NEDD BROCKMANN

Nedd Brockmann is a former student who graduated in 2016. He has made a profound impact on the lives of others through his passionate desire to help those less fortunate.

Many will remember his immensely courageous feat of running across Australia. Nedd’s goal in October 2022 was to be the fastest person to run 3,953 kilometers from Cottesloe Beach on the West Coast of Australia to Bondi Beach to raise awareness for homelessness. Nedd raised over $2,500,000 that is helping to support people experiencing homelessness and to improve children’s mental health.

In 2020, Nedd also ran 50 marathons in 50 days, raising over a $100,000 for the Australian Red Cross. Nedd’s desire to help those less fortunate and to use his gifts to contribute to the betterment of our community and broader society aligns with the mission of Kinross Wolaroi School. His courage, commitment, and compassion see him living these values.

Nedd spoke at the School’s 2023 Speech Day and challenged us all to go beyond our comfort zone to discover more about ourselves, to be compassionate to those less fortunate and to promote change for a better world. Read his speech below:

Alot can happen in this life if you commit to achieving a goal, and I’ll touch on that in a minute. I’m not here today to explain to you how I ran across this great country, nor am I here to give you career advice because at this point, I wouldn’t really call what I do a job. I have, however, for the last year or so, had quite a lot of people listen to what I have to say about what I’ve done and how I do it, which has given me an inflated sense of self-importance. Just kidding. I most definitely have no idea how the hell I got here.

I remember only a handful of my Speech Days. Funny that, I only had five. However, it was usually just a few hours before playing handball, hanging in the quadrangle, throwing pistachios into each other’s mouths, and kicking the footy – those are the things I remember the most. Seven years ago, I was in your spot. Right there, right where you all are, waiting for this person to shut the hell up so I could get back to the farm and kick into the back end of harvest.

So to be perfectly honest, in a week’s time, I’ll be very surprised if you remember anything I’ve said. Let’s hope that’s not the case. I don’t remember who was Dux or who got an award. The few things I remember were that I was very busy trying to make my mates laugh or playing the game where you try to be the last person to clap before the next teacher spoke, which I know a few of you are already doing. Or trying to catch the attention of a girl that definitely wasn’t going to look back at me.

I was acting way too cool to listen to what the ex-student or famous speaker had to say. I was no doubt counting down the minutes until mum would help us down those old Wolaroi stairs with our bags, getting ready for the two-and-a-half-hour trip home. But there’s something in that, in the fact that I remember those moments with friends. Because truly, the only thing we own is moments in time. Our memories. So make them.

School goes very quickly. It’s another year done for you all. And as our school year coincides with the end of the year, today is a time for reflection. But it’s also a time to look forward to what’s to come.

Yes. Be respectful and courteous. Be a generous person with your time but make memories. It’s the only thing we go to the grave with. Sorry to remind you of our mortality.

So if you don’t remember a thing I say today, that’s okay. Because I’ve been there and I’ve done it. In hindsight, I wish I had listened. Maybe I would have learned something invaluable, or maybe not. But truth be told, one thing I know for sure is that you should never ever ever stop learning. Rather, never be too cool to learn. You should evolve every single day. Only through my reflections and life lessons, have I been able to understand that maybe they were telling something I could’ve taken on board. However, as a young teenage boy, I did what felt right. I remember that warm fuzzy feeling you all have right now that school was out for the year.

Getting ready to say goodbye to all my mates for the summer holidays, Christmas on the horizon, looking forward to the next year at school, as I’d be another year older and another year closer to leaving high school. But one thing I wish I knew when I was at school, and your parents probably remind you all the time, but you don’t want to listen to them, is to not wish it away. Live in the moment, be present, learn, laugh, and have fun. Don’t worry too much about getting a certain ATAR. Yes. Work hard. Don’t worry about the dream job in five years’ time. Focus on the now. Doors open and doors close. What was once a dream of yours may be a distant memory in two years’ time.

So be open minded. I never in a million years thought I’d use running as a form of income. I genuinely hated it when I was here. But here we are. Doors open, as I said.

