THE St Matthew's Collegiate School hall was packed with students and parents last week for a surprise birthday concert and celebration thrown for principal Erik Pedersen, who retires at the end of the year after 30 years at the school.
The variety concert that marked his 65th birthday comprised items especially chosen as Mr Pedersen had loved hearing them in the past - songs from musical productions, music from the two jazz bands, pop and rock bands, the two school choirs and soloists.
Organising a concert of such size and keeping it a secret had involved a huge variety of jobs for students and staff - from keeping Mr Pedersen out of the way while the hall was being set up, to rehearsals, floral displays, a birthday banner and chocolate birthday cake for more than 300 party guests that was served at the end of the concert.
A particularly large job had been organising every girl in the school to write the things they most admired about Mr Pedersen on green and yellow sunflowers, which were attached to the front of the stage.
These reasons ranged from "you always remember all our names - somehow!" to "you are so supportive to all the girls in the school, coming to all cultural and sporting events" to "when you fell in front of us, we giggled a bit - and you got up and laughed with us!"
