao Middle row: Fiona (Lathleiff )
Brewster, Catherine (Lucas) Pitts,
Caitlin Malone, Bianca Hoban, Kelley
Musster, Phillipa Dyt, Meg Boschetti,
Shane O’Neil Front row: Maureen
(Wilson) Malone, Anne (Crowe)
Jamieson, Fiona Lucas, Patricia
Palman, Elisabeth Lopez, Maria
McCarthy, Marcia (Bretherton)
Clohesy, Kellie (Foster) Elliot, Jessica
Rafferty, Thalia Kurzel Absent: Adele
Charalambous (who left early before
the photo).
Activities for the girls included visiting tertiary institutions,
investigating occupational health and safety, résumé
writing, performing mock interviews, researching industry
specific areas, developing an individual action plan and
completing a portfolio of work.
Accompanying Maria were another 25 alumnae who
came to speak with our girls. In this group there was
enormous experience and a vast array of pathways
followed including medicine, engineering, beauty and
well-being, architecture, writing and graphic design,
events management, neonatal nursing, paramedicine,
police force, accounting and teaching.
With a passion to make a difference, to strive for their
very best, to have a sense of humour, an ability to accept
the vulnerability of being human and yet rejoice in the
very best of life ­– this is so much a part of what we see
and hear at OLSH in both past and present students.
OLSH girls can do anything!
This year’s Issoudun Week had as its mantra the phrase
“Shape Your Dreams”, with a pre-vocational emphasis. All
the activities were designed to help the students develop
the need to know and think creatively, whilst building
teamwork, resilience, confidence and employability skills.
Photography by Vanessa Thurgood and Rachel Porter
T . H . A . N . K
Margs
The Two
For service above and beyond the call
of duty, you need look no further than
the two Margarets who volunteer in the
OLSH canteen.
On the last Monday of each month,
Margaret Diggerson and Margaret
Clarke travel down Nepean Highway
from Chelsea and Langwarrin
respectively to do their regular shift
serving salad rolls and sushi – and they
have been doing this for 30 years.
We recently said “thank you” to the
two Margarets with roses and a
special gift each – their own OLSH
apron. From left: Margaret C,
Cathy O and Marg D.
Marg D first started at OLSH when
her daughter Susan, 1968, began her
schooling here in 1963. After a few
years, Marg took some time off from
OLSH, working at St Bede’s as her
boys came of secondary school age.
Then daughter Catherine, 1986, arrived
at OLSH in 1981 and Margaret just
never stopped doing canteen duty.
Granddaughter Sarah also attended the
College from 2007-2009.
Teaching & Learning
The Science of
It’s always great to hear from students how their teachers
have inspired them. Here is just one example of that sort of
feedback. If you have a story about a teacher you’d like to share,
please send it in.
Ms Oro was such an inspiring Biology teacher, I’ll never
forget her. I remember wanting to sit at the front of the
class with my friends whom I am still very close with
today – Uyen Dinh, Sally Charleston, Lia Anagnosteas
and Robin Bui.
All of us now work in the field of Biology. Uyen works
in the intensive care ward for babies at Monash Medical
Centre, Sally is a midwife who also teaches nursing at
Charles Darwin University, Lia is an environmental health
officer for the City of Casey, Robin is a doctor in the
emergency ward at Box Hill Hospital, and I am head
of science at Scoresby Secondary College.
Australia
OLSH in
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the establishment
of the Australian province of the Daughters of Our Lady of
the Sacred Heart, when the mission became self-sufficient
from the mother order in France.
The first five OLSH Sisters had arrived 26 years earlier
from France, on 31 January 1885, and landed in Botany
Bay, Sydney where the work of the OLSH sisters in
Australia began.
Sam D.
12
Y . O . U
A . N . D
In 1981, Marg C’s daughter Michelle,
1986, also began her schooling at
OLSH and that was the beginning of
a very firm canteen friendship between
the two Margarets. Sister Rachael,
1994, followed Michelle to OLSH
and her mother just kept coming to
do canteen duty.
Both Margarets claim that canteen
manager, Cathy Osborne (née Vaudrey)
is the reason they keep coming. Cathy,
herself an alumna from the class of 1968,
had three daughters at OLSH: Nicole,
1990, Fiona, 1995, and Kate, 1996.
The two Margarets say that when Cathy
finishes up at OLSH, then it’s time for
them to leave too.
I remember a particular experiment we did on tomatoes
where we spoke about ideas in biotechnology which are really
relevant today – genetic modification and stem cell treatment.
I also remember our fun excursion to the Werribee Open
Range Zoo when we went on a real safari adventure.
But what I remember most was how much I really enjoyed
studying Biology, how my friends and I, who thought we
were very cool, raced each other to answer questions from
Ms Oro, and what a lovely lady she was to give us her
mobile number so that we could contact her to ask for help
if we needed it while studying for our exams – and did she
get contacted.
For many years now, I’ve wanted to say thank you to
Ms Oro. I truly believe her awesome teaching, charisma
and care helped shape the meaningful lives my close
friends and I live today.
