The Last of the First

Br Declan has informed us of the recent passing of Brother Francis Kelvin Sullivan. Br Francis had been the last surviving member of the first five brothers who began work at FDMC. He taught at FDMC for the first 3 years of it's life and had gone on to a long life of faith and service in his native Australia. There is no one currently on staff who had taught with Brother Francis but we are sure there are many first day students who will remember him and keep him in their prayers.

Jubilee Mass

There are few who were present at the Jubilee Mass who will forget it for some time. It was a great gathering of the faithfull but it was also one of the coldest communions most will have ever experienced. The following are a few photos from the mass.

Business As Usual

We have returned from sunnier climes to the chilly Taranaki winter and devoted readers can expect a return to regular week day blogs.

We start this week with a photo of a past staff member Mr Lloyd Edwards. FDMC has always had its fair share of characters on the staff and Lloyd is one we know is remembered fondly by many past students.

Lloyd, seen here on holiday in France, now resides in Plumstead in the UK where continues to keep his hand in teaching wise. He was unable to attend the recent Jubilee but was part of a good few stories we heard told over the weekend.

If you have one of those "whatever happened to..." questions email us and we will see if we can't provide the answer.

True Devotion

Regular visitors to this blog may have been wondering where why no recent posts. It is true that is the school holidays but that is not the only reason for our absence. In true old boys spirit we have been attending the wedding of old boy Neil Hocken and his lovely new wife Catlin at Wananavu, Fiji.

It was a great occasion, in a magical spot and was attended by a number of other old boys including Neil's brother Darren, his brother in law Jared Coogan and good friend Simon "Syd" Mulligan.

The picture is of the happy couple and just goes to prove we will go to great lengths to keep up with old boys news.

Captain Scott

Congratulations to old boy Scott Fuglistaller for not only making the Wellington Lions team but also getting to captain the side for it's first Ranfurly Shield challenge of the year.

Yesterdays Dominion Post article gave a good background to events which subsequently saw Scott's team dish out a 90 point towelling to Wairarapa Bush.Scott lead well and managed to score one of the many tries on offer.

We look forward to following the Lion's progress this season but won't be on their side when they play the amber and blacks.

Please Approach The Bar

Congratulations to Sam Barrett, our latest addition to the legal profession. Sam was admitted to the Bar last week and joins an increasing number of recent old boys who have taken silk and are practicing locally. In Sam's case he is based with Reeves Middleton and Young, a law firm that has a long association with FDMC.

Sam tells us that his slight facial disfigurement is the product of a sports injury, not an unhappy client.

Just a reminder to other old boys that we would love to help celebrate your achievements and milestones so don't be afraid to send us info and photos.

Old Staff

The second in our slide show series of photos from the Jubilee. These images where taken at the staff morning tea on Saturday morning. There are certainly a few familiar faces in this lot.

A Bit Of History

The college was recently given a number of copies of Patricia Brooks book on Father Francis Douglas. It is well written and a great chronicle of his life and sacrifice. You can obtain a copy of the book from the college office for a $5 donation which will go to the Missionary Society of St Columban.

Boarders - We Know Where You Live!

Google Maps is a great new Web 2.0 tool which we have used to map our current Boarder population. The Coastal/South Taranaki axis is very clear.


View FDMC Boarders in a larger map

The hostel itself is running very well at present and our recent ERO visit spoke very highly of what they saw happening. Next year's intake of Year 9 boarders is already full, so we can expect to see lots more characters from south and west of the mountain.

The Bottom Line

A number of old boys and other interested parties have been asking how we did financially at the Jubilee. We are pleased to say that we achieved our goal of making a small four figure profit. It was a specific aim to not make the occasion about money and we have had some very positive feedback about that approach.

As always happens with these occasions, there is some surplus stock which would be much better in your hands than on our balance sheet. To this end we are offering the surplus bottles of Jubilee Port and Polo shirts for a very reasonable $20 per item. You can call in to FDMC or email the Jubilee Girl to arrange your purchase.

A Farewell To Dillon

The funeral for Dillon was, as you would expect, a very sad occasion, especially given his youth and vitality. What can be said however, was that he was given a very good send off.

It was very comforting to see the large numbers of people from throughout our community who were able to be there to support Dillon's family and say their own farewells. We were very aware of the large number of FDMC old boys there, a mark of respect that speaks volumes for the quality of the young man and the friendships forged at the College.