Dear parents and caregivers,

We reach the end of a wonderful term together as a community, with much to celebrate, and much for which we must be grateful, in spite of the continuing challenges we have faced.

Thank you for your continuing support, and care for our world, over the past ten weeks. We are so very fortunate to have your commitment and involvement in so many ways. I am reminded every Saturday morning, as I wander around our sports fields, and on many evenings through the weeks, as I share in such a range of activities, just what a difference you make to the opportunities our young men have here in the school.

One of my oft-quoted mantras is that “you can pretend to care, but you can’t pretend to show up”. Thank you all for “showing up” so often, and contributing in so many ways.

As we move to a holiday break, it is so important, at this moment, to take time to step back and reflect on the goals we established at the start of the year, when we began the game of 2022!

In the first half of our 2022 year, we have suffered some setbacks, through continuing COVID restrictions in Term 1, and significant illness in both students and staff through the whole two terms. In fact, last week was the first time that we have recorded no COVID cases for our students in a day since the first week in February.

But, at the same time as we reached this milestone, we are sharing the experience of most New Zealand schools, of significant absences in both staff and students, caused by the wide range of cold and flu bugs that are evident around in the wider community.

And yet, in spite of this, we have reached “half time” in our 2022 game well ahead on the scoreboard. We can take much pride in the achievements in this newsletter, and in the settled, determined environment in the school. Things are going well!

However, in the laconic words of Chip Kelly, the American Football coach, “you don’t get a trophy at half time”. It is certainly not a moment to stop and feel complacent; we must return to begin the second half with the same passion and enthusiasm that we shared at the start of the year. We have to maintain our energy and commitment, right through until the final whistle at the end of the exams.

And this means using the holiday break to have a good rest, to recover energy, to take time to relax. But it is also to utilise these two weeks as a time to take stock, to have the half time talk with your sons, to ensure that we can all begin Term 3 completely well, and focussed on our individual and our shared North Star, our goals for the year.

I am grateful to you, and to the students of the school, for ensuring the successes of the first half of 2022. We are strong, and we feel happy and confident in our ability to succeed and indeed excel, because we stand strong and confident together, as the family of the school, the brotherhood, which makes Hamilton Boys’ High School such a wonderful world.

Kia pai ngā hararei

Kia pai hoki te whakangā.

Have a wonderful holiday break

Susan Hassall