5 minute read
Celebrating Significance
Mr Jason Sten, Director of Cadets
Observing ANZAC Day in 2020
WITH the return of the majority of boarders and regular classes, life at TSS, along with the rest of Queensland, is gradually returning to normal.
Home schooling and social distancing has had a profound effect on us, and although there is easing of restrictions, and an increased sense of calm in the community, there continues to be an impact on how we conduct our lives. It has changed the way we conduct celebrations, and we have had to adjust as a community the way we observe national days of significance, such was the case with ANZAC day this year.
Although separated by distance, our boys sent pictures of themselves holding a candle and recited the names of fallen Old Boys, which was collated into a poignant and reflective video that was distributed via social media, promoting our strong sense of community. Taking this inclusiveness further, some of our Cadets took time to write to an Australian soldier currently serving on overseas operational deployments and, in doing so, identified, and connected with the wider military community.
LTCOL Brett Huggins, a TSS Old Boy who is currently on his third deployment to Afghanistan, commented on the TSS ANZAC Day facebook post:
“In addition to the two terrific commemorative videos the School shared on social media I was humbled to be advised that 41 young men from the TSS Cadet Unit had taken the time to write to the men and women of Task Group Afghanistan. Your support and well wishes are greatly appreciated. As an Old Boy (WAL ’97) and a former Senior Under Officer of the Unit, this was particularly appreciated.”
The Cadets had been encouraged to write about themselves, their families, school activities, hobbies and interests. They did this through sharing personal stories and pictures of things that were important to them as well as demonstrating an appreciation of the sacrifice of our serving men and women and their families. Excerpts of some of the letters are:
“To a brave and selfless soldier, a friend, a parent, a son, a daughter, a niece, a nephew, an aunty or an uncle. Thank you for your commitment to our country. Thank you for representing us in ways that are impossible for many Australians. Thank you for your time, your service, your unselfish acts, your belief in our country and for your sacrifice”.
“Here is a photo of my brother and I enjoying ourselves at a family outing at a golf driving range. As you can probably see they are smiling and having a great time. This is because of you. Our freedom is fought for and allows us to do this. Thank you”.
“I like to think of myself as a very proud Aussie. As a family we like to attend the ANZAC Day Dawn Service yearly, in honour of our fellow countrymen who have served past, present and those who are still serving. Unfortunately, due to the current COVID-19 restrictions put in place, sadly all commemoration ceremonies have been cancelled due to social distancing. This also means that I cannot march with my Platoon at school this year. I would have been proud to wear my uniform and be a part of this special event”.
LTCOL Brett Huggins was one of the serving men and women who wrote back to the boys whose letters they had received. The appreciation and encouragement these soldiers expressed in their response included: “Reading your letter, I can only imagine how hard it is for you and your mates as you navigate through your final year of schooling during these uncertain times… Your hard work and dedication up until now is not simply to be on the Dean’s List (although a great achievement)… it has been to build your character, your values and to set yourself up for a successful future.”
“I am so pleased that you have taken the time to write to an Australian Soldier. It sounds like you have a really big and close family which is wonderful mate. Your cat and dog look beautiful and I sense you love them dearly. I have a dog and I am missing him terribly; his name is Sherlock and is a Beagle, so he never stops eating and he is a dope… I must say your thought process of thinking about working or studying overseas is excellent. I am 28 years old and I regret not following through on learning a language when I was in school… I am glad you enjoy cadets and it most definitely is true that the skills you learn within it will be extremely beneficial to you in your future life… I am pleased you are learning about the tactics and weapons within the Defence Force. I am not sure if they will teach you this but, if you learn how to plan in a military fashion, this will be something that will drastically improve your goal setting. It helps me in my day to day life and I use it for the simplest of situations such as running errands. You will learn how to develop different courses of action should an issue occur on my way to a goal, as well as increasing your understanding of the bigger picture and what you are actually trying to achieve. It is so easy to set a goal and fail. But if you break it down and structure it, your success rate will be a lot higher.”
It is a credit to our boys, the Cadet program and our School that even during a global pandemic and the disruptions it is still having on our everyday lives, the values of ‘service over self’ and ‘courage, initiative, respect and teamwork’ have prevailed, enabling Cadets who participated to feel a part of something so much greater than themselves.
The boys have every right to be as proud of their efforts as we, the rest of the school community, are proud of them.
