We are delighted to extend a very warm welcome to 𝗠𝗿 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗹 𝗕𝗲𝘇𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁, who returns to Union this year as part of our teaching staff.

An Old Unionite (Class of 2004), Carl’s journey with Union has come beautifully full circle.

Carl previously taught at Union before going on to gain invaluable experience at a number of exceptional schools, both locally and abroad. 𝗛𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝟳 𝗘𝗠𝗦, 𝗦𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀, 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗢𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, bringing with him a wealth of knowledge and a deep passion for education.

A respected leader, mentor and coach, Carl’s approach to education – 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲𝘀 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲, 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲 – resonates strongly with Union’s ethos and traditions.

𝘞𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘪𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘮𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥𝘴, 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘰 𝘥𝘰𝘶𝘣𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘧𝘢𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭 𝘥𝘢𝘺.

𝗜𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗕𝗲𝘇𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗱. Carl and Leigh’s daughter, Madison, has begun her Union journey in Grade 1 this year, while their son, Blake, is in Grade 3. We are equally delighted to welcome Leigh back to town and into the Union community.

𝘞𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘭 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘦𝘻𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘢𝘵 𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯.

After bidding a fond farewell to tennis coaches Tiaan and Lente Mostert at the end of last year, we are delighted to usher in 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 for tennis at Union.

We warmly welcome 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝘀 of the Born To Play Tennis Academy, who will be taking the reins in coaching our Top 6 u10, u13, and 1st senior tennis teams.

𝘞𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘛𝘪𝘢𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘓𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘤𝘺 𝘢𝘴 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘮𝘮𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘵𝘩.

Morney recently relocated to Graaff-Reinet from Kuruman, together with his family, and brings with him a passion for developing young talent and 𝗮 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗳𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁.

We are excited about the energy and fresh perspective he brings to Union tennis 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘨𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦

Earlier this week, the prefects of Union High School’s boarding houses, Herby Arnott House and Arthur Kingwill House, were treated to a truly special 𝗣𝗥𝗘𝗙𝗘𝗖𝗧 𝗖𝗔𝗠𝗣 at Asante Sana Private Game Reserve.

𝘚𝘦𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘦𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘱 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘣𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦, 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯.

𝗔 𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗱𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲 treated the group to incredible wildlife sightings, followed by a relaxed braai in a beautiful setting, surrounded by nature at its best.

As night fell, the sky came alive with countless stars, setting the scene for meaningful conversations, plenty of laughter, board games and – as always – non-stop talking.

𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗺 𝗮𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱, strengthening leadership skills and building bonds that will carry into house life back at school.

𝘞𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘺 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘶𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘪𝘵 𝘨𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸, 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳.

𝗘𝗿𝗶𝗻 𝗚𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗹𝘁, Union High School, Graaff-Reinet‘s top matriculant for 2025, produced an exceptional set of results that reflect both academic ability and unwavering commitment.

With a final average of 87%, 𝗘𝗿𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗰𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀 𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀, including Accounting (93%), Life Sciences (93%), Afrikaans FAL (87%), English HL (86%), Physical Sciences (81%), Life Orientation (89%) and Mathematics (80%). 𝘏𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘥𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘩 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘶𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨.

Further highlighting her academic ambition, Erin also completed Further Studies Mathematics, achieving a commendable 72% in this advanced programme.

𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘳𝘢-𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘤𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘤 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘴 𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘤 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘺.

Erin’s success shows what is possible when talent meets hard work, perseverance and a genuine love of learning.

Well done and congratulations to the Matric Class of 2025.

Proud parents, relieved learners and smiling staff filled the Union High School, Graaff-Reinet foyer this morning as the 𝗖𝗟𝗔𝗦𝗦 𝗢𝗙 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 returned to collect their National Senior Certificate results.

With 41 subject distinctions achieved by the class overall, 𝗮𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝗘𝗿𝗶𝗻 𝗚𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗹𝘁, who topped the class with an exceptional 87% average and an impressive collection of 7 distinctions across a demanding subject load. She was followed by Milani Pongoma in second place, with Tara Ferreira in third place and Someleze Ntshuca in fourth, both producing strong, balanced results.

𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗧𝗼𝗽 𝟭𝟬 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 Trystan Hulleman, Lwandile Memani, Ndodana Speelman, Demi Kretzmann, Aaminah Steele, and Muhammad-Ismail Ahmed – 𝘢 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘱 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘦𝘧𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘤𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘤 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘧 2025.

Subject excellence was evident across the curriculum. 𝗧𝗼𝗽-𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝘀: English HL – Erin Gedult, Afrikaans FAL – Erin Gedult, Mathematics – Erin Gedult, Mathematical Literacy – Matthew Oosthuizen, Accounting – Erin Gedult, Business Studies – Unam Vumazonke, Computer Applications Technology – Alexander Neill, Geography – Trystan Hulleman, History – Someleze Ntshuca, Life Sciences – Erin Gedult, Physical Sciences – Erin Gedult and Tourism – Chloe Tainton.

𝗕𝗲𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀.

Seventy-one percent of learners achieved Bachelor’s passes, opening doors to further study at tertiary institutions, while a further 20% earned Diploma passes.

𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 such as Mathematics, Physical Sciences and Accounting, as well as the number of learners achieving distinctions in multiple subjects.

𝘞𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘧𝘶𝘭, 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 94,44% 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘢 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘤𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘤 𝘢𝘮𝘣𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘧 2025 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘤𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 – 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭 – 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘣𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘺 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘥.

Our 1st XI took the field in 𝗮 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝘀𝗲𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝘁𝗲𝘀, cutting a proud figure as they represent Union High School, Graaff-Reinet.

A huge 𝗦𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗧-𝗢𝗨𝗧 and heartfelt thank you to Tyremart Graaff-Reinet for their generous support of the team – 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘢 𝘷𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘣𝘰𝘺𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘦.