By Derek Schlennstedt
The Mail loves a milestone, and we know that our readers love to celebrate them too.
They can be sporty, personal, historic…and anything from one year to 130 years or more!
Here are a few that we covered over the past 12 months.
Gembrook Primary School celebrated its 135th birthday in March.
From humble beginnings in a small leased hut in 1883, the continuously thriving school now boasts more than 200 students, a strong student representative council, and a dedicated group of parents as the school council.
All students were invited to come to school in a period costume from between 1883 and the year 2000 to celebrate the milestone.
“It is community that is the soul of any school and we are fortunate to have such a committed and supportive community that works incredibly hard for Gembrook Primary School,” principal Brendan Fitzpatrick said
On 28 April, Emerald’s Warwick March umpired his 600th game of footy – an astonishing feat by any measure.
Only, Warwick estimates, the actual number was much closer to 1000 games.
“You’d probably need to add another 400 to 500 games of junior on top of that because the records don’t go that far back,” the 42-year-old said.
Emerald favourite son and Carlton legend Kade Simpson achieved a major milestone on 30 June, entering the coveted 300-game club.
After learning his craft as an Emerald Football Club junior, Simpson slowly but surely carved out a remarkable career that has seen him become one of the most widely respected players in the AFL.
It wasn’t smooth sailing for him in the early days, though.
Simpson’s first three games, where he didn’t register a single disposal, were widely spoken about in the lead-up to his big occasion.
On the eve of his 300th match, Simpson remembered his roots and turned out to a function at Emerald Football Club in honour of his achievement.
“In that first year, I didn’t get a lot of time on the ground,“ Simpson said.
“They didn’t rotate like they do these days; so, in my second game, I played two minutes and spent the rest of the game on the bench.
“In my second year, I played three more games but finished the year with a broken hand and missed the last couple of months of the season.
“But once I got that self-belief that I belonged in the senior side, that went a long way to my form picking up.”
Phyllis Wigglesworth celebrated her 105th birthday this year in March.
Mrs Wigglesworth has been a resident of Ferntree Gully’s Amaroo Aged Care since the age of 94, where she has been an active participant in craft, bingo, singing and exercise.
She has an extensive history in the region, after moving to Australia from Manchester in 1948.
Mrs Wigglesworth has three grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren who adore her and shared in her 105th birthday celebrations.
