It is always lovely to welcome families back and share the energy and excitement of the girls as they return to the House after the summer break. 

It is also the time when we share the excitement and nervous energy that our new girls bring as they commence their boarding journey. We offer an especially warm welcome to them and their families.

I believe 2021 is a record-breaker, in that we have the greatest number of sisters in the House together, that I can recall during my time at Wilderness. A number of the new girls have had an older sister who attended Wilderness, so 2021, is the year with the least number of new parents during my time!

Murphy’s Law applied again this year, with the new girls arriving on our hottest day for January. The girls spent the day unpacking, settling in and reconnecting or meeting for the first time. The captains ran a comprehensive orientation program for the girls. They were well supported by other members of our student leadership group who were amazing as they welcomed the new girls, offered reassurances to settle nerves and addressed the many questions.

Our girls thoroughly enjoyed the conclusion of the day which ended with a trip to Henley for a swim and ice cream.

Introducing our Boarding House Captains for 2021

Hi, we are Eva and Sophie, the Boarding House Captains for this year.  We are very excited for the year to come. With our main goals being fostering kindness and a positive atmosphere in the Boarding House, we hope to make every girl feel as though they are connected to one another and are in a supportive environment. To bring the House together we will have theme family meetings every few weeks, where everyone will be able to connect with each other and reflect upon themselves, the events of the week, and what's to come. 

A Year 11 leadership team has been elected this year to help achieve our goal and focus on maintaining the different aspects of what it is to be a Wilderness boarder. The leadership roles have smaller focus themes that they will concentrate on this year and will plan happenings around these for the girls in the Boarding House. The leadership team will also get a chance to each assist with a family meeting, focusing on their own unique theme. 

The Bonding Weekend will be held on Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 February, the end of Week 4. The purpose of this weekend activity is to build relationships among the different year levels in the boarding community.

The Formal and Parent Dinner

Despite the odd blister or two the Senior Formal was a great success and the girls thoroughly enjoyed the experience as a way of launching into the new school year. 

With their minds now off the arrangements for that event they are ready to concentrate on their school and co-curricular responsibilities. The Pre-Formal gathering for parents here at Wilderness was well attended. The girls looked stunning with some of the Dad’s declaring they had to look twice to recognise their daughter.

While the girls were dancing the night away at the Convention Centre the Year 11 and 12 parents enjoyed a chance to reconnect over an informal dinner at Jarmer’s Kitchen.