Bernie's Bulletin

Event Calendar

Reunion Calendar

Save the Date for your class reunion! Registration will open closer to the date so we can track numbers. Each year level will receive emails with more information closer to the date as well.

Pat McCluskey’s journey from a modest upbringing to becoming a pioneering force in global engineering is a story of resilience, ingenuity, and quiet determination. A scholarship student at St Bernard’s College, Pat overcame significant hardship, including poverty and social exclusion, to pursue his passion for engineering and electronics. 

With the support of Br. Walsh at St Bernard’s, Pat secured a clockmaking apprenticeship at the Department of Defence. It was there he met his future business partner, Pat Boland, leading to the founding of ANCA in 1974. The duo’s skills complemented each other perfectly, as they started with a mini-computer and worked their way up to the development of CNC (Computer Numerical Control) systems, a groundbreaking innovation at the time.

Today, ANCA is a global leader in CNC tool and cutter grinders, with a strong presence in the U.S. and beyond. In recognition of their contributions to the industry, McCluskey and Boland were awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM)—an honour Pat describes as the proudest moment of his life. 

Committed to giving back, Pat champions apprenticeships and hands-on learning, and has generously offered to come to St Bernard’s later this year to share his wisdom with our aspiring engineers.

We recently had the privilege of meeting Pat and hearing all about his remarkable journey – keep an eye out for a full interview, and a report on his visit to the College, in the next issue of The Strand. 

We're pleased to announce our reunions are now opening for registration! 

Starting with our Golden Years Reunion on Friday 22 August - a special event consisting of a whole-school mass, optional College tour and lunch to celebrate the classes of 1974 and earlier. Bookings can be made here: https://www.trybooking.com/DCXEV 

Our 5, 10 and 20 Year reunions are also open for registration, and the rest will be opening very soon. Keep an eye on the reunion calendar above - links to register will be posted there. You can also access the updated calendar any time on our SBOCA Events page.

As we prepare for the upcoming renovations in the Tobin building, which will introduce our exciting new university-style cafeteria as part of the Quays Project, we want to take a moment to honour our beloved canteen. While the community eagerly anticipates the fresh space ahead, today we celebrate the memories and contributions that made our canteen truly special.

To commemorate its closing, last week we welcomed back past staff members who have dedicated countless hours to running the canteen, and also extended our heartfelt thanks to the many invaluable volunteers who have participated over the years. Whether it was serving hot pies and pastries on a cold morning before school, helping out with events like the Walkathon, or stocking up on the iconic chilli chicken roll, our staff and volunteers made the canteen a great place for students and teachers alike.

Let’s not forget the enthusiastic students who stepped up behind the counter before school in years gone by, assisting with serving and gaining invaluable experience.

Fun fact: The canteen once operated from the Tobin building but has been running from its current site for over 20 years.

Thank you to all who made the canteen a core memory for our students!

A reminder to sign up to our new old collegian platform Alumnly, which can be done at this link https://sbc.alumnly.com/alumnilogin. 

The Old Collegians Association has invested significantly in the building of this wonderful database, but it will only be effective if as many alumni as possible sign up. We'd strongly encourage you to join, as the bigger the network is, the greater the reward is for everyone involved. 

Alumnly is the place to be for exciting news, the latest events, and special offers for our alumni community. 

Among the many things you can do with Alumnly include accessing photos from events like our Foundation Gala Dinner and SBOCA Golf Day, search by industry to connect with fellow old collegians, and register your interest to offer career advice to the next generation of our students.

Thank you to all who have signed up so far, let's use this network and lift each other up!

We were inspired by Pat McCluskey this week as we found several winning trophies from the Science and Engineering Challenge in our archives.

The challenge is an international competition organised by the University of Newcastle to encourage promising year 9 and 10 students in science, engineering and technology. As you can see, St Bernard's has had strong success in this challenge, winning the Melbourne challenge in 2008, 2010 and 2013. According to an excerpt from the 2013 Clairvaux, activities included "creating and racing hovercrafts, building bridges and making a Mars rover."

Honouring our esteemed old collegians is deeply important to the College. If you wish to submit Vale notices for inclusion in The Strand magazine, please send them via email to development@sbc.vic.edu.au. Your contributions allow us to respectfully remember and celebrate the remarkable individuals who have been part of our community and have sadly passed away since our last publication in late 2024 and throughout 2025.

We greatly appreciate your support in helping us honour their memories.