Thirty years after commencing work at St Martin’s College at Wagga Wagga, Reverend Glenn Maytum returned in April to be Acting Head of College while Susan Bazzana went on holidays.

Glenn was instrumental in the establishment of St Martin’s, which will host its 30th anniversary celebrations on 17-18 September this year.

In 1989 Glenn had been in conversation about re-starting Anglican Chaplaincy at what was then called the Riverina-Murray Institute of Higher Education (which became Charles Sturt University). In 1990 he received a phone call from Bishop Barry Hunter (then Bishop of the Riverina) who wanted his help ‘to solve a problem’.

The Bishop had received a bequest from Mr George Tassell, a parishioner at St Martin’s Anglican Church in Moulamain, which had been earmarked for ‘youth’ and Glenn’s suggestion was to see if it could be possible to commence an Anglican Residential College on the campus at Wagga Wagga.

In what was a unique project at the time the Dioceses of Riverina and Canberra and Goulburn came together to work on the project, which was spearheaded by Archdeacon Stephen Williams, and in 1992 the College was opened in time for the start of the academic year.

Glenn was commissioned as its first Chaplain and moved onsite into the Chaplain’s Flat, which was attached to the Chapel. The first residents lived in an eight-bedroom cottage that was called ‘George Tassell House’ in acknowledgement of its benefactor.

‘I’ve been back to St Martin’s many times over the years, and it has been exciting to see the College grow’ Glenn said. ‘It is great to see the College booming again.’

‘We started with eight residents 30 years ago and now it can house 96 people and the community is thriving.’

‘I am really looking forward to the 30th anniversary and do hope to see many of those residents from the early years come along.’

Tickets to the various 30th Anniversary events will be available soon on the College website or you can contact the College via martiesturns30@csu.edu.au or telephone ph 02 6933 4966.

by Susan Bazzana

Susan Bazzana was commissioned as the new Head of St Martin’s College at Charles Sturt University in Wagga Wagga on March 11. The commissioning service was followed by an informal dinner for residents of St Martin’s catered for by South Wagga Anglican Parish.

Scott Goode, the Rector of South Wagga Anglican Church, who spoke at the commissioning from Matthew 5:13-16 encouraged those gathered to ensure St Martin’s continues to be a light on the hill. A community where people live integrated lives and where through their speech and works give praise to the Lord and others are drawn to worship.

Susan comes to St Martin’s after spending more than six years as Dean of New College Postgraduate Village at the UNSW Kensington campus. Much earlier in her career she was the Regional Youth Officer for the Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn and was involved in SWAMP youth events and in Camp Pelican.

‘The residents at St Martin’s have warmly welcomed me into the community and I have been impressed by their care for one another in these early weeks of the academic year’, Susan said.

‘It is my prayer that St Martin’s will be a place where people can grow in maturity and find ways to make really positive contributions to society no matter what they are studying.’

‘The years people spend at university are often ones when they have time and space to explore the big existential questions and it’s my prayer that many of our residents will grow in their knowledge and love of God while they are with us.’

‘I am very encouraged to see the ministry of the College being supported in such a practical way through the quarterly SWAC dinners and hope that the ministry of the College will be a blessing to the Church across the Riverina and Canberra-Goulburn as we partner in the work of raising up young adults with a vision to serve.’

Susan replaces The Venerable Grant Bell who left St Martin’s to become Archdeacon and Rector of The Parish of Wagga Wagga.

by Susan Bazzana

Photo: Peter Savage (left) (Head of St Martin’s 2000-2005) and Glenn Maytum (Founding Chaplain/Tutor at St Martins in 1992) are pictured with the new Head of St Martin’s College Susan Bazzana who commenced work in February 2021. Photo by O.J. Photography.

St Martin’s College is welcoming new students studying at Charles Sturt University Wagga Wagga campus and students studying medicine through UNSW at Wagga Wagga Campus. St Martin’s College had its origin in the Riverina Diocese and the Canberra-Goulburn Diocese in 1992 and has since grown to a 98-bed college (12 x 8-bedroom cottages, a 2-bedroom flat and the chapel) that surrounds the centrally-located Fairfax Community Centre (affectionately known as ‘the Fax’). Community, inclusion of all, support, care and excellence are at the heart of all the College does.

2020 has been a difficult year for all people. The College saw its numbers drop on 30 March 2020 from about 80 students to 10 students as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the decision on the University to close its campuses and go on-line for all of session 1 and all of session 2 (for most students). It is ‘return to normal’ for the University in January 2021. And more than 40 returning students are looking forward to that. So how did they manage 2020?

Meg from Milthorpe, in her third year of a four-year social work course, writes:

‘I have had the pleasure of being a Residential Advisor at St Martin’s College in 2020. Though this year was difficult we continued to host events, whether virtual or in-person, with students, according to restrictions and guidelines. The current pandemic did not limit the spirit of the St Martin’s community as we all worked to adapt to ensure we could still connect with each other.

 

‘St Martin’s is such a warm and inclusive community where students can make lifelong friends. It is an environment that fosters growth whether that is socially, academically or professionally.

 

‘What I value most about St Martin’s College is the family environment. This enabled me to make a smooth transition into university life and has given me the opportunity to make many lifelong friends.

 

‘The advice that I would give to future students is to immerse yourself within the community and step out of your own comfort zone! This will allow you to have many opportunities opened up to you as well as give you the chance to make your university experience the best it can be!’

Romy, a Vet Science student going into Third Year, commented:

‘Despite the lack of people on campus, the few that stuck around during COVID became the many, and life went on. I think we probably spent more time with other college students than normal, given that we were all confined to our rooms for online lectures and there were few other excuses to leave the house than to play some backyard cricket with the neighbours.

 

‘Being on campus is a no brainer, especially in first year, because you only have to walk 5-10 minutes to your lectures. Within walking distance there is also the pool and gym too for the sports enthusiasts. Life at Martie’s is great because you get to know the other students really well, and you’ll probably spend a lot of time in each other’s cottages sharing dinner and studying together in what can feel like a family home.

 

‘I value the shared space that we have within the college, including the outdoor and indoor area of the Fairfax Centre, which we can use at our leisure to study/relax/cook or just have a nap.’

In the summer break, the diverse interests continue. Josh and Seb are out doing contract grain harvesting over summer and two others are doing grain receivals at the grain silos. Others are in retail – Bunnings, Boost Juice etc. Some are working in Vet clinics. Nursing students are finding work in Aged Care. A few students have returned home to farms, a few are doing catch-up placements because of COVID-19 restrictions (in places like piggeries, dairy farms etc) and our performing arts students have put on a production. Animators are finding work on projects and our international PhD students are continuing their diverse research work in exotic areas including dung beetles, micronutrients, and environmental sciences. One of our undergraduate Social Work students has just presented at a National Health Conference (by zoom) on a new initiative in TeleHealth.

St Martin’s is a vibrant community that unobtrusively encourages faith and whole-person development in a supportive and pastorally-rich environment.

Check out the website at www. stmartinscollege.org or take the aerial drone tour of the College at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Oe HHwpl6NbPOO8M8obvpqqtXdNB XCAJ_/view?usp=sharing

Applications are on the website and are now open for 2021.

by Bill Anscombe