Quarter 1 Newsletter 2021

5 and is also an indicator that we are slowly changing the culture of sport at the College. We did succeed in offering all our summer sporting codes with some matches between our junior cricketers whilst our tennis players challenged each other to cement their seedings in their teams. Towards the end of the quarter, we initiated an IPL/NBA franchise-style team competition which included Softball, Tennis, Trail Running and Cricket. Unfortunately we could not include Water Polo into this competition due to the restrictions. Our learners had the opportunity to name the franchises using our Instagram page. At the end we decided on the Pirates (Grey), the Patriots (Orange), the Pistons (Purple) and the Phantoms (Pink). Captains were selected and teams were filled using an online randomisation system. We have been hugely impressed by the enthusiasm shown and hype created by our learners towards this internal league. The highlight for us was to see the camaraderie amongst younger and older learners in teams which just brought the College closer together. We have laid a foundation for future internal competitions. With winter sport commencing soon, we will continue with this league until inter- school matches are permissible. We now look forward to our winter sporting programme with us entering into local leagues with the hope that we can play matches in the not so distant future. Thanersen Pillay Head of Sport SERVICE INTERVIEW WITH CHRISTINE GREIG Christine Greig, past President of Interact and Head Girl in 2021, has been an active member of Interact for many years and has recently been elected to serve on the 2021-22 Rotary International Interact Advisory Council. The council is made up of a diverse group with 3 members from North America, 2 South America, 2 Europe, 2 Asia and Christine from Africa. Together they will be representing approximately 500 000 Interactors. We are so very proud of her. Milena Fieggen interviewed her to find out more about her dedication to service. Where did her service career start? Christine recalls being in Grade 7 and being too scared to join Interact because it seemed to only be for the older grades. She recalls that Milena, being her brave self and being a part of the club, taking the lead . After encouragement from her mom, Christine joined in Grade 8, only to find out that her fears were completely unfounded. She has been a part of the club ever since. Why serve? Each Rotary year, there is a Presidential theme. The incoming RI President, Mr Mehta, is “Serve to change lives” which encompasses why Christine serves. Joining Interact and community service-based clubs certainly opens opportunities to serve and uplift the lives of others; however, there are also other ways to serve. Here at the College, there are individuals developing solutions to capture carbon emissions, assisting their peers with academic work and giving tips and tricks on the sports field. Simply inviting someone to an event, like a beach cleanup, sparks interest and creates a ripple effect which mobilises and fosters change. She believes that everyone has at least one thing that they are passionate about. There are a multitude of ways you can use these passions to make a positive impact. You may not think much of that new skill you taught one of your younger teammates at sports practise, but these “little” things make a big difference. Every little bit counts. And as Helen Keller once said “Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much.” Achievements over the years? Service has allowed her to grow and explore different viewpoints and created an overall sense of peace and purpose. Doing good makes one feel good. Milena Fieggen PEACE IN SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITIES PROJECT Let there be Peace on earth, and let it begin with each one of us. This is the mantra for the Rotarian's Promote Peace in Schools and Communities Project. Blouberg Rotary Club (our mother club) has been officially inducted as a RI (Rotary International) Peacebuilders Club. The second in SA and the first in District 9350. The Parklands Interact Club has been fortunate enough to be invited to participate in the Project and we received the Official Certificate on Wednesday. This project aims to create peace in and amongst the members of our schools and communities. The project will run from February 2021 – January 2022 and in order to participate we will need to establish a Peace Committee consisting of 20 members. This committee will participate in 4 training sessions where we will be collating and discussing our collective creative ideas and solutions as to how we would prevent and solve conflict and create a more peaceful environment in our schools and communities. The Project also consists of a film competition, where the committee will produce and submit a 5-10 minute video about “What peace means to us and our school” by the end of September 2021. The video can include songs, poems, short stories, speeches and anything else that represents what peace means to us, and the most exciting part is that if we produce an outstanding video and place first in the competition, our video can stand a chance to be featured at the United Nations. We are super excited to see how this project is going to pan out and cannot wait to start celebrating and promoting peace in our school environment! Brooke Elliott SERVICE CLUBS Here at the College, we have a variety of Service Clubs, each with their own individual aims and purpose. They are all different from each other except in the sense of how all the clubs are about giving back, offering support, guidance, help towards others, looking after our environment, volunteering and mindfulness. We encourage everyone interested in making a difference to join one of the many clubs. Tayla van Wyk Care packages for Health workers Beach Cleanup