Alison McGregor, 1998
Head of Science, Scoresby Secondary College
Alison’s science students did very well in the recent Science Week
awards, winning recognition from the City of Knox for their
environmental learning and community engagement projects.
To mark this significant milestone, a special Mass was
celebrated on Our Lady’s birthday, 8 September, at Our
Lady of the Sacred Heart Church in Randwick, where
the chief celebrant was Cardinal Pell. The Eucharist was
concelebrated with a large number of Missionaries of the
Sacred Heart.
The Superior General, Sr Mary Fyfe fdnsc, a 1964 alumna
of OLSH College, Bentleigh, travelled from Rome to be
present, and the Bentleigh community was also represented
by Board and staff members.
We thank the OLSH Sisters – past, present and future –
for their selfless pioneering work.
Margaret A.
T . H . A . N . K
Y . O . U
The Lollipop Lady
A . G . A . I . N
Anyone who has attended OLSH in the last decade or so will remember
the hard-working lollipop lady at the Jasper Road crossing but, they may
not know her name nor that she sent her two daughters to OLSH.
Marisa Carta arrived in Australia from Sicily in mid 1975. Twenty-five
years later she started as our road crossing supervisor, working every
school day from 8.15-9.00am and again from 3.15-4.00pm.
Marisa loves her job and says she is proud to be the lollipop lady. “I’m always
there, always on time,” she beams with a twinkle, “not like some others.”
She sees her work as being to “look after the kids, make it safe for them to
go to school, safe to go home” but says it is very hard to do her job. Many
drivers don’t slow down or respect the 40 km signs and she says some even
pass right under her stop sign.
(For those who know how tiny Marisa is, it’s just as well her stop sign
is almost twice as big as she is).
We thank Marisa for her dedicated care and concern. Hundreds of
OLSH girls have been safely shepherded across Jasper Road with
her trademark cheery call of “Ciao, bella. Have a good day!”
Rain, hail or shine, Marisa guides OLSH students
as they cross busy Jasper Road. Shannon McInnes
(left) and Hayley Lyons (right) are just two of
Marisa’s “darlings”.
Daughter Rosa, 2001, is featured in the Weddings section on page 6.
Second child, Daniella, 2002, works for GIO Insurance.
In October this year, Marisa clocked up 11 years as a crossing supervisor.
She was recently awarded a special badge by the City of Glen Eira in
recognition of her long service.
Proud to be an
O LSH Girl
“Shocked”, “overjoyed” and “excited” were the words used by
Bianca Fernandes, (centre) to describe how she felt when
her name was announced as the recipient of the inaugural
Flame Scholarship Award. Congratulating her soon
afterwards are Ms Barbara Bretherton, (left) past Chair of
the College Board and Alumnae Association representative,
and Ms Shane O’Neil, (right) Alumnae Secretary.
Reflection
Here are some Christmas thoughts
for you. They are compliments of
John O’Donohue, (1956-2008),
an Irish poet, author, priest and
Hegelian philosopher. I arise today
Blessed by all things,
Wings of breath,
Delight of eyes,
Wonder of whisper,
Intimacy of touch,
Eternity of soul,
Urgency of thought,
Miracle of health,
Embrace of God.
May I live this day.
Donations to the Flame Scholarship Fund are tax
deductible so we would welcome further generous
gifts. As the fund grows, we may be able to offer
awards to more students.
Sr Elizabeth Taylor
College Chaplain
Caitlin M.
Gabriela N.
13
R . E . U . N . I . O . N
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Neither rain nor cold, nor the fact it was Grand Final Eve
could keep enthusiastic members of the class of 2001 from
celebrating their 10-year reunion recently.
The venue was the Secret Garden, a trendy bar hidden
down the back of the Metropole complex off Fitzroy Street,
St Kilda.
Organisers Julie Jamison and Jacinta Moore (2001 College
Captain), helped by Sharni Kelly, were thrilled with the turn
up given the atrocious weather conditions.
The reunion was 90% organised via Facebook which proved
very successful in reaching most of the class, except for those
who had married and changed their names.
“It was so lovely to see such a positive response from the
girls who attended,” said Julie. “It was worth the effort and
we’ll certainly use social media again for the next reunion –
just 10 short years away.”
It was nice to see Prinita Ruban who left OLSH in Year 9
when her family moved to Western Australia, where she still
lives. Luckily the reunion coincided with the week Prinita
was attending a conference in Melbourne for her employer,
British Petroleum.
Now, it’s just another 10 years untill the class of 2011 is 20!!
14
Back row (L-R): Louise Hopper, Esther Martin,
Elizabeth Commons, Crystal Parlevliet, Jessica Beatson,
Jacqui Dingle, Jane Carolan Middle Row:
Carla Olsson, Michelle Cleary, Catherine Lucas, Tessa
Maguire, Julie Jamison, Janice Senn, Martina Cleary
Front row: Luisa Ballerini, Elizabeth (Malone) Jones,
Carmen (Ricardo) Sapsed, Emma-Jade Li, Geraldine
Pigeot, Sarah Cochrane, Jacinta Moore
(College Captain), Bettina Edwards, Tanya Madhusudan.
