A MESSAGE FROM OUR CHAIR Can you remember 2001? Where were you? What made it a special year? I can’t remember much about 2001. It feels like quite an unremarkable and anonymous year for me. Or was it? You see, for Christel House SA, 2001 marks the beginning of our story – the year our school was founded. The first step on the journey that has seen almost 500 students matriculate. Christel House SA served 241 students in the first year we opened and today, we serve more than 1 000 students. Students that have come and gone. Each contributing something unique and leaving with their own stories and memories of our remarkable school. Many teachers and support staff have worked tirelessly at the school over the past two decades. Selfless, focused and determined team workers, each of which has left an indelible mark on the school and its many learners over the years. But numbers alone simply conceal the true impact that Christel House has made on the local communities and the lives of so many families in and around our Ottery catchment area.
It’s the war stories, the smiles, the still re-told anecdotes of school days gone by, jobs enabled, and homes transformed that really illustrate the specialness of Christel House. That’s what keeps us coming back for more. It is what keeps us focused on supporting this magnificent institution, its staff and its pupils. So it falls to me, as the fifth Chair of the school since 2001, to thank each and every donor, benefactor, staff member and supporter that the school has enjoyed since our foundation. Without your support, love and energy we would not be celebrating 20 successful years and looking forward to our third decade of transforming lives by breaking the cycle of poverty through the opportunity that an education brings.
Ian Russell Chair Christel House SA
CHRISTEL HOUSE SA 2021 ANNUAL REPORT | 7
