Garin’s O’Shea team performed very well indeed last weekend, competing in speech, drama, debating and scholarship against the other 16 Catholic secondary schools in the Wellington and Palmerston North dioceses. They finished four points behind the winning school: St Patrick’s College from Kilbirnie. The seven events are each marked out of six and Garin accumulated 34 points.
Our debaters faced the eventual winning debating team, but Nic Barkley, Nick Pittar and Natt Watts debated that “now is the best chance for peace” with energy and flair. Our four speech competitors were also very strong: all being awarded 5/6. In his first O’Shea Joel MacManus had a powerful speech on racism. Nic Barkley was our orator and spoke movingly about family. Rebecca Sims was our scripture reader and read with meaning and strength, while James Hall-Smith was, as always, the consummate performer in his impromptu.
Joseph James, Nadine Aston, and Angela Fisk were very well prepared for questions on the “consistent ethic of life” in the New Zealand context – and our drama was again outstanding (if not quite what the judges were looking for this year), and James, Rebecca, Abby James, Keeli Ferris, Elle Cole presented a slick and thought-provoking presentation.
The O’Shea Shield brings together the best and brightest young people in our Catholic schools and, as Archbishop John Dew said at the final Mass, they are our hope for the future. It was a wonderful weekend.