Also present but arrived after the photo: Sharni Kelly,
Simone Willans (College Vice Captain), Jhilik Avram,
Meredith Newman, Prinita Ruban.
R . E . U . N . I . O . N
Class of 2010 –
Party girls
The art deco surrounds of Oakleigh-Carnegie
RSL set the scene for the first year out reunion
of the 2010 Year 12 group on Thursday 15
September 2011.
Green, white and blue balloons added to the
ambience as did some 2010 music on a CD
burned for the evening by Natalie Abilmona
who arrived early to help put up some streamers.
Laura Colaianni also contributed to the
evening by creating a beautiful invitation
and by managing the Facebook side of the
communication process.
Thanks to Morea (Stevens) Reid of SalonQuip
and also Rosa and Patrick Warren of The
Present Cupboard for their donation of items
for the lucky door prizes.
Our guest photographer for the evening was
Rachel Porter of Year 11 who gamely turned up
for the evening’s work despite being unwell.
Special mention must go to the teachers
who came along to the evening despite many
other pressing commitments. Thanks to Anne
O’Loughlin, Bern Anderson, Pauline Canty,
Dina Oro, Maureen Malone, Gayle Roberts
and Linda Naylor. It was good to see the
genuine friendship between the staff and now
ex-students.
So much has already changed in less than 12
months. Will teachers and girls be still able
to recognize each other in another nine years
when the 10-year reunion takes place?
Only time will tell.
Photography by Rachel Porter
15
C . L . A . S . S
O . F
2 . 0 . 1 . 1
Introducing our newest alumnae...
Row 5 (L-R): Alicia Mitchell, Cody Thomas, Cassandra McKee, Madeline Kyriacopoulos, Hannah Faulks, Maegan Harper,
Stefania Achtypis, Bridie Malone, Bree Haggett, Abby Scholes, Madeline Wood, Annie Mirabile, Allison Weerappah, Eliza Dunn,
Petrina Stratoudakis, Aleksandra Mazurek, Deanna Taylor, Olivia Franklin. Row 4: April Scholes, Rachael O’Halloran, Natalie
Marguglio, Aunima Khondkar, Maria Francis, Victoria Parella, Olanda Mossad, Hannah Fredrickson, Cara McDonald, Gabriella
Bull, Christine Volaris, Lauren Kirby, Victoria Simpson, Cleo Yerolemis, Laura Burgess, Georgia Mara, Nina Leontaridis, Jennifer
Ngodara. Row 3: Billie Cull, Chiara Valcastelli, Erin Knight, Moona Kozma, Evelyn Zeglinas, Jessica Rezk, Oubada El-Ali,
Alice Little, Ellen Murphy, Sophie Lichoudaris, Tessa Garamszegi, Ellen Quinn, Sophia Tzitzivakos, Stephanie Marcu, Megan
Henchel, Amanda Kachab. Row 2: Elodie Baya, Madeleine Szabo, Christina Vescio, Kristene Rimbaldo, Selina Nguyen, Alicia Stilla,
Cassandra Mercuri, Amy Linden, Shannon Durkin, Rebecca Rosenfeld, Emma Traynor, Georgia Bourke, Chantelle Alberico, Laura
Iudica, Cristina Cafasso, Donna Paech. Row 1: Natalie Thorson, Madeline Palmington, Kerissa Carron, Madeleine Supple, Francesca
Leuzzi, Daniella Di Carlo, Angel Kotevski, Alexandra Angerami, Tiejen Prins, Kassandra Leslie, Isabella Viglione, Tayla Dougall,
Nicole Jansz, Laura Jemetta, Marie Sioukas, Marisa Loiacono, Natasha Karamesinis, Danielle Tapai.
Our Archives
We are pleased to be able to welcome Lee Toll as the new College Archivist.
Lee, most recently the Assistant Principal for Faith and Mission, retired from teaching at the end of 2010.
However, we are delighted she is able to return one day a week to manage the College’s archives.
As our Archivist, Lee is building on the faithful work carried out for a number years by Sr Nora Hanrahan,
formerly Sr Mary St Dominic, who taught at OLSH from 1962-1963.
If anyone has anything concerning the College she would like to donate, that would be much appreciated.
Please contact Lee by email on [email protected] or leave a message for her at the school on 03 8520 9200.
Your Say
If you have some news to share, or just
want to get in touch, here’s how:
Fifty years ago, on 15 August 1961, the Feast of the Assumption was celebrated
with the Children of Mary out in force.
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart College
111 Jasper Road, Bentleigh, VIC 3204
Tel: 03 8520 9200 Fax: 03 8520 9299
Ms Shane O’Neil
Alumnae Secretary
Tel: 03 8520 9263
Email: [email protected]
Printed on 55% recycled, 45% sustainable
plantation paper, elemental chlorine free.
Email: [email protected] Web: www.olsh.vic.edu.au