Terence and Grete Gawthorn have come to the end of their journey with Good Shepherd when they graduated side by side last week.

While both are excited and looking forward to the next stage in their lives, it does come with a little trepidation as they embark on that journey, without their twin by their side.

The non-identical twins started at Good Shepherd in 2008, with their very first day of school documented in the local paper.

During their 12 year Good Shepherd journey, Terence and Grete were often in the same class and loved being able to support each other and help each other with homework and assignments.

Grete said, “It was always very comforting having a sibling in the same class. We are quite close and even though we occasionally have a few disagreements we generally get along quite well.”

“During lock-down the benefits of having a ’study partner’ were immeasurable. Talking to peers and your teacher is such an important aspect of learning and being able to have a brother/sister with you, whom you can discuss the content with was so beneficial. During lock down we individually joined the Zoom conference with our teacher but completed homework together.”

After completing their last exam together, the highlight came with the siblings attending their spectacular graduation and taking their final steps just as they started, side by side.

Grete and Terence enjoyed their final graduation event, held at Good Shepherd Lutheran College, with their proud parents, Susanna and Michael Gawthorn.

Next year, both will be heading off in different directions. Terence will be moving down to Tasmania to study Maritime Engineering whilst Grete will be staying a little closer to home by moving to Brisbane to study Biomedical Science.

It will be a huge change for both and will be associated with some fear and sadness, but as Grete said “it’s a necessary part of ’growing up’ and something we will have to get used to. While our Good Shepherd journey may have concluded, we are excited for the future.”