Meet the Prefects
My schooling journey started at East Taieri Primary School and Balmacewen for my awkward intermediate years. It was always a dream of mine to attend St Hilda's. I grew up watching my older cousins pass through the school, always wanting to wear the blue uniform. I vividly remember the day I got accepted into St Hilda's, I was stoked and ready for the transition to bigger and better things for the last five years of my schooling life.
St Hilda's has catered for all my wants and needs. The supportiveness of the school has allowed me to experiment with a vast range of subjects and the ability to play numerous sports, both competitively and socially. My favourite subjects at school have been Visual Arts and Physical Education, which has given me the opportunity to indulge in the beautiful parts of New Zealand while away on school camps. Some key memories from my time at St Hilda's have been at Tautuku in Year 10, through to Year 12 at Abel Tasman and Year 13 camp at Murchison. My week at Murchison taught me to have an open mind to the world around me. Our kayaking guides were some of the most influential people I have met, with their views on life correlating with who I aspire to be.
Sport has been a huge factor over my time at St Hilda’s. I am fortunate to have been a part of numerous tournaments and tough weekly competitions for both Hockey and Touch. St Hilda’s culture and unity has allowed for many great sporting successes that I am thankful to be a part of. A recent achievement is winning the Dunedin Secondary School Hockey competition, over Columba, for the third year running. Although I have had my fair share of highs and lows in both Hockey and Touch, I have loved every second playing and training alongside my teammates. My favourite part about being a senior within these teams is watching the young talent come through and grow each year. The future of St Hilda’s sport is promising and something I look forward to hearing about in the coming years.
I am so grateful I have had the opportunity to be one of the Sports Prefects for 2020. I feel fulfilled leaving school this year as I was able to give back in an area which I am very passionate about. This role has taught me a lot about myself and given me many life lessons which I will cherish. Working with the wider prefect group has been an amazing experience, especially alongside my best bud and partner, Danielle. Our main focus for this year has been keeping the participation within sport at St Hildas at a consistently high level while making it fun and exciting for the young girls. The support and perseverance from the prefect group in these troubling and uncertain times of 2020, I believe has had an influential and positive impact on the school atmosphere.
The most meaningful lesson I learnt at St Hildas is the importance of friendship. The past five years have led me to meet an awesome and diverse group of girls which I will continue to have a lifetime of friendships with. These girls, whether I met them through learning, sport or leadership, have continued to put a smile on my face everyday, and have been a huge part in my journey at St Hilda’s.
To be honest, I am terrified of leaving school to the big wide world. The daunting question of ‘what are you doing next year,’ is still haunting me as I do not know my path yet. Looking at this problem in a positive light, I am spoiled for choice! What I do know is that St Hildas has set me up to conquer whichever path I may take. Despite being known as the girl who fainted in chapel on the first day of school, these past five years at St Hilda's have been the quickest, craziest and gratifying years of my life to date!