For 37 years, Kay Tranter has been the first face to greet students, staff and parents as they walk in the door at St Kilian’s Primary School.
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As the longest serving staff member, the administration officer is a stalwart of the school.
She remembers every student past and present, and they remember her.
Now, Ms Tranter is retiring.
She began the job in 1982, after 10 years at home looking after her two young daughters.
Ms Tranter herself had been a student at the school for four years.
She began in prep before St Therese’s Primary School in Kennington opened, closer to home.
In her time, Ms Tranter has grown used to the cycle of generations.
She’s had three offices in her time in the school, but to past students it seems like she has always been stationed at the same desk.
She remembers one former student who walked in with his own children and said:
“Are you still sitting there?”
I love the children, I love my interaction with parents, and... I’ve made lifelong friends out of people that I’ve worked with.
- Kay Tranter
At St Kilian’s Ms Tranter sees the grandchildren of people she herself went to school with.
She’s also grown used to seeing students who were at the school when she first began walking in with their own children, who are now students.
Seeing past students return is now one of her favourite sides of the role.
“It’s lovely actually, I really do like that actually, I really do like that side of it,” she said.
“It’s good to see them.”
Caring for the whole child
It’s the relationships which have kept Ms Tranter in the role for so long.
“I love the children, I love my interaction with parents, and... I’ve made lifelong friends out of people that I’ve worked with,” she said.
“The challenge of change has also been very good, but I do love the children, and I suppose that’s drawcard.”
It’s nurturing and caring for the whole child every day, is what I say Kay does.
- Kimberley McSweeney
Deputy-principal Kimberley McSweeney has worked with Ms Tranter for her own 12 years at St Kilian's.
“It’s nurturing and caring for the whole child every day, is what I say Kay does,” Mrs McSweeney said.
“She cares for everyone who walks in the door, it doesn’t matter what the need is….she will organise second hand uniforms or new uniforms, food, transport.”
Transformations and traditions
Over her time at St Kilian’s Ms Tranter’s role has completely changed.
When she started at the school in 1982, to pay salaries, she used to walk to the bank each week with a withdrawal slip.
She would return with cash, to put in envelopes for staff.
Around 1990, Ms Tranter got her first computer.
“When they first came in and bought this black box and sat it on the desk and said ‘oh, have a practise with it’, and your password was ‘pfk’,” she said.
“I thought ‘oh, how am I ever going to remember a password?’”
In her time, Ms Tranter has also instituted what have become traditions.
Thirty years ago a child came to her in tears. Their tooth had fallen out, and he couldn’t find it.
“How would the tooth fairy know? What would they do? They couldn’t find the tooth,” Ms Tranter said.
“It was really upsetting.”
So, Ms Tranter wrote a letter to the tooth fairy, explaining the situation.
Now, any child who loses a tooth at the school gets an envelope to store it, adorned with a sticky label addressed to the tooth fairy.
In the rush of an average workday, Ms Tranter keeps forgetting that she will be leaving the school.
However, she does have moments where it hits home.
“The Grade 6 girls where there the other day, and they said ‘you will come back for our graduation? You make sure you come back for our graduation’,” she said.
“That was really nice for them to say that.”
Fond farewells
Ms Tranter knows she will miss the school, but Mshe is looking forward to family, friends, volunteering and travel.
Working full time can make it difficult to catch up with family and friends, so she’s looking forward to spending time with them.
She will start her retired life by jetting off to Hobart almost immediately, to babysit one of her two granddaughters.
Ms Tranter also has big plans both locally, and internationally.
In October, she will head to China.
She’s also bought herself a little caravan, so she can “disappear” off into the sunset whenever she chooses.
Ms Tranter also plans to volunteer at Bendigo’s Visitor Centre.
For Ms Tranter, the best part of her working life has been the relationships.
It’s this day to day life with people, children and colleagues that have been her highlight.
It’s these relationships which means students, staff and parents at St Killian’s will all miss Ms Tranter.
“I do love that she nurtures my child,” Mrs McSweeney said.
“She makes [the students] special… she does engage with them from the moment they come in, she’ll make sure that she listens to them.”
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