Gazette Januar y 2021
81
COMMUNIT Y
A Resilient King’s Community The King’s School was established so that the families who chose to give their children a King’s education and experience, were choosing to make an impact for the good of society through that choice. This is what lies at the heart of the King’s community. Parents of the School optimise and enjoy the rich King’s experience, through the lives of their children, as active involved partners in the journey, building enduring family friendships along the way. The King’s community fosters engagement between parents, Housemasters, teachers, MICs of various sports, coaches, tutors and more, as well as providing the networking and friendship opportunities between current parents, past parents, Old Boys and Old Tudorians. With gatherings taking place within House events, sports clubs, Year groups, around sport fields, at music recitals, drama productions, art shows, showcases, tours, ski trips, and a broad range of activities, functions, reunions and celebrations across the three campuses. There is no denying the King’s community is vibrant, busy and dynamic! But in 2020 COVID-19 hit. A major challenge, especially for our new families, as face-to-face gatherings ended for 2020 and we suffered the loss of what is an integral part of the community experience. Nevertheless, in true King’s spirit our community adapted, innovated and remained connected, as the King’s community went online. Through Zoom and KingsNet, students, staff and parents could remain connected, while in isolation. To rally the community together and as a first response to support our parents through COVID related challenges, #strongertogether was developed as a curated collection of resources designed as a ‘onestop-shop’ for parents and staff – located on the King’s Community page of KingsNet. With regular updates, #strongertogether gave parents both fun and fascinating resources, with hours of entertainment to explore – perfect to keep the family occupied during lockdown.
Anzac Day Dawn Service
The community came together again for a five-week trivia challenge known as the Quarantine-Quashing Quizzical Quest (QQQQ). Hosted by quiz host extraordinaire Mike Symons, over 240 King’s families from across the three campuses entered the fray via Zoom, pitting their general knowledge strengths against each other in friendly, but focussed competition. Annual milestone occasions which are the threads of the rich history of King’s, such as Anzac Day, Easter Services, the Annual Musical, The Passing Out Parade, GPS sport, The Festival of Lessons and Carols to name but a few, were made possible by the commitment across our community to engage in virtual experiences. As I leave the School after a wonderful 18 months, I am most grateful to have met many of you and thank all the families and colleagues who have made my time at this great School something special. The Community Engagement baton will be ably picked up in 2021 by former Macarthur Waddy Boarding Housemaster and English teacher Mike Symons, as the Director of Community Engagement, and we trust that things can return to something more like ‘normal’ after the strangest of years. The King’s School is a magnificent institution. Be proud of it, protect it and celebrate well as you move toward your 200th year in 2031. ‘Once a King’s family, always a King’s family!’
Rose Thomson Former Head of Community Relations https://vimeo.com/403199915
