Trust selects Glenfield College students
for Outward Bound

Glenfield College students Kyle Rymer and Jakub Holinga are the recipients of this year’s St Patricks Day Charity Classic Fianna Scholarships.

For over 21 years the St Patrick’s Day Golf Classic Charitable Trust has used funds raised at their annual golf tournament (St Patricks Day Charity Classic) to provide Fianna Scholarships to help people in need who fall between the cracks in the welfare system. In 2004 the Trustees decided to do something for the young of the North Shore by sponsoring two Year 12 students to Outward Bound’s Mind Body & Soul Course each year.

“We ask the selected school to pick the winners, with our only criteria being that it is unlikely that family circumstances would enable the winners to easily afford the course fees and air fares to Anakiwa,” says St Patrick’s Day Golf Charitable Trust Trustee, Bob Nelligan.

Glenfield College was chosen this year because the trust believed the students showed a real desire to be selected and were impressed by the way that, under Principal Ted Benton, the school has bounced back from some difficult times.

“We felt that this award reflected that achievement.”

The benefits for these two winners, as well as for the 14 that went before them, is that they will learn how to build on their strengths and overcome their weaknesses.

“It will give them enormous powers to do well, not only at school, but when they leave.”

“We talk to every Scholarship winner on completion of the course and have on occasions asked them to speak at our golf tournament prize giving dinner held at the North Shore Golf Club. Without exception we find the students have gained self confidence, are focused on their future careers, made some lifelong friends and have got an enormous buzz out of the experience.”

“Although this year both winners are boys, we usually have a male and a female winner. Even the girls who look to be too delicate to handle the rough and tumble of Outward Bound come back with a steely resolve to conquer the world!”

17-year-old Kyle, who describes himself as a typical teenager who likes sports and edits film clips in his spare time, said he had no idea he would be selected for the scholarship.

“I think perhaps they wanted to choose the person who would get the most out of it, who isn’t fully sporty and who hasn’t got the most confidence, so I guess that is me,” he says.

He says he hopes to gain important life skills and independence from the experience.

“After completing the course I hope to return to Glenfield College and finish my final year with some good results, then hopefully get accepted into AUT where I could do the communications course.”

Also 17-years-old, Jakub is originally from Slovakia, but has called New Zealand home for the last eight years.

“I was definitely surprised to have won the scholarship, mainly because when I was putting my name down for selection, I thought that it wouldn’t be me who got selected,” he says.

“Some teachers and friends who have been on the trip have told me that the experience is very life changing. I’m hoping that it will change me too, particularly my confidence and leadership, as well as help me to choose a career path that’s right for me.”

Jakub’s plans for next year are to “return to school and really put in the time and hard work to get the best possible grades”.

“After I finish school I will probably choose between two career paths. I would either like to go to university and pursue my music/guitar interests to a higher level, or the other option would be to serve New Zealand.”

“I would either go to the Army or the Air Force and follow a career in that direction. I feel that the military has a lot of benefits for young people and there are many options and professions to choose from.”

The Trustees of the St Patrick’s Day Golf Classic Charitable Trust are Patrick Flynn, Gary Monk and Bob Nelligan.

St Patrick’s Day Charity Classic is an annual golf tournament hosted by St Patrick’s Day Golf Classic Charitable Trust.

The Tournament is always held at the North Shore Golf Club, usually on the last Friday in February, the month before that of St Patrick! In this way the tournament does not conflict directly with the many events that surround St Patrick’s Day.

The 2011 tournament is being held on Friday March 4th. Entries close Friday 28 January 2011.1