Fraser finds his feet thanks to a boarding scholarship

Richard Hinds Scholarship recipient Fraser Douglas (OM 2017) remembers the nervous tension he felt when he had been asked to sit in the front row at the following day’s assembly.

“If I got a message to go to the Boarding House health centre, it was because Mum had sent a care package,” he recalls. “But this time I received a School letter telling me to sit up the front of the hall.”

Fraser, then a Year 10 student in School House, was to receive the Certificate of Academic Endeavour – something that looked unlikely only months beforehand and which presaged a watershed moment at Melbourne Grammar School.

“Before I knew it, I was on stage and shaking the Headmaster’s hand, and it all struck me – that the effort to keep plugging away was worth it because I was going to be recognised for hard work.”

Boarding school life did not come easily to Fraser, who missed the family farm at Moulamein in New South Wales. His father had boarded in Melbourne, but Fraser began secondary schooling by commuting to Swan Hill.

He eventually swapped the grind of daily bus trips for short strolls from the Boarding House. The physical distance shrank but Fraser’s personal journey grew.

Fraser settled on Melbourne Grammar as his boarding school because he sensed an open and friendly culture.

“I had a cousin who was at Melbourne Grammar, but what swayed me were the then Director of Boarding – Michael Shaw – and the Headmaster, Roy Kelley,” he says. “They were kind, they tried to understand me, and the other boarding boys seemed really good too.”

The transition was still hard; he missed home, while academic demands were considerable. Three factors helped Fraser to turn a corner: the boarding pastoral care program, patient and inspirational teachers, and the bonding experience of the fabled Beyond the Gates trek.

“I was anxious before that journey, but it formed me into a leader, and I got to work really closely with some boys I didn’t know well,” he says. “As it happens, we remained friends and I’m still close with them.”

Fraser ultimately thrived at Melbourne Grammar, where he was encouraged to express his personality and to pursue wide interests.

None of it would have been possible without the generosity of Richards Hinds (OM 1930) – a Western Districts grazier whose own boarding experience had been transformational.

“I feel privileged to have come to Melbourne Grammar and to have had so many people have faith in me,” Fraser says. “I am finding my own path now and I hope that whatever I do would have made Richard proud.”