Tena koutou katoa

A warm welcome back to students and families for term two at the College.  

 This term has started with a his and a roar with winter sports all well under way and students involved in their preparation for  our production ‘Verdon Showcase’ and Stage Challenge.

 I have been very impressed with the effort of all those involved in the Stage Challenge group which will be performing this Friday.  This event is student run with minimal staff or parental input.  It has been a great example of how students can teach each other skills to great effect.  A feature has also been the students support of fundraising activities such as quiz nights and a great example of the Verdon spirit in action.

 I have also been so impressed by the vast number of students involving themselves in the Production ‘Verdon Showcase’ this year. This new format to our production has enabled so many more students to get involved and express their talent. Again, a feature of this production has been the willingness of students to share their skills with others and demonstrate their leadership skills. As part of this showcase we have groups putting on items from past Verdon musicals,  the Stage Challenge performance, Panache and the Kapa haka and Pasifica groups as well as a number of other talented groups performing. I have seen some of the performances which are already at a pretty amazing standard  and we are all very excited to see what the final product will look like in the next few weeks

 I would like to thank the PTA and all those that supported and contributed to our inaugural Art Auction. This was a great success and a great night for all involved. The PTA raised around $11,000 for projects to support student’s engagement in the arts in the College. 

 We  received the sad news of past. long term staff member, Wes Melvin's passing.   We pray for Wes and his family and all other members of our community dealing with illness and loss of loved ones at this time.

God Bless

Jarlath Kelly