OSCA
OSCA ’ S MISSION IS BOTH IMPORTANT AND URGENT
Focusing on ' reasons to connect and ways to connect '
MR ANDREW WILSON (' 78 ) OSCA PRESIDENT
ANDREW WILSON (’ 78 ) WITH MEMBERS OF THE EXTENDED WILSON CLAN AT THE 2019 OSCA ANNUAL DINNER . STANDING , LEFT TO RIGHT : ALLAN WILSON (’ 54 ), WILLIAM WILSON (’ 12 ), ANDREW WILSON (’ 78 ), RICHARD LUKE (’ 60 ). SEATED : ROWAN WILSON (’ 81 )
My grandfather didn ’ t talk about feelings , it was said , but my father told me otherwise . His father , a farmer , did talk about matters of emotional significance – while building a fence .
Later , when my father and I worked side by side , doing any shared activity , I experienced that for myself . We would share personal thoughts and ideas , and would be open to deeper conversations . It turns out we were in good company : meaningful conversations between males commonly take place side-by-side during activity .
Then I read that the Millennials are the loneliest generation ever . OSCA ’ s mission – to help our community with ' reasons to connect and ways to connect ' – is therefore both important and urgent .
In keeping with this theme , OSCA ran a new online event for parents of the classes of 2019 and 2020 . It was called ‘ Life beyond Scotch – five ways to support your son after leaving Scotch ’, and some of the key messages were about parents encouraging mates to reach out to their mates , and about listening without ‘ fixing ’. The feedback was positive so we ’ ll run it again next year . ( See Mark Tolson ’ s article about this webinar elsewhere in this edition .)
The recurring government restrictions have made it hard to be side-by-side . Activity by many OSCA clubs has been disrupted , as has OSCA ’ s program of events . Some events have proceeded , others have been cancelled , some weren ’ t scheduled , and many were scheduled for late in the year in the hope that vaccination would help .
The 30-year and 31-year reunions went ahead , just , and those who attended were rewarded with a treat – the new Keon-Cohen Dining Hall was the venue .
Less fortunate was OSCA ’ s Annual Dinner – disappointingly , the government imposed a lockdown the night before it was to proceed . The Treasurer of Australia the Hon . Josh Frydenberg was to be guest of honour , and the dinner had sold out a month beforehand . However , most of those bookings have now transferred over to the dinner next year . The 2022 dinner , after two years of drought , is sure to be memorable .
OSCA ’ s ambition to help young Old Boys thrive after they leave school remains , and we are looking at ways to deliver our intended initiatives . The hopes of the Young Old Boys to run a ‘ meet-up ’ event at each of the major university campuses is on hold until the campuses once again have students onsite .
Fortunately , Old Boys don ’ t wait for OSCA events . The results of this year ’ s survey tell us that 70 per cent of Old Boys connect with each other socially as friends that are part of their close friendship group , and 36 per cent connect socially through Old Boy activities or events that are not organised by OSCA . This is to be strongly encouraged – it is The Cardinal Thread in action . By comparison , 29 per cent connect through OSCA events or committees , and 22 per cent through clubs and societies .
Extensive self-generated activity is in keeping with the idea of ‘ making your own OSCA ’ – that OSCA is the result of the initiatives and energies that we each bring . It works more through alignment and coordination rather than through management or service delivery .
Vocational support has always been a major interest , and our 2021 survey reconfirms it . Happily , OSCA already had taken new action to support vocational development by launching the mentoring module within OSCAconnect . We encourage Old Boys to register for OSCAconnect and to make themselves available for mentoring to whatever level is appropriate .
64 Great Scot Issue 163 – September 2021