‘If you have a Heavy Transport licence; you will never be out of a job.’ – Winsome Dormer
It is not only about the cricket, the beautiful surrounds, the company of your teammates, from both sides, it is also about the lessons learnt on the North Canterbury soil.
In this case the lesson was the advice, from Winsome. Advice given freely from someone who knows the world, who is always generous. Her words, to the team were true, and in a world where we have experienced so much change and uncertainty, welcomed.
A practical skill, a long-lasting qualification that will always see someone as employed is something not to be dismissed easily, and while it may not be followed, teenagers don’t always listen that well. It is another example of how being a part of this environment is special.
What I like, as a Rector, is the connection between those two groups, the Willowers and the students, how it is extended beyond the middle. It was yet another example of how young people, in 2022 benefit from a community to guide and support them. Their parents cannot do it alone, nor schools, instead in moments like these they get another important perspective, seeds that will hopefully land.
We were also lucky last October to be part of Willows history, as Molly Lowe, pupil of St Hilda’s Collegiate and excellent Otago cricketer played against us last season. She performed extremely well and laid the platform for future innovation.
As the Otago Boys’ side came off the field last October, I stopped the team, I got them to pause, to stop, to listen, to breathe to take in where they were, and to give a silent thanks to a community that gives them so much.
Recti Cultus Pectora Roborant