Walking Together, Speaking Up

Some of the memories that will stay with this year’s Grade 12 cohort long after graduation are ones created during our Walkathon. After hours of walking, many of us were exhausted, sore, and struggling to keep going. What stood out, however, was the way everyone supported each other. Whether walking beside someone, offering encouragement, or simply checking in, those moments reflected what our Legacy Project has become for our cohort: connection, resilience and community.

As Vice Prefects, leading this initiative has been one of the most rewarding experiences of our final year at school. While fundraising was always the goal, the project has quickly become about much more than just raising money. It has brought our cohort together and allowed us to support a cause that genuinely matters to so many people: SPEAK UP! Stay ChatTY!

For our final year, our cohort wanted to choose a charity that reflected our values and experiences. This decision began at the end of 2025, when we reflected on how we wanted to contribute meaningfully to the community through the idea of giving our “time, treasure and talent.” The charity SPEAK UP! Stay ChatTY! immediately stood out because of its focus on mental health awareness, suicide prevention and encouraging open conversations.

Mental health impacts countless young people and their families, and we recognise how important it is to create supportive environments where people feel comfortable speaking up. Supporting a Tasmanian charity also made the initiative feel more personal, as we knew our efforts would directly help communities close to home. The message behind SPEAK UP! Stay ChatTY! strongly connected with our cohort and has remained a motivating factor throughout the year.

With the support and generosity of our community, our fundraising efforts this year have been both successful and meaningful. From our second-hand clothing stall, where we raised over $10,000, and Fun and Food Fest, featuring food vans, stalls, live music, and our sold-out flower and bake sale, to countless BBQs, including the iconic Bunnings BBQ, every event has brought our grade together with a shared purpose.

The most memorable of these, however, was the Walkathon. While many of us underestimated the challenge, we quickly realised we were walking for something far greater than ourselves: for those affected by loss, for those afraid to speak up, and for those brave enough to do so. Together, we walked to encourage conversation, awareness, and a future where speaking up matters.

As we enter our final terms together, we are determined to finish strongly, completing our final fundraisers with both success and quality, supporting one another through exams, and leaving a positive and lasting impact on our school.

Ultimately, we hope our Legacy Project will not be remembered simply for the money raised or the events organised, but for the conversations started, the connections strengthened, and the support shown to one another along the way. The project has reminded us that even small actions can create meaningful change, and that true impact comes from people, including our grade being willing to stand beside each other when it matters most.

As we prepare for graduation later this year, we hope the values behind this project spread beyond our cohort, to a place where encouraging people to speak up is not a closed door, supporting one another is a standard habit, and no one underestimates the power of connection, resilience, and community. If our impact has helped even one person feel heard, supported, or less alone, then we can confidently say we are leaving the legacy we hoped to create.

Lillian Foster and Jasper Brown, Vice Prefects