Tuesday October 30, 2018

Faith-filled students honoured

Schools

The Mary MacKillop Awards for excellence for senior students were presented to 54 students from 27 Catholic schools at a Mass in St Francis Xavier’s Cathedral on October 20.

Lindy McNamara

Tuesday October 30, 2018

Tuesday October 30, 2018 Comments

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The students were recognised for commitment to their Catholic faith, personal characteristics of merit, success in their chosen learning pathway, contribution to fellow students and wider community, and their optimism and hope for the future.

Two of the recipients were Samuel Sutton and Gretta Condon, both from Xavier College, who said they were “humbled” when told they had been nominated for the awards.

Gretta Condon and Samuel Sutton from Xavier College.

In accepting his award, Samuel acknowledged Xavier College for its influence on his faith journey.

“No matter what you are going through in life there is always someone there willing to support and encourage you. I am very thankful that I have had the community at Xavier to support me through my secondary education,” he said.

In nominating Samuel, the college described him as a “very unassuming and gentle young man who is deeply committed to his Catholic faith”.

He and his family are involved with the local Gawler parish community and for the past 10 years Samuel has been an altar server and a member of the welcoming team. More recently, he has started to read at Mass as a way of moving into an adult ministry within the parish.

For the past six years Samuel has been a member of the local Don Bosco youth group and now has a leadership role. He has attended several Salesian youth leadership camps during this time to develop his skills in this area.

Like Samuel, Gretta is committed and passionate about her faith.

“I am really humbled to be nominated and whilst we are supposed to live our faith with purpose and persistence and without too much show, it is very humbling to have been nominated for such an esteemed award,” she said.

“My time at Xavier has furthered what my Catholic faith fostered in me. It has provided me with the tools to always be true to myself, has developed my skills in discernment and been a place which I have had the freedom to share my opinion.”

A member of the Sevenhill parish, Gretta has been active in the music ministry team. Her musical talents have also been shared with the college community, as one of the lead singers for liturgical celebrations and assemblies in 2018.

2018 award recipients:

Carlos Garcia, Benedict Gbala, Blackfriars Priory School; Isabel Cruz, Caitlin Simes, Cabra Dominican College; Fabio Abd-ElMalk, Sharon Shaji, Cardijn College; Riley Spencer, Brody Moylan, Christian Brothers College; Nicholas Centofanti, Tahlia Schrapel, Gleeson College; Alana Hennessy, Aduer Yuel, Kildare College; Daniella Macolino, Micole Parenti, Loreto College; Dominique Pesaturo, Izabella Carson, Mary MacKillop College; Leo Panozzo, Isabella Penna, Mercedes College; Reuben Caceres, Laura Niejalke, Mt Carmel College; Nathan Caruso, Anet Thomas Varghese, Nazareth Catholic College; Svetlana Dias, Yen Luu, OLSH College; Cyril Saji, Thomas Basso, Rostrevor College; Lachlan Staker, Chloe Dutschke, Sacred Heart College; Louise Ainscough, Lauren Huynh, St Aloysius College; Allic Nudalo, Caitlin Allen, St Columba College; Phuong Nguyen, Maeve Moore, St Dominic’s Priory College; Taonga Mashinge, Madeline Thomas, St Francis De Sales College; Sebastian Ricci, Zoe Wurm, Saint Ignatius College; Eilis Murphy, Meg Toland, St Mary’s College; Vincenzo Triulcio, Ashwini Fredrick, St Michael’s College; Christopher Nguyen, Adria Robinson, St Patrick’s Special School; Lachlan Osborne, Emily Nigro-Graziani, St Patrick’s Technical College; Nicholas Yannacos, Peter Ngo, St Paul’s College; Matthew Porter, Evangelia Wichmann, Tenison Woods College; Benjamin Tran, Matthew Rumley, Thomas More College; Samuel Sutton, Gretta Condon, Xavier College.