The Roar - Issue 32 Term 4 2026

Long Serving Staff at All Saints’ College

We are in the process of completing a staff register for the Archives database, and from our research, we have discovered that many have served the school for much of their working lives, not only in teaching but in many other areas. The latest list records from 1963 to 2018, and there are well over 1000 names of staff members on this list, including GAP students, bus drivers, music tutors, kitchen staff and nurses, as well as maintenance, cleaning, gardening staff, receptionists, secretaries and teachers. Prior to 1963, the All Saints’ College History books have listed the names of teachers and some administration staff, but the many others who worked at the school have not been recorded, a sad omission, as many of those were essential to a boarding school, such as chefs, cleaners, and maintenance staff. Some of these people are no longer with us, but we would like to acknowledge them for their loyal service to the school.

Here at All Saints’, we have had long-serving staff from many different areas, and they have been invaluable servants for many years. One bus driver, Arthur Peet, drove students for over 15 years, safely taking them to school, outdoor camps or sports events any day of the week. Another long-serving bus driver was Bill Stokes, who drove the Oberon Bus for over 12 years, always on call, ready for the early exit from school when a snowfall threatened to close the road. Barry Kinsela ‘Bazza’ was another bus driver who had driven the school bus, the ‘breadbox’, from 1972 until his retirement in 1990.

The late Gary Hunter worked on the maintenance team for 27 years, and no task was too much for this `smiling 6-foot or something G’day Gary’. His mother Shirley worked in the administration team as student liaison officer for 14 years. She organised student travel arrangements and attendance records as well as being the staff typist, receptionist, photocopier fixer and Mother Hen to boarders.

Allan Miller was head of maintenance for 23 years and is remembered for his love of his British Bull Dogs – Allan had to put up with the belief that pet owners tend to look like their pets! Allan’s knowledge of the school buildings and grounds was well known, as he was probably the only person who had any idea where the vast array of underground cables, drains, pipes and wires are located-since his time, it has been a major headache for maintenance workers, as there are no maps of the underground services on the campus. Following him was ‘Sharpie’, or Graham Sharp, who was the next in charge of the maintenance crew. His knowledge of the ‘underground workings’ at All Saints’ was also invaluable when it came to repairs for the plumbers and electricians.

Chris FitzSimons, ‘Fitzy’ was involved with the school for over 25 years since being an active member of the P&F, the OBU and other school organizations and later running the Uniform Shop as a volunteer from 1986, then as manager 1996 until 2012. ‘Fitzy’ is known for her storytelling of anything going on at the school or Bathurst and was the recipient of the ASC Avern Award in 1991, awarded for her volunteer work at the school. She still maintains her interest in the school as a current member of the OBU.

Kath Kearney, our Science Laboratory Technician, hung up her lab coat in 2012 after 30 years in the school’s science laboratories. She recalls how she remembers the state of the Science department when she first started, as there had never been a laboratory technician before her time- soiled pieces of glassware, expired chemicals, and accumulated debris. Since then, she has restored the laboratories as highly functional, safe and attractive places to teach and learn. Kath also made contributions to College life such as helping prepare for the Presentation Ball, Arts and Artists Week and Eastern Western Week.

The Kitchen staff were perhaps more important for the students, as a well-fed family makes for a happy place, and many of those who worked in the kitchen were long-serving members of the school staff. The chef, John Konecny, had been feeding the school community from 1963 to 1986. John had been studying Law in Czechoslovakia when persecution for his political beliefs forced him out of the country, arriving in Australia in 1949. As continuing his Law Studies was no longer possible, he worked as a kitchen hand at the Bathurst Migrant Camp, learning cooking from experienced cooks and books. His recipe for a particular dish is recorded somewhere, and he was remembered for sending a bottle of tomato sauce in the vicinity of the bursar during a stressful discussion on kitchen expenditure.

Other long-serving staff in various departments were Delma Butler (1966-1991), Lizzie Bennett (1987-2006) in the Kitchen and Peggy Morton (1978-1989), Di Coopes (1999-2018), the cleaners or “campus mothers” who rarely complained despite having to pick up after teenagers in the boarding houses.

Perhaps one of the longest-serving staff members we have had at the school must be the late Ray Bailey, who started at the school at 15 years of age in 1956 and remained until 1991 – 45 years serving the school as cleaner and security, together with his dog Claude. We have named his accommodation the Bailey Centre, the building next to the laundry where Ray spent over 45 years as his home.

There are many other people who worked at All Saints’ for years, and on behalf of the thousands of students they cared for, we can only thank them for their service, which was so important to the life of the school family.

Mrs Memory Sanders
Archives