District farewells two principals who served with distinction

The district farewelled two school principals last month who had a huge influence on the lives of their students.

Lindy Stewart (pictured left) and Vince Campbell (pictured at the opening of St Mary’s cultural garden, with artist Owen Lyons) with gave their all as teacher and school leader. They shaped the lives of those in their charge, they guided their students, shared in their victories and their losses and became their confidants.

Mrs Stewart began her career at Booligal Public School in 2012. Last month the school went into recess due to low student numbers.

“When I began at Booligal I wasn’t a grandmother, my ute didn’t have 588,000 kms on the odometer and miraculously I have not hit an emu or a kangaroo in all that time,” she said in her emotional end-of-year speech.

“We have encountered approximately 83 brown snakes, had no luck in breeding chickens with a 95 per cent rooster outcome and I never once became sick of driving to work, though early winter mornings were sometimes that little bit harder.

“I have shared the absolute joys and the unmentionable heartaches with families. From the acquisition of new puppies and kittens and the celebration of many birthdays with fabulous cakes to the loss of precious pets and the devastation of losing treasured family members.

“This is life in a small community - everything has an impact. It cannot be any other way.

“It was a time of many firsts. The loss of the first tooth to the first swimming carnival, the first athletics carnival, from learning to skip and learning to read, from learning to write their name without backward letters and learning to write the most fantastical stories - often influenced by their lives and the things most special to them.

“What will I take away from my time at Booligal?

“I stand by my educational ethos that surrounding yourself with the best people will develop genuine life skills in all students in all facets of education. “This is absolutely the only way to go in a rural isolated community.

“To quote Roy Kennedy, teachers should be the reason that kids learn to walk on top of the clouds, not below. With the teachers that have been at Booligal I believe this is very true.

“I hope we are remembered for not putting NAPLAN before kids, for fostering a love of reading, for embracing any opportunities that came our way in the pursuit of turning out independent and well-rounded children in the true sense of the word.

“I hope the kids remember the only homework was to read, with the occasional family project.

“I hope they have many fond memories of all the playground games … too many to mention. What they could invent with a few hockey sticks and gym mats is beyond comprehension!

“I hope they remember how genuinely happy they were.

“While we greatly valued and fostered the ‘must dos’ - Mathematics and English - I believe we offered the most balanced curriculum with all the extras we provided, while acknowledging we had the luxury and privilege in a small school to do this.

“We do not claim to be perfect and we certainly didn’t get everything right. We certainly tried.

“We had a brand that we were proud of. We provided a culture where every child was known and encouraged to be their own person, letting them be themselves, letting them shine with all their idiosyncrasies, fostering their own interests, to find the best way for them, to go out of their comfort zone.

“As a school we fully embraced that kids needed to move, not be stuck in the one chair all day, to take off shoes, to play in sand and water, to let their imaginations go wild at recess and lunchtime, supporting kids to express themselves creatively in dance, music and art.

“Over the 10 years these were, and are, kids who truly did take on everything that was offered.

“Along with an educational facility we have been a tennis academy, a dance studio, kitchen and food preparation specialists, a robotics lab, language hub, an art studio, a writer’s retreat, yoga den, garden centre, gymnasium and a calisthenics zone … Is there anything we didn’t try?

“While we couldn’t be everything in this small school, we certainly gave it everything.

“Some highlights, and while it isn’t all about awards and recognition, it clearly shows that size and isolation was no barrier to achievement.

“Winners twice of the Dorothea Mackellar small school’s national poetry competition, second place ABC Television My Place national writing competition, Operation art - top 50 selection every year since 2013 and twice awarded outstanding student and school award.

“To dispel the perception that we only focus on ‘art’, many of our students have also achieved significantly high results in NSW state-wide Mathematics and Reading assessments.

“We have published three books and been involved in collaborative writing projects with Hay Public school and Local Land Services.

“Individual and team qualification for state swimming and athletics - could not have been more excited to witness this over the years.

“What I will miss are the small classes, the joy of little people and watching them grow, Super Friday with our very good buddies Carrathool, the daily chats and the wonder of seeing life through the lens of small people - joyous, funny, unpredictable. Often making our hearts sing. Without question the most rewarding job I have ever had and I will certainly miss it.

“The recess doesn’t mean forever, but my message to the next generation of parents is to make sure you fight hard for this little school.”

Vince Campbell was brought out of retirement as relieving principal for St Mary’s School for one year. He stayed for two and has only one regret, not coming to Hay a few years before 2021 to spend more time here.

“Honestly, I cannot think of a better way to have brought my 46-plus years as a teacher to a close than by spending it in such a special place as St Mary's.

“I will forever hold this place in my heart,” he said in his final newsletter to the school. “Pam and I arrived here at the start of 2021 and didn't really know what to expect although we had heard from reliable sources that St Mary's was a terrific little school and that Hay was a great little town. What we have experienced has well and truly surpassed our expectations, for sure. “

The lifeblood of any school is its students and what a great group of children we have at St Mary's.

“Pam and I truly love the joy that these young people bring to school each day, their energy, their good humour, their love of life and their cultural diversity which is such a strong characteristic of St Mary's. “We love the family-oriented nature of the school and friendly parents who work in such close partnership, supporting the school.

“The staff here are a terrific bunch as well and they work and support each other in a spirit of great teamwork and harmony.

“We are blessed too with a wonderful parish priest in Fr Paul who is very much part of our family and who is a wonderful and enthusiastic exemplar of what it is to truly walk in the footsteps of Jesus.”

Mr Campbell was the driving force behind the establishment of a cultural garden and mural at St Mary’s and was publicly acknowledged by Hay Aboriginal Working Party for his understanding, appreciation and promotion of the Indigenous culture.

He embraced the establishment of a kitchen garden in the schoolgrounds and was an enthusiastic supporter of the Riverine Grazier Young Journalist of the Year program, personally escorting the students to the Grazier office.

“Moving forward, I believe the school is in great shape for 2023 with an innovative approach towards meeting the individual learning needs of each child. “We have a terrific teaching force in place and the arrival of (new principal) James Moran and his wife will be great news not only for St Mary's but for the whole town of Hay.

“While I may be leaving St Mary's now, I will remember these years with great affection for the St Mary's community and for the town of Hay that Pam and I have come to love.”