Tomorrow isn’t promised, so make the most of right now. If you work too hard towards a huge, long-term goal, you may not see the beauty of the day today. Have goals and aspirations but celebrate the small wins along the way. Truth be told from my time here at Kinross, I learned some of the most valuable life lessons. For example, how to use a bunsen burner, Pythagoras’ theorem, and how an image conveys a sense of belonging. No way. That was the list of completely useless things I learned that we’ll never use out of school. What I did learn at Kinross Wolaroi was much more powerful. I learned how to stand up for myself and the people around me, regardless of who was in front of me. I learned the beauty of taking risks and coming up short. I learned that no matter how much you want to get in that top rowing boat or best footy team, maybe it just isn’t going to work out for you that year. And that’s okay. That taught me to never ever throw in the towel, regardless of how many times I got knocked down. I learned that if you want something badly enough, you can pretty well have whatever it is you want. As long as you’re willing to work hard for it and make sacrifices. I learned that everyone comes from a different walk of life, and we should never ever judge people. Be curious, but not judgmental. The list goes on. I left this place enriched, full to the brim, with hope and excitement.

So, I want to leave you with a few of my favorite learnings from throughout the last four years, because it’s been a genuinely wild ride.

Number 1 is: be yourself. Be your bloody self. In a world now where we’re all hooked on this thing called social media, it’s very easy to compare yourself with others and lose a bit of yourself each day. The beautiful thing about this life is that there is only one of you. Embrace your weirdness, accept your flaws, and be proud of who you are. We are here on this planet for a very, very, very short amount of time. I would hate to see you spend it worrying about what you aren’t. Rather, be excited and proud of who you are.

Number 2: don’t rush. Don’t waste this precious gift of life we all have. You do not need to know what you’re going to do with the rest of your life. I’m not saying wait for things to fall in your lap and sit around waiting for things to happen. But do not panic. I thought I wanted to be a pilot, then a concreter, believe it or not, a saxophone player, a footy player, a pharmacist, and then a sparky. And to be honest, the running shoes may not have a place in my life in due time. What we look for in life is for each of us to decide. Whether we succeed is on our is in our own hands. The goals which suit each of us are different. Some may involve intellect, some may involve physical skills, others may involve practical skills, or skills which depend on understanding human nature. But for all of us, there is a personal goal. It is wrong to think that your goal should be the same as the goal of someone else or a popular one. We should look for the goal that is best for each of us. You have the advantage of a privileged education. The choices available to you are probably better than most. Many of you have already made important decisions about your future. But for all of you, for all of us, there are always opportunities and choices. My message to you today is to not waste your opportunities. So don’t wait for things to happen. You’ll only find out you don’t want to do something by trying.

Number 3: have goals and embrace discomfort. Developing goals and aspirations can be exciting and almost a reward in itself. Setting goals, having aspirations, and working towards achieving them have been central to my life. Fortune smiles on those who lay the groundwork and build on it. First, set your goal. It may be adventurous, like running across a country, but it should be realistic, which that probably isn’t. But dream big. Having set the goal, go for it. Make yourself accountable and scream it to the world. Scream it. Tell everyone. Be a person of your word and do it. Do not draw back or hesitate just because you may not succeed. Your life will not be easy nor should it be. Anything worth having will take a lot of hardship and adversity. It will require time being spent doing things you do not want to do. But that is the price you pay to attain the goal. So instead of waiting for life to happen to you, go out and bring it on yourself. Challenge yourself, do things that make you uncomfortable. Because when something does happen in your life, out of your control, you’ll be ready. And I’ll be behind you telling you I told you so.

On my journey across Australia on foot, the hardest thing was knowing that to get to Bondi, I had to endure the hardship of not sleeping for 46 days, dealing with injuries that I may never come back from. But man oh man, that feeling of achieving the thing you said you were going to do, that’s what life is all about in my opinion.

Finally, be a leader. We need more of them. You don’t have to have a badge to lead. You just need to believe in something and bring people on the journey. I know school can be hard, some kids are mean, that’s just the way it is. That’s not your problem, that’s theirs. People just need to feel loved and to fit in.

All I can say is just keep showing up. Keep working hard, you won’t truly understand what you’re learning right now until years later. Be yourself and give back. Give a smile, ask if you can help someone without wanting anything in return. The subjects you take here, the music classes are amazing.

The footy, the friendships, the heartbreaks, the bus trips, the excursions, and the long boring Sunday chapel are all part of the big picture. Right now, you may ask why the hell you’re doing all these things, why cadet camp is compulsory for two years, or why you have to have your shirt tucked in at all times. However, the life lessons will pop up years down the track when you least expect it. And you’ll be forever grateful you were told to make your bed every single freaking morning before school. So keep putting one foot in front of the other.