Celebrating Mother’s Day 2024
Mother’s Day is a special day for families and mothers all over Australia. It’s a day to reflect on and appreciate the unique love and care that mothers provide. From the beginning, mothers are there to plan, sacrifice, worry and care, through tear-stained cheeks and sleepless nights to school lunches and friendship advice. Juggling careers and other life commitments, they also wear many hats that fall under the job of parenting; chef, chauffeur, counsellor, cheerleader, to name a few.
As their children grow older, a mother’s love endures.
At Pymble we are fortunate to have such wonderful and talented staff, and this year in honour of Mother’s Day we are celebrating some of our staff members and their incredible mums who have provided love, support, advice and many fun memories along the way that have helped shape our staff into the wonderful people they are today.
Happy Mother’s Day!
Kate
Our Principal, Dr Kate Hadwen, is the daughter of an incredible educator, Barbara, who left an enduring legacy in her community.
What are some of the earliest/favourite childhood memories of your mum?
My mum established the local kindergarten when my older sister became of kindy age and there was nothing for her in our local area. She and a friend from a neighbouring property established this service in the local hall and then moved it to the vacant shearing shed on a farm nearby. That little kindy led to the establishment of a kindergarten at the local school which has served the community for close to 50 years now!
Mum’s involvement in the kindy has always been so inspiring to me and encapsulates her character – if you can see a problem, don’t sit and moan about it, get on and do something about it.
Another favourite memory is driving back from boarding school when we would put on songs by the Travelling Wilburys, turn the volume up and sing at the top of our voices. The trip home was about 3.5 hours, and we did it often!
Mum was always super organised. I used to play competitive tennis and it was cold getting dressed in the mornings! I’d get up and Mum would have my whole outfit laid out near the heater for me. Often, we had to drive for hours to get to the tournament, so it was always an early start.
What do you admire and love most about your mum?
There are many things I admire about my mum. She is incredibly supportive and positive. She has the right balance of support and tough love. When the chips are really down, she is always there. I’m forever grateful for her love for her family and the career sacrifices she has made for her three girls, her dedication to our education and her great fashion sense!
What’s one thing you and your mum have in common or love doing together?
We love doing everything together! We are great travel buddies and from time to time she has joined me on trips. We have gone to Japan, Greece, China and Turkey together and have made treasured memories on each of those trips.
What is valuable life lessons have you have learnt from your mum?
The value of hard work. The importance of family. Resilience.
What are three words to describe your mum?
Smart, determined, loving.
Lachlan
Junior School teacher Lachlan Pryor not only followed his mum Andrea’s footsteps into a teaching career, but more specifically to teaching at Pymble!
What is one of the earliest/favourite childhood memories of your mum?
My earliest memories would be the summer holidays where we had Mum home for the holidays as she was a teacher. We always went up to the mouth of the Hawkesbury to a place called Patonga for four weeks and had a house right on the beach. Mum would make fresh bread for us each morning and we would have a rule of quiet time and breakfast until 8.00am. After that it was then a chaotic charge out the front to the beach for swimming, surfing, paddling and sailing. Mum, no matter what, would be there with us helping us, teaching us games, making sure we had sunscreen on and plenty of food for the day. The highlight was after a few years, I could take mum for a sail on my own boat.
What do you admire and love most about your mum?
Her dedication to helping others, she always knew what they needed, even if it wasn’t what it is what they wanted. She has this ability to see through all the clutter and chaos to tell you exactly what you need and where you need to go in the most caring way. This was always the case with my brother and I but also countless former students of hers, who would come up and say the same thing when we met them. It did not matter who you were, she would always be willing to help you through anything.
What’s one thing you and your mum have in common or love doing together?
It would be very close between going and watching the mighty Sydney Swans play at the SCG during the winter and cooking together. We have spent many a winter day/night watching the Swans and will continue as long as we can. Mum has taught me a lot about cooking and has passed down all the recipes from her mum and her mum’s mum. One of the final cooking lessons was the cooking of the Christmas hams which I was finally able to cook for her this past Christmas with a pineapple, honey and mustard glaze.
What is a valuable life lesson you have learnt from your mum?
Some of Mum’s favourite sayings are, “It’s never as bad as it seems and its never as good as it seems,” and “It’s a means to an end”. They are both similar in that the hidden message is just to never give up. She was a big advocate of always working hard to get yourself to where you want to be or out of a situation you didn’t want to be in. Mum was always about working hard through the tough times to get to where you want and it’s something I saw in her and she instilled in me that I am forever grateful for.
What are three words to describe your mum?
Selfless, nurturing and determined .
Annabelle
Meet Software Engineering Teacher Annabelle Moreton and her mum, Bronwyn.
