Turramurra High School Celebrates 50 Years!

One of the great benefits of our work at the Turramurra and Lindfield Community Bank branches is being able to support an amazing array of projects that make a huge difference to our community. This was evident recently when Turramurra High School celebrated their 50^th Anniversary.

During this celebration, past and present students, teachers and parents were all invited to a ‘Back to Turramurra Day’ where they enjoyed school tours, Turramurra trivia, and student performances. However, the highlight of the day was the smoking ceremony to unveil the Darinyun Walkway and outdoor learning area, which was performed by Guringai elder Laurie Brimson. The walkway celebrates Aboriginal culture and offers students a unique outdoor technology and learning experience. Centred on local indigenous flora and fauna, QR codes stationed along the walk connect students and visitors with information about specific flora that played an important role in the daily lives of the Guringai people.

The latest unveiling of the Darinyun Walkway is yet another example of what the school has been able to achieve since launching the ‘Inside Out’ initiative. Originally begun in 2014, the ‘Inside Out’ project was started with the purpose of raising funds to enable the creation of innovative and inspirational outdoor learning environments for the students.

Turramurra and Lindfield Community Bank branches partnered this project, organising and funding a ‘Paver fundraiser’ which raised over $22,000, along with providing 50% of the seed money. We were also pleased to be able to provide an interest free loan to the school for the outstanding funds required for the project.

This ambitious project brought together members from the local community including Turramurra Rotary, the TLC Garden, Men’s Shed plus many others who worked together under the direction of the school’s P&C. What a privilege to see a community pull together for the benefit of our future generations.

It was extremely rewarding for the branch management and staff to see School Captain Midori Sugiyama’s involvement in the celebrations of the school’s 50^th Anniversary. Midori was one of the students from THS who participated in a Youth Observer program in 2016, which enabled students to sit in on the Turramurra and Lindfield Community Bank board meetings. The Youth Observer program has been running successfully with THS for several years, and in 2017 four new students were selected to observe the board in action and gain real-life learning experiences.

At the Turramurra and Lindfield Community Bank branches, we are immensely proud of the long-standing relationship we have with Turramurra High School and look forward to continuing to provide support over the years ahead.