Glenroi Heights Public School principal Tegan Davis says community spirit is high after fire

The two-storey administration building which also houses the school's library went up in flames on Monday night, with many not finding out the news until they started to get their children ready for class the next day.

But out of the ashes came an idea to keep everyone's spirits high.

"We're coming together, showing each other support and resilience," school principal Tegan Davis said at the Orange Youth Hub, where parents, teachers and students gathered on Tuesday for an afternoon of enjoyment after what had been a morning of sadness.

"The Glenroi Heights community is amazing. Everyone is here for each other, everyone is so supportive and understands each other. We are the strongest community and there are exceptional people."

With less than two weeks to go until the end of the school year, some students and parents were worried that big events such as the Christmas Spectacular, which was scheduled to take place on Wednesday, would not go ahead as a result of the fire.

Ms Davis quickly quashed those concerns, although the times, dates and locations may all need to change.

"It's definitely the highlight of our year," she said of the Christmas Spectacular.

"Everyone looks forward to it which is why we put an emphasis on coming together and getting things happening.

"We're really excited for all of our Christmas events that are coming up. We're going to make sure our concert goes ahead, our year 6 farewell, our presentation day, it will all go ahead. We're bringing back positive vibes."

Adam Hamling is Glenroi Public's assistant principal and played a big part in getting Tuesday afternoon's gettogether off the ground.

He was delighted to see hundreds of happy faces enjoying the activities.

"That's why I love working in the Glenroi community. Everyone is being so positive and rallying around each other. If you look around, there's not one frown which is really good to see. What more could you ask for as teachers," he said.

"The other schools today have been so helpful, especially Calare who have offered us all their sports equipment and accommodate us in any way they can. Hopefully we can finish off the year strong."

As for how the school moves forward from here, there is still no timeline about if or when students will return to in-person learning during 2022, but one thing is for sure and that is Ms Davis and her staff will pull out all the stops to make sure students have the best experience they can.

"The parents are here, the kids are here, the staff are amazing," she said.

"Right now, I feel so proud of everybody."

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