It has been a busy month at the Old Paradians Association. We have completed our very successful OPA Golf Day, hosted 2 Old Paradian Reunions and participated in the OPA RACV monthly lunch.
Another great day was had by all at the OPA’s Annual Golf Day again held at the Rosanna Golf Club Friday 31 October. Luke ‘The General’ Thomas (1988) and Steve Nailer (1987) both did a wonderful job in organising the event.
88 braved the inclement weather to hit off in what ended to be a beautiful day for golf. 24 carts were guided around the course. Players covered several decades since leaving school. Previous Peter Walker Trophy winners, veterans Vin Arthur, (1958) winner in 1998 and Chris Chamberlain (1960), winner in 2001 were both again participating in this year’s event.
The event was blessed with the support of the Qube team, Peter Reid and Asahi, Andrew Bennett and Veritas, the Rosanna Golf Club and OPA who were able to provide some prizes for the event.
The days template is certainly a winner, with most players back to the event for the third time. Registration, pre-golf food and drinks, post-golf drinks and awards followed by dinner at the Club covers everything off beautifully.
The Peter J Walker Trophy for best individual score was won by Michael Geary with 47 points. The Lou Arthur Memorial Trophy for Best Team Aggregate was won by Phil Lucetta, Matt Considine, Jason Croall, and Chris Keating with 110 points.
We look forward to hosting the event again in 2026, scheduled again at Rosanna on Friday 30 October 2026.
Over 120 Old Paradians have gathered at our 1995 (30-year) and 1985 (40-year) Reunions held recently at the E Bar, Old England Hotel. Excellent attendance (66 at the 1995 reunion and 62 at the 1985 event) made the nights a great celebration and opportunity to reconnect with classmates. At the 1995 event, Vice Captains Michael Grech and Warrick Stapleton addressed guests and spoke passionately of what their Parade College experience meant to them. A real theme was the development of strong values and enduring friendships. Similarly, Mark Scillio, College Captain in 1985, spoke of the lifelong friendships and the influence of so many staff in the 6 years he had been at the College. Thank you to our Alumni Relations Officer Hayley Workman for facilitating such successful events.
Details with photo gallery can be found at https://www.oldparadians.com.au/our-news
Old Paradians have gathered weekly at various locations, in recent times the RACV Club in the CBD since 1936, which is truly remarkable. Each month a guest speaker addresses the group, and we are most appreciative of their contribution to the day. Recent lunches have seen OTI Racing and Breeding’s Terry Henderson (1966) and champion trainer Tony McEvoy conduct an entertaining and informative Question and Answer. Tony went on to train both the Caulfield and Melbourne Cup winner Half Yours.
Our October Lunch was attended by our largest guest list, with 73 in the room. We were able to combine our guest speaker, Brendan Money (1976), with a reunion of the 1955, 1965, and 1966 groups. Brendan retired in 2019, after working for 34 years with Corrections Victoria, Australia. He worked in a variety of leadership roles, including Prison General Manager across male and female prisons, Community Corrections, and Sex Offender Management. The last ten years of his career were in the position of Assistant Commissioner responsible for the security classification/assessment and placement of prisoners.
It was a fascinating and informative presentation. So much so, Brendan is coming back in 2026 for a Q&A follow up.
The November Lunch saw College Principal Mark Aiello (1990) address guests with insights into the many and varied things happening at the College. Guests were amazed at what the College offers its students and how far it has changed across the years.
Reports and photo gallery can be found Details with photo gallery can be found at https://www.oldparadians.com.au/our-news
back
