Foundation
Reunions
Redlands Hall came alive on Friday night with the excited buzz of more than 100 Redlanders sharing memories and reconnecting as we celebrated the 40 year reunions for the Classes of 1980, 1981 and 1982 and the 20 year reunions for the Classes of 2000, 2001 and 2002.
It was fascinating to hear from Doug Garske (RL 1982) who was one of the first two male students to graduate from Redlands. Jennie Cadman (RL 2000), also a current parent, shared her reflections:
“What has been the constant over the last 20 years is the strong community that Redlands has. And you are all a part of that community. I know if I reached out to another Redlander even from a different Year Group, that there would a connection. An understanding. A desire to help, if needed. A level of trust. And that is what I love about Redlands.”
As part of this celebration, we offered to our guests a tour around the Redlands Learning Hub. Everyone was very impressed with the new learning and teaching spaces and we heard endlessly how they would have wished to be students today. Liggins Quad also generated some interesting reflections – the position of the school bell as well as the renovation of the Science block.
The last station was the Fahl garden (outdoor area in front of the Redlands Learning Hub) which always creates a very special atmosphere with lights in the background. Many group photos were taken with this impressive backdrop.
All this would not be possible without contributions of many generations. We are grateful for everyone’s support, past and present!
Alumni Award Winners – Spotlight on Emma Colenbrander, Redlander 2006
Emma is a social entrepreneur, intrapreneur and international development professional. She is founder and Head of the Global Distributors Collective, an alliance over 200 companies around the world that distribute beneficial products – such as solar lights, clean cookstoves and water filters – to people living in poverty.
Prior to that, Emma co-founded and was an Executive Director at Pollinate Group, a social business that brings clean energy solutions to urban slums in India. With a mission statement focused on improving the lives of India’s urban poor, Pollinate Group has reached 735,000 people to date and has received numerous awards including the UN Momentum for Change Award and the Australian Social Enterprise ‘One to Watch’ Award.
Outside of her day job, Emma facilitates social entrepreneurship courses at INSEAD Business School, and is a Board Trustee at Ashden and the Postcode Innovation Trust.
Emma was a finalist in the 2015 Women’s Weekly “Women of the Future” Awards, and has represented Australia as a social entrepreneur in the global $1m Chivas Venture competition. She is a GSBI Accelerator Program graduate and a Youth Action Net Laureate Global Fellow. Congratulations Emma and thank you for your impact to our society! For further information about Emma’s impressive journey and other Award Winners’ achievements, follow the link below.
Mrs Dana Casimaty
Director of Development
dcasimaty@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9968 9858