Sunnybank State High School’s outstanding former students revealed
We asked Brisbane schools to nominate their most outstanding former students and the response has been overwhelming. Today we present Sunnybank State High School’s most notable alumni.
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We asked Brisbane schools to nominate their most outstanding former students and the response has been overwhelming. From Supreme Court judges to musicians, artists and more than a few politicians, their lists prove our schools have long been producing leaders in their fields and continue to do so. Today we present Sunnybank State High School’s most notable alumni.
BRISBANE HIGH SCHOOLS ALUMNI HONOUR ROLL
* Brisbane Girls Grammar School
* Brisbane Boys Grammar School
* St Rita’s College, Clayfield
JOHN-PAUL LANGBROEK
Politician
After leaving Sunnybank High in 1978, Mr Lanngbroek studied dentistry at the University of Queensland before living in London and then returning to set up a practice in Surfers Paradise.
He was elected Member for Surfers Paradise in 2004 and served as Opposition Leader and parliamentary leader of the LNP from 2009-2011—the first person from the Liberal side of the merger to hold the post.
Prior to the 2015 election, he was the Education Minister in the LNP Government.
Mr Langbroek currently serves as the Shadow Minister for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games Candidature, Sport and Racing, and Multicultural Affairs for the LNP.
FUTURE FIDEL
Playwright
Born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Future Fidel became an orphan at the age of 13 when his parents were killed in the country’s civil unrest. Living with his sister at Uvira, on the shores of Lake Tanganyika, he fled across the lake to Tanzania when his village was threatened by soldiers.
He spent eight years in Nyarugusu, a Tanzanian refugee camp, before coming to Australia as a refugee in 2005.
In Australia, Fidel joined a Kwatamaja (African) Dance Group, participated in acting workshops and with other young refugees formed the Fimbo Boys, performing African modern dance and song. He contributed to the community theatre work I Am Here featuring young people who came to Australia following conflict.
Fidel graduated from Sunnybank High School in 2008 and went on to study electrical engineering at university, graduating in 2013.
Prize Fighter, his first full-length play, was premiered by La Boite Theatre and Brisbane Festival in 2015. He was nominated for Best New Australian Work and the production was nominated for Best Play at the 2016 Helpmann Awards.
KARMICHAEL HUNT
Footballer
Karmichael was the first person in Australia to reach an elite professional level in three different football codes - rugby league, AFL and rugby union.
Born in New Zealand, he emigrated to Australia with his family at the age of 11.
Karmichael made his debut for the Brisbane Broncos in the NRL in 2004 and was named the Dally M Rookie of the Year. Primarily a fullback, he played for Brisbane until 2009 and was part of the Broncos team which won the grand final in 2006.
His performance in 2006 season saw him selected to play for Queensland and Australia.
In July 2009, Karmichael signed a three-year contract with the new Gold Coast AFL team, whose inaugural season was in 2011. In 2010, while contracted to the Gold Coast, he played a season with Biarritz Olympique in the French Top 14 rugby union competition.
After beginning his AFL career, Karmichaell was named in the Courier Mail 2011 Queensland Australian rules football Team of the Year.
In 2015 he returned to rugby union, joining the Queensland Reds. He made his international debut for Australia in 2017 and has won six caps.
He now plays for the NSW Waratahs.
ALICIA KINDLEYSIDES
Author
An identical triplet, Alicia is a published author who has loved writing since she was a child.
But it was a long path to having her first novel published.
After leaving Sunnybank State High, she completed an arts degree in history and international government at the University of Queensland and only started writing seriously in 2011.
She went full-time in 2015 and has written four books under the name of A. K. Leigh in the romantic suspense crime genre.
Her latest three-book contract is the Farris Triplets trilogy - a romantic suspense series based on identical triplets who solve cold cases.
MARK TEMPANY
Musician
Encouraged by his mother, Mark was writing and singing his own songs by the age of eight and made his stage debut in a high school variety concert.
After earning a university degree in Environmental Science, he entered the Brisbane folk music scene in the early 1990s, then in 1994 visited the Tamworth Country Music Festival where he won two major awards at the CCMA National Talent Search.
Now living in Whyalla SA, he is a succesful recording artist with five albums and a top-selling single under his belt.
STEVEN HERRICK
Poet and author
Steven is an author who writes poetry and verse novels for children, young adults and adults.
