After 21 years helping educate generations of Weipa residents, Western Cape College teacher Robyn Maskill has said goodbye to her students and colleagues as she starts on the new journey of retirement. Photo: Supplied.
When Robyn Maskill put in her transfer application for a school more than two decades ago, Western Cape College (WCC) had not even crossed her mind as an option, but she is now leaving a lasting legacy in Weipa as she moves into retirement.
Past and present staff and students, parents, carers and community members bid a loving farewell to the teacher on 25 June, taking a trip down memory lane on all the ways she had touched their lives.
After being convinced by then-principal Tony Fuller, Ms Maskill joined the WCC team in 2004, and came to be known as the strict-yet-loving educator who had high expectations of her students.
Senior secondary deputy principal Siobhan Wilson said the beloved teacher went above and beyond, taking on individual learning support, leading the Positive Pathways to Success program for disengaged girls, stepping in as the Diploma of Business as well as social and communities studies teacher and much more – all alongside her English and humanities classes.
“She has always been known for her unwavering care for student wellbeing, her ability to truly listen, and her gentle-but-firm guidance.” Ms Wilson reflected.
“Students trusted her, leaned on her, and she was always interested in their lives beyond schooling.
“If Mrs Maskill was a song, she’d be Frank Sinatra’s My Way – no backup singers, no fancy effects, just unapologetically honest, fiercely intelligent, and proudly independent.”
Ms Maskill said she was overwhelmed at the turnout and love shown at the retirement event.
“I was very touched by the reaction of a lot of my students and past students,” she said.
“It made me feel like the 21 years were definitely worth it.”
She said the experience of teaching long term in a remote community had been an experience like no other, allowing her to connect with students on a deep level.
“I have tried very hard to keep in touch with a lot of my ex-students, and that’s the beauty of living in Weipa, is that I go shopping, I get to see lots of my past students and present students, and I really enjoy that,” she said.
“I think that’s the highlight of teaching in a remote school; you do get to see your students outside of the classroom, and it is wonderful to watch them grow and move into jobs.
“The fact that they keep in touch with me, you know, I’d go and have coffee with them or something, and I really love that; that’s the highlight of my teaching career.”
Ms Maskill said she hoped more teachers would consider staying at remote schools like WCC long term, rather than moving on after a couple of years.
“There’s one family – I’ve taught four kids in that family over the years, and one of the kids that I taught when I first got here is now working at the school in the Stars program, and she’s got a daughter here in the school,” she said.
“It’s just wonderful to make all of these connections, but you’ve got to stay here long enough to make those connections.
“It makes the kids, I think, appreciate you more, because you’re always here, you know, you don’t leave after two years.”
Ms Maskill will start a new journey in Tully Heads from November, which she said was a frightening-but-exciting change.
“I’m going from a place where I know practically the whole population to a place I know no one,” she said.
“I guess I’m a little bit worried about taking that big step, jumping off the hamster wheel and not knowing where I’m going to land, but I’m looking forward to the break.”
Ms Maskill’s huge impact on the WCC community was seen when past and present students and staff gathered to send her off to retirement. Photo: Supplied.