What is one of the earliest/favourite childhood memories of your mum?
When I was 6, my sister and I shared a bedroom and we had this phase of going to bed right on time which began raising suspicions. I was in my spy kids phase, and had gotten a spy-kit that included an invisible ink pen and ultraviolet light. Once we had said goodnight, we would spend an hour drawing on the walls with my invisible pen, taking turns to hold the light for each other. One night we were rudely interrupted and caught red handed which resulted in us sugar soaping the walls the next day. However, mum was more impressed by our ingenuity and the detail of our drawings in such circumstances than upset about the walls.
What do you admire and love most about your mum?
Her genuine interest in supporting and encouraging us to meet our goals and fulfill our dreams.
What’s one thing you and your mum have in common or love doing together?
We both love scary movies – since I was young we would always watch scary movies together, from thrillers to b-grade horror.
What is a valuable life lesson you have learnt from your mum?
To keep the people who give you energy and strength close, and that its okay to take time by yourself to recharge.
What are three words to describe your mum?
Curious, empathetic, generous.
Kim
Meet Kim Bunny, Science staff member (Learning Leader Partnerships and Context), and her mum, Lorraine.
What is one of the earliest/favourite childhood memories of your mum?
My brother, mother and I used to spend time at the beach when were young. We would all play in the sand and water and have a great time. I remember Mum studying for a TAFE course sometimes whilst Chris and I played. I also have memories of Mum bagging my brother’s plaster cast in plastic bags, so he didn’t miss out on the fun when he had a broken arm.
What do you admire and love most about your mum?
No matter how old my four siblings and I get, Mum checks in on each of us, she listens patiently, never judges us and offers considered and thoughtful advice if that is what we are seeking.
What’s one thing you and your mum have in common or love doing together?
We love travelling and visiting experiencing new sights, visiting art galleries, and eating great meals. Our most recent adventure was to Canberra to see the wonderful Cressida Campbell exhibition with my aunt, Mum’s sister Patricia.
What is a valuable life lesson you have learnt from your mum?
No matter what the challenge there is a way to overcome it and thrive. You need to pause, calm down, consider a problem from various perspectives and find a logical and sensible pathway to a favoured resolution. We each have more strength and capability than we are sometimes able to recognise in ourselves.
What are three words to describe your mum?
Generous, loving, resilient.
Spencer
Meet Spencer Toohey, Secondary School Inquiry Learning Leader, and their mum, Linda.
What is one of the earliest/favourite childhood memories of your mum?
Growing up, we had ‘afternoon tea day’ where we got to go to the local shops and pick out whatever we wanted for afternoon tea. It was such a fun mid-week tradition. Mum has always tried to find celebrations even in the routine.
What do you admire and love most about your mum?
I love how my mum cares for other people and is always laughing and positive. She’s always looking to turn her experiences into funny stories for her friends and family. I have no doubt she loves me and would be there for me no matter what, and I do my best to be that for her too!
What’s one thing you and your mum have in common or love doing together?
We love going to musicals together and watching romcoms and Gilmore Girls and we spend a lot of time just chatting about anything and everything.
What is a valuable life lesson you have learnt from your mum?
There’s always time for reading – my mum took us to the library or second-hand bookshop every week growing up, and always had a book on the go.
What are three words to describe your mum?
Fun, chaotic, loving.
Penny
Meet Junior School teacher Penny Charalambous and her mother, Helen.
What is one of the earliest/favourite childhood memories of your mum?
My favourite childhood memories of my mum are from our family holidays at Fairmont Resort in the Blue Mountains. We would visit a few times a year, and I fondly remember doing Easter egg hunts, awing over the huge gingerbread house they would set up each year for Christmas in July and reading and toasting marshmallows by the fire.
What do you admire and love most about your mum?
Mum has an amazing ability to connect with anyone she meets. She is the kindest and most selfless person you will meet and has time to get to know everyone she passes and their story. She will turn up to every occasion with a huge smile ready to brighten the room and wholeheartedly share her zest for life.
What’s one thing you and your mum have in common or love doing together?
Mum and I absolutely love being creative together. Mum was an art teacher and has shared her love for all creative pursuits with me. As a child she introduced me to scrapbooking and now during the school holidays we spend time doing many creative hobbies like baking together, going to cheesemaking classes, paint-and-sip classes and are now learning the art of cookie decorating.
What is a valuable life lesson you have learnt from your mum?
Mum has always continued to remind me throughout my life that the most important thing is to try your best. She would always tell my brother and I that if we had tried our best, she would be proud of us no matter the outcome.
What are three words to describe your mum?
I would describe mum as selfless, loving and joyful.