He also performs his poetry in schools and at festivals all over Australia and overseas.
He has published 24 books for adults, young adults and children and is widely regarded as a pioneer of verse-novels for children and young adults.
Steven left school after year 10 and studied poetry at university, gaining his BA from the University of Queensland in 1982.
After moving to Sydney in 1984, he spent time performing his poems in the pubs and clubs, often as a support act for local bands.
An independent record of his poetry, The Esoteric Herrick, gained airplay on alternate music radio stations and was quickly followed by the release of his second record The Herrick Manifesto.
His books for children and young adults won the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards in 2000 and 2005 and have been on the Children’s Book Council of Australia’s Children’s Book of the Year Awards shortlist several times.
His books have been translated into several languages and are regularly set on school text lists.
Steven regularly visits schools to talk about poetry and soccer, which he has loved since childhood.
He has also written six travel books based on his cycling adventures throughout Europe.
LLOYD NICHOLS
Company director
Lloyd is the director of GBA Ships - a non-profit organisation that uses large vessels as a huge floating book fair.
Its current vessel, Logos Hope, travels the world promoting literacy and education, cross-cultural harmony and service of others.
Its vast bookstore offers more than 5000 titles in English and local languages. For many people, it offers their first opportunity to purchase from a selection of quality literature at affordable prices.
Crew members also go ashore to partner with local initiatives. They offer practical help, invest time and demonstrate the faith that motivates them to serve others with compassion, whatever their circumstance or background.
GARY BOURNE
Athletics coach
Legendary jumps coach Gary Bourne was a teacher at Sunnybank High School and is now head coach of the National Jumps centre at Queensland Academy of Sport
During a stellar training career, he has guided Mitchell Watt and Bronwyn Thompson to Australian records and championship medals. He also recently steered Henry Frayne to Commonwealth Games silver.
Gary has been travelling on the international circuit with his athletes for 24 years and knows what is takes for athletes to deliver.
LOTE TUQIRI
Footballer
Born in Fiji, Lote moved to Australia with his family at the age of 15 and began playing for the Souths Sunnybank Rugby League Club while attending Sunnybank State High School.
He was signed by the Brisbane Broncos, winning the Rookie of the Year title in 1999 and securing a regular first grade spot in 2000. That same year he was a member of the Broncos team which won the NRL premiership.
Lote played for Queensland, as well as the Fijian and Australian teams but in 2002 switched to rugby union, winning 67 caps for Australia and being a part of the 2003 and 2007 World Cup squads.
He returned to the NRL in 2010, playing for the Wests Tigers, before signing with South Sydney in 2014 and subsequently winning his second NRL title.
JADE NORTH
Soccer player
It was while he was attending Sunnybank High that Jade was offered a place with the AIS in Canberra at the age of 15.
Jade’s breakthrough came when he was a member of Australia’s runner-up side at the 1999 FIFA Under-17 World Championships, where he played every game.
He joined the Brisbane Strikers as one of the youngest players to join the National Soccer League and played with the Perth Glory and captained the Newcastle Jets before playing for teams in Norway, New Zealand and Japan.
Jade was also a member of Australia’s quarter final effort at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.
In 2008, prior to the 2010 World Cup Qualifier against China, he became the first ever Aboriginal captain of the Socceroos when the team played a draw with Singapore.
In January 2013 Jade signed with the Brisbane Roar, where he stayed until 2019 when he joined National Premier League Victoria 2 side Murray United for the remainder of the season.
JUSTIS HUNI
Boxer
At only 19, Justis Huni has already achieved more than most and has represented Australia all over the world.
Born in Australia of Tongan and Samoan heritage, Justis is one of Australia’s most promising boxers.
In November 2016, aged 17, he won the World Youth Super Heavy Weight Championships in St Petersburg, Russia - the first Australian to ever win a world youth crown.
In September 2018, at the age of 19, he won gold in the super heavyweight division as an elite boxer in Istanbul - the youngest to ever do so.
In 2020 Justis will represent Australia at the Tokyo Olympics in the Super Heavyweight Division.
JAI TAURIMA
Athlete
A talented long jumper, Jai first came into athletics prominence in 1990 when he finished second in the long jump at the National Under-18 Championships.
