The Hedge
Week 9, Term 2 | Thursday 27 June 2024 A weekly snippet of what’s happening ‘behind the hedge’ at Mercedes College...

State Sport Success

Congratulations to students Laura (Year 12, Dalton), Sofia (Year 10, Fitzpatrick) and Carter (Year 10, Barry) for being selected to represent South Australia in the School Sport Australia Championships.

Laura will represent School Sport SA in the 10 – 19 Years Diving Championship, held in Adelaide from Saturday 10 August to Friday 16 August 2024.

Sofia will play in the School Sport SA 15 Years and under Girls Netball Championship Team.

Carter will play in the School Sport SA 15 Years and under Boys AFL Championship team, both held in Gold Coast, Queensland from Saturday 27 July to Saturday 3 August 2024.

Congratulations to you all – what a great achievement.

We know you will all do Mercedes College and South Australia, proud!

Check Mates

We have a dynamic Chess team made up of students in Years 2-6. Our players train each Monday after school to develop their skills and strategy and they compete against other schools each fortnight at St Andrew’s School.

We would love to welcome any interested chess players from the Junior School to come along and join our team.

Ben Price also takes a Secondary Chess team of students in Years 7-12, who compete fortnightly at Prince Alfred College. Some of our Year 12 students are also Chess coaches and work with our younger teams each week.

Chess is one of the sports in InterCol each year against St Ignatius College, and is always a fiercely contested shield. So if you’d like to learn more about the world’s best ‘mind sport’ – we’d love to hear from you

Legally Blonde JR.

Omigod You Guys!

Tickets for the 2024 Year 7-12 College Musical, Legally Blonde JR. are now on sale and tickets are flying out the door!

Join us, as we follow the transformation of Elle Woods as she tackles stereotypes, snobbery, and scandal in her pursuit to become a Lawyer.

The production opens on Thursday 15 August until Saturday 17 August in our newly refurbished Gleeson Theatre, with matinee and evening sessions available.

Tickets are just $15 for students and Concession Card holders and $20 for adults, plus booking fee.

Get your tickets here - Don't miss it!

Buddies do The Push Up Challenge

Our Year 12s have been focusing on Service in their Growth and Personal Skills (GPS) classes this Term.

Yesterday, our Social Justice Team got our Year 12s and Year 6s together to take part in the Push Up Challenge. This was a great way for students across different year levels to come together, share an activity whilst raising awareness for mental health.

Building connections with each other in a R-12 Campus is an integral part of our College culture. Initiatives like this provide opportunities to bring a range of students together from across our year levels, to share experiences and ideas…

Well done Social Justice team!

New Drum Corps sets the beat

Our new Drum Corps ensemble is beating to the sound of their own drums, performing for the first time at the Opening of our Yitpi Centre last week!

This new formed ensemble will learn from specialist drum and percussion tutors, Zachary Wachtel and Lewis Dimitropoulos, and will perform at College events, including our InterCol games in August.

For more information on joining our Drum Corps please contact our Coordinator David Talens.

Vinnies Winter Appeal

Last week, Year 7 Student and SRC representative Mia took the initiative to organise and run a fundraiser for the Vinnies Winter Appeal.

Mia organised a ‘guess the number of chocolates in the jar’ competition and took responsibility for all aspects of the activity from writing notices, designing and distributing posters to running the stall!

Mia raised a whopping $70.50 over two days which will go directly to the Vinnies Winter Appeal.

Congratulations Mia on a great (and delicious) initiative and well done for putting our Mercy values into action.

A show of great leadership in our community!

Basketball Coaching

Our Director of Basketball, Lawrence Verbi, is offering Basketball Coaching in the Yitpi Centre during the July school holidays.

The 1 hour sessions will run on 10, 11, 12, 17, 18 and 19 July 2024, focussing on:

  • Skill Development: dribbling, passing, shooting, finishing, defence, basketball IQ
  • Inclusive Training: for beginners and experienced players
  • Personalised feedback given and all equipment is included

1 on 1 sessions - Boys and Girls in Years 7-12
$50 per session (1 hour)

Group Sessions – Boys and Girls Years 7-12
$30 per session (1 hour)

 

Contact Lawrence Verbi to sign up, as sessions fill up fast – 0490 088 281 | lawrenceverbi@gmail.com

Through the Decades Quiz Night

After a sold-out event in 2023, the Mercedes College Quiz Night is back... bigger, better and on our Campus!

