Mount Gambier High School has recently named three new buildings in honour of worthy recipients for their significant contribution and service to the school community over the years.
The buildings are called the Mary Anne Fenwick Building, Toni Vorenas Building and Bill Downs Science Building.
Mary Anne Fenwick spent more than 25 years at Mount Gambier High School, starting as an English teacher in the early 1970s for three years before returning to complete her teaching career, working in roles such as Junior School Assistant Principal, Acting Principal and as a Deputy Principal before retiring in 2019.
“Mrs Fenwick was a key supporter of the New Arrivals (IELP) Program, which has been a very successful program for many Congolese and Karenni students over the years,” school Public Relations Officer Amanda Lengyel said.
“These students were well supported by Ms Fenwick when integrating into mainstream schooling through curriculum and activity offerings.
“Ms Fenwick was one for equality, often being the advocate for students when they did not have the opportunity to speak up.
“Over many years at Mount Gambier High School, she was involved in numerous committees, including Governing Council and overseeing the long-standing Glossop Exchange.”
Ms Vorenas played a vital role as Leader of the Senior School during the principal-ship of Garry Costello.
“Along with other leaders and teachers Ms Vorenas supported the school to achieve ‘results too startling to ignore’ through a culture of care, high expectations and understanding of how our brains work,” Ms Lengyel.
“Ms Vorenas was an outstanding classroom teacher with her mentoring in education and leadership having had a profound impact on the whole school community.
“In collaboration with John Pocock, Ms Vorenas developed and taught in the ‘Link’ (now the Flexible Learning Options) which supports students that have disengaged from schooling with the opportunity to reconnect with their education and achieve incredible personal success.”
Following a successful career as a leader and educator, Ms Vorenas went on to create the iconic Metro Bakery and Café commenting herself as a leader, collaborator and mentor within the community who has supported an untold number of Mount Gambier community members.
Bill Downs attended Mount Gambier High School in the 1960s during which time he was the captain of his sporting house and a variety of school sporting teams.
“Following graduation Mr Downs moved to Adelaide to earn his Science and Teaching degrees returning to Mount Gambier High School in 1972,” Ms Lengyel said.
“During his time at Mount Gambier he taught Geology, Maths, Science and Biology, coached several successful state teams for cricket and football and mentored many new teachers.
“In 2007 Bill retired from teaching after having been both a student and teacher at Mount Gambier High School for over 40 years.
“Unfortunately, in 2020 after battling a long-term serious illness, Bill passed away. He is missed by many of his past students and colleagues across the local community.
“Congratulations to the worthy recipients and may your legacy continue to live on at Mount Gambier High School for years to come.”