He continued to improve and earnt a place in the Australian team for the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria, Canada, where he finished in sixth place.
In 1998, the man everyone then knew as “Jumping Jai” represented Australia at the World Cup, where he set a new national record.
That same year he took silver at the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, beaten by another former Sunnybank High student in Peter Burge.
Jai then won a silver medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics with a personal best jump of 8.49 metres, setting a new Oceanic record.
After retiring from athletics, Jai joined the Australian Federal Police.
BLAIR YOUNG
Athlete
A 400 metres hurdles specialist, Blair represented Australia at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and the 2001 World Championships, reaching the semi-finals on both occasions.
His personal bests were 49.08sec in the 400 metres hurdles and 45.94sec in the flat 400 metres, both set in 2000.
GATKUATH CHOL
Hurdler
Born in South Sudan, Gatkuath “Gaagaa” Chol migrated to Australia in 2003.
His athletics journey began at Sunnybank High at the age of 15 (2008) and hit its pinnacle in 2012 when he qualified for the Australian track and field team for the World Junior Championships as a hurdler.
A member of QEII athletics club in Brisbane, he currently holds the South Sudan national record for the 400m hurdles.
In 2016 Gatkuath was honoured as one of the most influential members of the Australian African community in Brisbane during the African Australians National Awards.
SHARON SPRADLEY
Cake decorator
After graduating from Sunnybank High in 1985, Sharon began making a name for herself in the specialised world of cake decorating.
She now lives in Florida USA where she owns her own business, Curiaussiety Cakes, and is an internationally-renowned cake decorator and instructor.
Sharon has also appeared on several cooking shows on American television.
PETER BURGE
Athlete
Considered one of the best long jumpers produced by Australia, Peter won gold at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur before finishing sixth at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and fourth in the long jump at the 2001 World Indoor Champiosnhips.
He retired from athletics in 2003 with four Australian titles (one triple jump and three long jump) to his name.
He is currently strength and conditioning coach of the Richmond AFL football club.
ANTHONY SHORTEN
Politician
After leaving high school, Anthony worked in a variety of jobs before becoming the LNP Member for the state seat of Algester in 2012.
He lost the seat to Labor’s Leeanne Enoch in 2015 but stood again for the new seat of Toohey in 2017, when he was again defeated by Labor’s Peter Russo.
He is now a community advocate fighitng to ensure the community has its voice heard by the officials they elect.
GEOFF NEWTON
School principal
After leaving high school, Geoff studied at the University of Queensland, QUT, the University of Newscastle and Harvard University.
He began teaching at Moreton Bay College before being appointed deputy principal at Hunter Valley Grammar.
He held that position for five years before joining Hillbrook Anglican School in Enoggera, firstly as deputy principal for 10 years and then principal for the past 11 years.
BEVAN BRENNAN
Assistant Director-General Education Qld
Bevan’s time at Sunnybank High School was one of the catalysts for him choosing a career in education.
Now Assistant Director-General State Schools – Operations within the State Schools Division of the Department of Education, Bevan has devoted his career to educations.
After rising through the teaching ranks, he held the positions of principal or executive principal at Chancellor State College, Coorparoo Secondary College and Sunshine Beach State High School.
He has also filled a range of executive roles including chair of the University of the Sunshine Coast Advisory Board, lead auditor of a team undertaking a range of education audits throughout the state and Acting Regional Director of the North Coast Region.
KUEY DIEW
Athlete
Sudanese-born Kuey migrated to Australia with his family when he was five and as a young teenager attending Sunnybank High School caught the eye of teacher and athletics coach Lloyd Way, who described him as “simply amazing”.
With just a few months of training in his stride, Kuey came home from the 2007 state titles with bronze medals in the 400m and 800m events.
The following year he put in a full year’s training, shaving six seconds off his personal best and taking home two state gold medals, a state record and two gold medals at the national level.
His skills continued to improve and in 2010, at the age of 17, he moved to Anglican Church Grammar School on a scholarship while continuing to train with Lloyd Way at Sunnybank.
He won the 400m and 800m events at the state titles, winning selection in the Australian team to compete at the world junior ahletics championships in Canada.
HELEN TOUSSIS
Athlete
A talented shotputter, Helen has won a number of national competitions.
In 1998 she finished sixth in the Commonwealth Games in Malaysia with a throw of 15.65m.
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