This year, we commemorate 70 Years of Mercedes College... and what better way to celebrate, than an evening that will take us through seven decades, from 1954 to 2024!

Our Quiz Master, Mr Doyle, will be back and will put you through your trivia paces, in our refurbished Gleeson Theatre.

So, get a table of 10 together, dress yourselves and your table in whatever decade you like, and battle it out for the Mercedes College Quiz Night Trophy.

BYO food platters and beverages (including alcohol) – we will provide the fun, the laughter, the prizes and a few surprises.

Tickets are just $10 each ($100 for a table of 10) plus booking fee.

We are also looking for Quiz Round Sponsors – so if a particular decade resonates with you, then get in touch, and your company or business can sponsor that round. We'd love to hear from you.

Tickets are now on sale, so start brushing up on your general knowledge and trivia!

Winter Arts

Join us for our MYP Performing Arts Showcase and Winter Strings Concert on Tuesday 2 July 2024.

MYP Performing Arts Showcase

As part of their Middle Years Programme, Middle and Senior students will showcase their work, which has been based on the concept of Joy and Happiness, in our Gleeson Theatre.

Enjoy performances featuring group choreography, student composition and devised pieces from:

Year 9 Dance
SACE Dance
Year 8 Music
Year 10 Drama
Stage 1 and 2 Music

Bookings essential…

Winter Strings Concert

Come along to our Coolock Atrium to enjoy performances from our Decorum Strings, McAuley Strings and Guitar Ensembles!

Reserve your place here…

Welcome to our Student Counsellor

We are delighted to welcome Student Counsellor, Jesse McGowan to the Mercedes College Wellbeing Team.

Jesse has been working with young people, mainly adolescents, in the educational, youth justice and disability sector, and brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to this role.

Jesses enjoys listening to young peoples’ stories to gain a deep understanding of their challenges, strengths, interests, and aspirations, to explore ways forward and to celebrate the wins and successes!

The College prides itself on the connections between our staff and students, and Jesse agrees that the quality of the conversation depends on the quality of the professional relationship that is established.

All requests for contact with Jesse can be directed to Anne Way, Director of Wellbeing.

Welcome aboard Jesse!

Positive Parenting Presentation

Stronger Families; A Positive Parenting Conference is being presented by Catholic School Parents SA and families from Mercedes College are encouraged to attend.

It is a wonderful opportunity to hear from three renowned speakers about the challenges, the ups and downs and the joys of parenting adolescents – a must for any parent!.

Bookings are essential and include the one-day event and a light lunch – so book early!

Guest speakers include:

  • Maggie Dent – Help me help my teen
  • Paul Dillon – Teens, parties, alcohol and vapes. What do parents need to know?
  • Maghavi Nawana Parker – Being calm in the eye of a parenting storm
     
  • The Sanctuary Adelaide Zoo – 1 Plane Tree Drive
  • Saturday 31 August | 9am Registration 9.30am-3.00pm
  • $25 + booking fee per person. Light lunch included
  • Tickets on sale at https://events.humanitix.com/stronger-families-conference

Coming up:

Friday 28 June I Year 6 Inter-House Cup

Friday 28 June I Year 10 Flinders University Visit

Friday 28 June | Primary Dance CEA Group Hip-Hop Performance

Friday 28 June | Year 10, 11 and 12 Spanish students visit Spanish Film Festival

Friday 28 June | Mid-Year Reception Orientation Visit

Monday 1 July I Chess Masterclass

Monday 1 July | Peter Combe recording

Tuesday 2 July I MYP Performing Arts Showcase and Winter Strings Concert 

Wednesday 3 July I Last day of Term 2 – normal dismissal time

Friday 26 July | PEG Meeting 8.40am - 9.40am

Friday 2 August I Through the Decades Quiz Night 

Thursday 15 August | Legally Blonde JR