Joy, Peace, Love
A happy and Holy Christmas to all in the extended Ambrose Treacy College community. I trust it is a blessed time for you, your family and friends and a chance for some reflection and gratitude.
I have three adult daughters and each year, I am more and more conscious of their spreading their own wings, deepening their relationships beyond home and that there are possibly Christmas days in the future that may not be spent with me.
Last Christmas, having shared images of what I love about the Holy Season with my final ATC blog for the year, I spent the week leading up to Christmas and Christmas Day itself, quite sick with COVID. My nephew, Garth, who passed away early this year was ill with cancer at the time, and so my wife, whose parents had both passed away in 2023, and my daughters all stayed home with me to protect Garth and to celebrate with my crankiness parked out on our back deck away from everyone. First world problems no doubt, but I was kicking some stones.
I was very sad that my wife couldn’t be with her five siblings for the first Christmas without their Mum and Dad.
Without gilding the lily too much with comparisons to wise kings following stars and visiting mangers, we were visited by my wife’s siblings throughout the day. The first came with breakfast for each of us including his famous cream cheese filled mushrooms that I have been chowing down on at his place each Christmas for over 30 years. Then phone calls from the other brothers and the mushiest brother of all showed up at lunch time with my sister in law’s baked ham and macadamia nut maple sauce and had a little tear as he couldn’t hold his little sister in his arms on Christmas Day. Then my wife’s sister, who some mistakenly think isn’t sentimental, stood in the backyard talking with us on the deck and spending some Christmas time with us.
I am blessed to be a part of this large family and in a special way last Christmas, amid my constant coughing, and feeling sorry for myself, I have never felt more a part of it on another Christmas Day as in their pragmatic, understated Irish Catholic way, they wrapped their arms around us and included us in the rituals and rhythms of the day.
Unconditional love is the Christ child’s ultimate message. The only condition being found in Jesus’s example throughout His life to be of loving presence to all; especially those who challenge us, make us feel uncomfortable, call us to be our best selves and need our compassion, inclusion and forgiveness. We are called to take this heart of compassion out into the community and our world which is so in need.
When my beautiful home, which I am blessed to have and share, is filled with the smell of pine needles, and the lights are glowing and I see young adult women gathered around our tree, and think back to them as toddlers gleefully opening their presents, I will be still and remind myself that today and every day, we are called to invite the Christ Child to live in our hearts. And to do it in the ordinary and every day like visiting your sister’s family in isolation on Christmas Day and making them feel a part of something very special.
Thank you to the extended ATC community for making our staff feel that way at our upcoming Christmas lunch. Your generosity is deeply appreciated.
May this Christmas be a time of peace and joy for all our families both continuing with us and departing for a new journey. Thank you for the gift of your son to our community in 2024.
On behalf of the community, I extend a warm and sincere best wish to all families who are departing our community and wish them and their son the very best for their journey. We look forward to welcoming back all continuing families in January and to the new life that our new students and families always gift to our community.
Staffing News
I congratulate Mr Tim Walker, Head of Leinster House, who has been appointed as Pastoral Leader - Wellbeing at Marist College Ashgrove, effective from the commencement of the 2025 school year. Tim will work with students from Years 7 to 12 in this role.
Tim is a 2015 Foundation Year member of our staff community and has played an instrumental role in the establishment of our pastoral, teaching & learning and co-curricular Sport programs and House cultures.
He is widely recognised for his holistic leadership skills and experience; particularly in the fields of HPE curriculum and as a leading school Volleyball coach in Australia. It is to the benefit of young men at Ashgrove that Tim wishes to continue to grow in his formation leadership and I congratulate him on being appointed to this promoted upper Middle Leadership role.
Also, I wish to thank and congratulate Ms Elsie Bredhauer, our Acting Co-ordinator of Drama, who has been appointed to a full-time continuing teaching position at West Moreton Anglican College commencing next year.
As communicated in early articles, we also farewell Ms Karen Bates (Hospitality), Mr Bryan Shephard (Design Technology), Ms Sue Goonan (School Officer Junior School) and wish them well for their retirement. Mr Darren Grouse (HPE and Science) who has been on a 12-month contract, is returning home to North Queensland. I thank these staff members for their wonderful contributions and wish them all the very best of health and happiness.
Community Prayers
Lord, we pray for those in our community who are suffering. Be with them in this time of hardship and uncertainty. Give comfort and peace to those who have lost loved ones. May their sorrow be turned into strength, and their distress turned into peace. May our hearts remain loving and pure as we seek to always be compassionate to those around us.
God bless,
Chris Ryan
College Principal
