It is important to us that Wilderness is a place for every girl, and for every family. We are very proud to be able to offer a diversity of subjects, events and activities to enable our community to participate and thrive. Over the past few weeks, we have enjoyed seeing students, staff and old scholars alike immerse themselves in a range of opportunities.

Our Years 3-12 students have laced up their runners for Cross Country on a grey day in the Park Lands, before several of our outstanding musicians travelled to Mount Gambier to attend Generations in Jazz, which was held in person for the first time since 2019. Once again, our girls shared their exceptional musical talents on the national stage—a special mention goes to our Big Band 2, who placed third in their division, and to Year 12 student Eva Barrett who was announced as the first ever French Horn player chosen in the Division 4 Superband. We also saw our Music staff members represented on stage across the weekend; Ms Cassie Pope played Bass Trombone for the Generations in Jazz Big Band, and Miss Grace Mensforth performed two public concerts as part of her live adjudication for the Generations in Jazz Vocal Scholarship.

I am excited to attend the Boarders’ Fashion Parade tonight; this year’s event has once again attracted the support of some big brands and talented artists, and I know our boarders are looking forward to showcasing fashion from around South Australia and the country (including some of their own creations).

It is especially pleasing to see the number of old scholars returning to display their designs, proudly sharing their brands that have taken shape since their leaving the School. With live art displays as the X factor of this year’s event, it is bound to be a wonderful celebration of creativity, raising funds for the Bahadure Boarding School in Nepal. I thank our Head of Boarding, Ms Renee Coventry, Boarding Captains Milly Shepherd and Evie Basham (Year 12) and the supportive parent committee who have poured a wealth of work into bringing this event to life.

It is wonderful to consider how our girls’ weeks are filled with these activities, traversing sport, music, art, pastoral care and the list goes on. These are busy weeks – as much for the girls as for the parents driving them from place to place – but our girls reap the benefits in spades. I love the idea that in the past fortnight, a girl may have gone from representing her House at Cross Country last Thursday, to volunteering at Relay for Life as part of her Duke of Edinburgh service on the weekend, to walking the runway at tonight’s Fashion Parade.

In addition, so many of these events beautifully combine community building and teamwork (the ‘how’) with a greater philanthropic goal (the ‘why’). For example, Antholiza House Day and Boarders’ Fashion Parade are fun activities that bring our girls together, but they share the united goal of fundraising for our efforts in Nepal.

The different pathways that our girls take after leaving school are so interesting, and their commitment to being true and courageous in their careers is inspiring. I had the pleasure of reuniting with some of our Victorian old scholars last weekend, which saw six generations of Wilderness women come together. Not only did they share humorous stories about their exploits at school, but they also have crystal clear memories of how experiences and teachers at Wilderness shaped them and the decisions they made after graduating.

It was a joy to hear about each graduate’s remarkable and unique story; the varied career paths and journeys they have explored, and how they can all pinpoint which of their interests were sparked and nurtured during their time at Hawkers Road.

I truly believe that when you gather a bunch of Wilderness girls in one room – whether they are students or graduates – it is evident that they are Wildy to their core. The diverse opportunities that they explore bond them together and lay a foundation that can take them anywhere.

Important Dates

Key dates for Junior School, Middle School and Senior School for the year are now available on SEQTA Engage, under the Important Dates portal.

Term dates for 2024 are also available.