Merchistonian Newsletter - Oct. 2022

Merchistonian Newsletter

October 2022 October is almost over and the leaves have turned on the trees, framing our grounds with autumnal tones.

This has been a very busy month at the School, filled with trips and events and culminating in a much-deserved break, over the Half Term holidays.

The second half of the Autumn Term will resume on Monday and we are very much looking forward to welcoming the boys back for what promises to be another busy few weeks before the Christmas break.

Merchistonian Magazine The latest issue of the Merchistonian Magazine is now available to view here.

This issue includes news, stories and reports from the last academic year.

National School Festival 2022 Merchiston was very excited to host the National School Festival on the weekend of the 15th & 16th of October.

The School welcomed 16 Teams who competed over 2 days, in what has been our biggest Festival to date. It was a great weekend filled not only with great Rugby, but also with opportunities for players, staff and parents to connect, on and off the pitch.

Our very own Merchiston Team put in a great performance right until the end, sadly losing in the final against a very strong Ipswich.

The ‘Man of the Tournament’ title, was however claimed by our very own cocaptain Isaac C. Well done!

You can consult all fixtures and results here. We would like to thank everyone who came out to support the boys, volunteered to help and joined us for the matches on livestream.

Sport Updates For those who would like to keep upto-date with Merchiston’s sporting endeavours, all fixtures and results are available to view here.

merchistonians@merchiston.co.uk

EDITION #2

28.10.22

Chalmers Refurbishment At Merchiston we pride ourselves on our world-class facilities, which enable us to offer brilliant opportunities to our Students. Many of you will have fond memories of our Chalmers East and West boarding houses. It is with great excitement that we announce our £5.8 million refurbishment plan to upgrade these facilities. Complete with bespoke, individually designed furniture, the project is due to be completed by August 2023 and will offer our Students an incredible home away from home.

Obituaries We were very saddened to hear of the passing of the following Merchistonians:

Gordon T. Russell 1943 - 2022

At Merchiston: 1956-1960 Fife Golf Champion 1968 & 1971, winner Eden Golf Tournament 1971, winner Perth Open Curling Championship 1981

Neil H. Burnet 1939 - 2022

At Merchiston: 1952-1957 BSc Civil and Environmental Engineering, Olympic Club Golf Member (San Francisco, USA)

Harvest Festival We would like to extend a warm ‘thank you’ to everyone who contributed to this year’s Harvest Festival – from those who donated to those who shared with us the Harvest Service on Sunday 9th October. All food donations raised were pledged to Edinburgh City Mission, an Edinburgh-based charity supporting those experiencing exclusion, depravation, isolation and those facing social disadvantage. We are so incredibly grateful for everyone who donated and supported this initiative, led by Rev. Blair - not least for our Rogerson Students who helped pack all items for transport.

The Harvest Service also raised a fantastic £356.45 in collections – in addition to the food donations, this will also go in support of Edinburgh City Mission’s life-changing work.

The core value of this year’s Harvest Festival has been ‘Thankfulness’.

Students and staff explored this theme in the lead-up to the Service and we also had the pleasure to welcome back to the School Bill Donaldson (Class of 1949), to find out from him what he is thankful for.

Bill holds such a strong and wonderful connection with Merchiston, having been Captain of the School as well as playing a staggering 4 seasons in the 1XV!

Bill, together with his wife Sarah, also returned to the School as a Housemaster. During his visit, Bill was presented with the Unbeaten Season Tie by the current School Captain and the Captains of the current 1XV.

Merchiston Open Day As previously announced, Merchiston opened its doors to prospective families on Saturday 8th October for our first Open Day of the year. With over 50 families attending the event, we were thrilled with the turn-out and cherished the opportunity to show-off everything that Merchiston has to offer.

EDT Industrial Cadets The Design & Technology programme is certainly a key strength of our educational offering at Merchiston.

D&T Students yearly take part in the EDT Industrial Cadets Bronze Project – we are currently looking for a Sponsor to support our Students for this year’s entry. If you are interested in supporting the department, please get in touch with Dr Nugent at cnugent@merchiston.co.uk.

Find out more about the Project here. merchistonians@merchiston.co.uk

Visitors were welcomed in the Memorial Hall before enjoying a Student-led tour of the grounds, where they had the opportunity to interact and engage with different departments.

The visit ended with a delicious lunch provided by our catering team and accompanied by the sound of live performances from our Music Department.

Our first Open Day of the year was a very successful one indeed, marked by positive feedback and many families affirming their interest in a Merchiston education for their sons. Our next Open event is currently planned for Spring 2023.