“Scholarships Build Possibilities out of Generosity”
We are incredibly excited to share with you that we are launching our Mercy Regional College Scholarship fund. We have provided quality education to young people of the western district for over 50 years and building on these strong foundations and our rich heritage of Catholic education, we are reimagining the future for young people in our school and our communities.
Scholarships enhance our dedication to providing a holistic education and a diverse educational experience – they remain a foundational strength for both students and families beyond financial support.
A Scholarship Fund is a philanthropic fund established to provide students with the opportunity to access a MRC education.
A Scholarship Fund is the most effective way to build a lasting endowment for education and returns from the Fund’s investments help grow its balance so that you can continue to support students for generations to come.
We are committed to providing the best possible education for every student seeking a MRC Education. In fact, since 1973, our commitment to providing opportunities through fee relief has opened doors to extraordinary academic experiences and paved the way for diverse future pathways.
Today we are proud to share that several families have shown a commitment to supporting our rural and regional young people, by providing an establishment gift to the Scholarship Fund. A gift that will enable us to build the fund to support more students and their families.
Our Scholarship Ambassador, Lachie and Jane Lee said “I was delighted when asked to champion and launch the Scholarship Fund. The college is committed to providing our students with opportunities that will support them to reach their full potential and achieve their heart’s desire. Please join me in creating those futures by contributing a gift to the Scholarship Fund as I and my family have done today”.
With your help, the scholarships will offer more students the opportunity to join our school community which supports each student to grow and pursue their passions by discovering their full potential in a supportive learning environment. Financial constraints should not prevent deserving regional and rural students from attending Mercy Regional College. These scholarships will provide the opportunity for students to maximise their capabilities, competence, skills and capacity so that they can grasp the future with confidence.
Today we invite you to consider a gift to our Scholarship Fund. Your gift is an investment in our local young people and your contributions will be responsibly invested, meaning your money can both grow and do good while it waits to be granted.
Scholarships strengthen the diversity of our school community, and they can only happen with your support. Together we can create a future filled with possibilities.
With kindness,
Sharon Gillett – Principal
PS: Gifts to the Scholarship Fund have an immediate, personal and profound impact and MRC scholarships help students to fulfill their potential.
Our Appeal Ambassadors, Lachie and Jane Lee are a part of the fabric of Mercy Regional College with their family’s involvement in the establishment of the college back in 1973.
Whether through their own education or teaching here, writing the college’s history or sending their children Genevieve, Stephanie and Edward, to MRC, they have been deeply connected to the college’s growth and evolution, and their family has been a part of the collective that has shaped the school to what it is today.
Jane hails from Kolora where she and her five siblings started their Catholic education in Noorat where her dad, Frank Pekin and his wife Aileen advocated for a Catholic secondary school in Camperdown. Jane said “We are so fortunate to have such a great facility as MRC in our region”
“Families have a real struggle to afford the type of education offered at MRC and it would mean so much to them to receive a scholarship” said Jane, “the basic ethos of our school is to provide a Catholic education to all, not just those that can afford it”.
Lachie continued “Lots of families would benefit, yet many are reluctant to ask for assistance, so to know that scholarships are available from the word go and the steps are easy to apply, isn’t that what the Catholic Church is all about to help educate all young people”.
Lachie continues “For me it is such an important thing, to help young people not only be better students but to be better people who are compassionate and understand the need to help and support the people around them. Many schools focus on results but for a young person to come through and be given the best opportunity to be their best self, that they end up doing something with their life that they love and making the most of that opportunity, then to me that is success”.
Jane continues “The Catholic network is an added lifelong benefit, the friends you make at MRC are the friends you will know for life”.
Lachie and Jane are inspired to support the launch of the Scholarship Fund and encourage the community to contribute a gift, be that large or small, as every contribution is valued. Ultimately your gift will add value to a student who will have the opportunity of an MRC education.
They both agree “Everyone deserves the opportunity of a Catholic education and there are people out there who, like us, will be keen to support the Scholarship Fund”.
The Spirit of Mercy Fund will be a Trust fund operated in the name of Mercy Regional College and held under the charitable gift status of DOBCEL.
All investment funds and interest will remain with Mercy Regional College.
All donations will be transferred into the fund.
A Tax Deductible Receipt will be issued in the joint name of Mercy Regional College and DOBCEL.
Funds will be invested, to allow the principal to grow.
The growth of the fund is used to assist in the scholarship and bursaries of students.
A committee made up of the Principal, Business Manager and an independent member will assess all applications for scholarships.
