For the third year in a row a St Paul’s Collegiate School staff member has been awarded the Independent Schools of New Zealand (ISNZ) Honours Award.
Gary Henley-Smith, this year’s recipient, was presented with the award for providing excellence in pastoral care and athletics within the education sector.
St Paul’s Reverend Craig Luccock says Gary’s work in pastoral care as a guidance counsellor, is one of the most demanding roles within the school.
“It is a role that takes great dedication; there is an aspect of this job that makes it 24/7. When there are pastoral emergencies Gary needs to be there,” Craig says.
It isn’t just pastoral care emergencies that Gary has to deal with, he counsels students through mental health issues, grief, loss and school related anxiety or stress.
Close colleague and Head of Commerce at St Paul’s, Martin Holmes, says Gary forms great relationships with students and can help them through major hurdles.
“He takes a real an interest in their lives and is able to get the best out of them,” Martin says.
Gary’s ability to get the most out of his students extends to his work on the athletics field where he has coached several students to gain national titles and has helped St Paul’s establish an unbeatable reputation.
The gold and black bumble bee singlet is something that other schools look out for each year at athletics competitions held across New Zealand.
Thanks to the high performance coaching of Gary and co-colleague Paul Wilson, St Paul’s relay teams have won ten titles and have been placed more than 20 times, over the past 20 years, at the New Zealand Secondary Schools competition.
“We are the ones to watch in relay events. Other schools always look out for us because we consistently place well from year-to-year, and that’s because of Gary and Paul,” says Martin.
Gary’s background as a national title holder, Commonwealth Games athlete (1989, 1990) and member of the Wigan Warriors (UK) rugby league team has lent him well to building the school’s athletic reputation.
“He is very proficient with the technical side of things and he understands what it takes to get students to a professional level,” Martin says.
His coaching ability and pastoral care experience is recognised by sporting associations that call on Gary for assistance with coaching and mental wellness programmes.
In recent years he worked for Athletics New Zealand at the IAAF World Youth Championships in Ukraine where he was a coach, mentor and caregiver to 14 students.
Although the big league continues to call on Gary, he isn’t planning to jump ship anytime soon. He has been a member of staff at St Paul’s for more than 20 years and is moving into William’s House next year to take on the role of boarding housemaster for the second time.
