After the first full week of classes, the Bolton boys have begun to settle into a routine of nightly prep, after school athletics, meals in Brown Hall, and lots of socializing.  It is wonderful to see so many boys making new friends, reconnecting with old ones and sharing stories about their summers.  The energy in the house is fantastic, with the common room always busy and an endless stream of boys coming and going with smiles.

The Crothall quad was a busy place on Monday morning as the various clubs and councils were on display.  This was an opportunity for students, new and returning, to sign up for a wide range of extra curricular clubs.  Here are some of the boys signing up while still others like David and Derry were sharing information about the clubs they run.

The grade 10 group had an exceptional week as they departed for their first out trip of the year. We had boys sailing on the SALTS trip, surfing the waves of Tofino, riding the white-water in Gold River, exploring the culture and history of the local First Nations groups in Sooke and partaking in a variety of events on the north island. Each trip challenged the boys in a different way and once they have had an opportunity to reflect on it, they will be amazed at the growth they see in themselves as a result of this fabulous journey. (photos to follow shortly!).

While the 10’s were away, the younger grades were busy as well. The grade 8 and 9 rugby teams are getting ready for their first game next week and the guys are very excited. Here are most of the boys playing a game of barefoot touch on Friday afternoon in a fun, impromptu session that had them running and passing and laughing with glee!

Those same boys then spent a couple of hours on Saturday afternoon helping a local organic farmer with his harvest of apples. They did some hard manual labour and were rewarded with some delicious, fresh pressed apple juice.  Many of the apples and tomatoes that they harvested were then donated to a local support for people in need, “Our Place”. Despite the cool weather and hard work, they were all smiles, especially with the tasty ice cream reward they got later that night.

The older grades were equally as busy with a range of sports including volleyball and rowing. Both the A and B soccer teams were in action on Friday and Saturday in the annual ISA tournament. Matthias, Luis and Adrian were part of the A team that won a bronze medal, while Joel, Mohammed and Bolu helped the B team to one of their best results in the tournament. Here are some of the boys in action including young Elliot who got some lessons from Luis.

It was also great to see some of the Bolton boys out supporting their brothers and enjoying the games

The annual Terry Fox run was held on Sunday morning along beautiful Dallas Road. This event sees the entire boarding community participate in a 5km run in support of cancer research. The courage and strength that young Terry showed in his quest to run across the country with a prosthetic leg was a reminder to the boys of the need to tackle challenges head on and to work hard at embracing our house motto: “Brotherhood, Honour, Strength”. We were so proud of all the boys for the great effort they put in, as you can see it was also a lot of fun!