Last Wednesday, Brielle and I were privileged enough to be invited by our local member, Tanya Davies, to the annual ‘Mulgoa Senior School Captains Leadership Forum’ which was held at the NSW Parliament House.
After arriving there, accompanied by Mrs van der Schyff and Mr Schrack, we were asked for our school name in order to sign in. When we replied with Thomas Hassall, they couldn’t find our names on the list, so they just decided to add us in and let us through. A little odd, but not completely unbelievable.
We then got to meet and question various local members of different areas on what they do and how they do it. Funnily enough, throughout all of this, the College was calling us saying we were apparently not at the event, but a quick picture of Dominic Perrottet who made a surprise visit seemed to resolve the issue.
At the end of the questioning, there was a small moment where the various schools could take a picture with their respective local members. Once an announcement was made for the schools under Tania, we made our way outside for the photo. When we greeted her, she was utterly convinced we did not belong in the picture as she exclaimed to “know her schools”, and shooed us away. After researching, it turns out she was actually Tania Muhailuk, the representative of Bankstown, but hey a quick explanation by her would have sufficed.
An odd moment once again, but being surrounded by captains of various schools, it was obvious we were at the right place, right? Afterwards, we enjoyed a quick lunch which then led straight to the Governor’s house. This is where we met the Lieutenant-Governor, Tom Bathurst, and got to talk to him about his current role as well as his previous role as the Chief Justice of NSW.
Seemingly, this was the end of the day. However, knowing normally there is some kind of certificate or gift we were supposed to receive, we made our way back to the Parliament to try and find it. Upon our arrival, just before the stairs on the right of it, we saw a sign that was way too small for its purpose that said ‘Mulgoa Senior School Captains Leadership Forum’.
In hindsight, maybe it was obvious, but it was still a hilarious moment when we realised that we were at the wrong place the whole day. Thankfully, after explaining what happened to the lovely assistants of Tanya Davies, we actually received a private tour of parliament house, a photo with Tanya Davies herself, and a small but memorable moment on TV.
Overall, it was a day full of laughter and miscommunication, but it was also quite a serious and impactful experience as we got to meet and question various leaders who are experts in their own respective fields. Just from sitting back and listening, we personally witnessed what kind of changes they can and do make which impact the lives of thousands of people. However, that was not what stuck out the most for me. While such decisions can be grand and there is an obvious prestige that comes with being a leader, it was not something they flaunted (except for maybe Tania from Bankstown). Instead, they continued to stress the importance of serving the community, which I found to often come at the price of a sacrifice. To me, this ability to sacrifice and serve is a great quality that I personally hope to improve on, and a lesson to be learned for any aspiring leader.
Written by Tom N
