The clock is ticking for former students and staff of Trinity Catholic College to purchase tickets to its 40 Year celebrations.

Saturday, August 16, at the Lismore Workers Club is the date and venue, less than two weeks away.

Trinity's Principal Jesse Smith told the Lismore App that many people are using the celebrations to organise school reunions.

"It will be a great celebration on the 16th to bring some of those people, particularly people from the class of '85. I would imagine that would have been a pretty unique experience for them to try and create something new. But some of them will be back, and it'll be a great celebration.

"We're certainly saying to all of our past students, past staff, etc, that they're most welcome to come along. Some groups within that 40-year bracket are treating it as a reunion. So people are getting tables together, and you know, there might be 20 people from the class of 1985 coming, and there might be a group of people from another class that are coming. So yeah, for different groups, they are treating it as a reunion.

"We see it as a big community celebration, and we hope to see as many people as possible.

The 40 Year celebration will involve a meal and live entertainment by the Cath Simes Band.

Many people understand Trinity's history, but are confused about the 40 Year celebration. Jesse Smith took the Lismore App through a quick history lesson.

"The presentation sisters established St Mary's Girls School in 1886, and that continued all the way through to the amalgamation point, which was 1985.

"The Marist Brothers came to Lismore in 1911 and established Marist Brothers Boys' High School.

"And then in 1966, there was a period of co-instruction where senior students would actually be taught by either brothers or sisters in specific subjects. So there was, I guess, some mingling across subjects at that point. And then the process of actually bringing the two schools together was a discussion through the early 1980s, and then obviously ramped up in 1984.

(Signing articles of association in 1984 for the formation of Trinity Catholic College)

"At the end of 1984, they appointed Sister Mary Cannane pbvm, after whom Cannane House was named, one of our 10 houses at Trinity. She was appointed the foundation principal. And at the end of that year, in December, there was a mass in the cathedral, and both of the schools entered the cathedral, and the captains of St Mary's and Marist Brothers handed their school banners back to the parish priest at the time, Father Frank.

(The handing over of the banners in late 1984. Photo: supplied)

"The whole essence of that ritual was that the two schools entered the cathedral as separate entities, and then they left as a combined force, so to speak. So, 1985 rolls around, we have Trinity Catholic College, and Sister Mary was the foundation principal, and she was here until 1992. The rest is history, as they say.

"There has been a line of Marist Brothers up until this point, who've led the college until me (Jesse Smith was the first lay principal of Trinity, appointed in 2022). Across that time, we have students who have gone out into the world and done all sorts of remarkable things. Some of them are back here, teaching or on staff, me included."

As for what Trinity Catholic College has experienced in the last 40 years?

"I don't know that I'm qualified to make a comment. For me, certainly, the events of the last couple of years have been.....the term unprecedented is thrown around, but you know, I don't imagine in 1985 we would have expected some of the realities that we had to face in recent years, and even coming down to the actual physical relocation of the campus because of the 2022 natural disaster.

"But I think what has rung true throughout all of that is that sense of community and the fact that all over the world now, there are people who benefited from their education here in Lismore, and whether they're working in trades or running their own small business or nursing or teaching or working in academia or the law, whatever it is, it's been a place that's been able to, I guess, be a launching pad for so many different contributions. I think that's something for us to be really proud of."

To purchase your tickets to Trinity Ctholic College's 40 Year Celebration, click here.