What makes a final year of school truly memorable? For our Year 12 cohort, the answer has become clear: it is not just the study, the assessments, or the milestones – it is the people beside you along the way.

From the very first major event of the year, this group showed up – not just to participate, but to celebrate together. At the swimming carnival, students arrived in themed costumes, threw themselves into every race and activity they could, and cheered each other on with enthusiasm. It was loud, spirited, and a reminder that this cohort knows how to have fun together, setting the tone for the year.

On Valentine’s Day, rather than letting the occasion pass by, the Year 12s gathered to decorate cupcakes together – piping icing, adding sprinkles, and sharing plenty of laughs in the process. They then gifted their beautiful masterpiece to a friend to show that they are loved. It was a simple, joyful moment that reminded us that community is often built in the small, sweet in-betweens, and that this group genuinely enjoys one another’s company.

For Mother’s Day, we spent a lesson together writing heartfelt letters, carefully painting vases, and crafting pipe-cleaner flowers for the students to give to their mums – an act of creativity and love that spilled naturally from young people who are learning, day by day, what it means to serve and honour others.

We also had our final ever Cross Country this term. There is something deeply fitting about a group of Year 12 students lining up together for one of the final races of their schooling journey. Side by side, they began – not competing against each other, but running with each other toward a finish line that grows closer every week.

This is what community looks like. It is love in a cupcake. Encouragement in a cheer. Thoughtfulness in a hand-painted vase. Belonging at a starting line shared with people who have become more than just classmates.

A successful final year is not only about what you achieve – it is about who you lift up along the way, I look forward to watching as these students continue to encourage one another, lead with integrity, and make the most of every opportunity this final year brings.

“Therefore, encourage one another and build each other up.” — 1 Thessalonians 5:11

Rhema Papacostas, Year 12 Coordinator