St. Mildred's-Lightbourn School

So excited to welcome our new families to St. Mildred’s Lightbourn School ! New faces and new friends 😊

What a wonderful way to wrap up the 2025–2026 school year for our faculty and staff! 🌟

Our Parents Association .pa.official hosted a heartfelt Staff Appreciation Luncheon this week to celebrate our incredible team. There was even a make your own dumplings station!

To every SMLS family who donated a delicious dish, treat, or their time to serve our employees: thank you for pouring so much love into this event! Your ongoing support means the world to us.

The all-new, redesigned issue of Jubilate has officially arrived! 📖

This magazine celebrates the incredible bond and resilience of our SMLS community. It’s a powerful reminder that the journey of learning and empowerment may start in our classrooms, but it lasts a lifetime.

Highlights include:
🔹 Student Achievements: Celebrating incredible achievements of students during the school year.

🔹 Secret Lives of Teachers: Get an inside scoop into the secret lives of some faculty at SMLS, you don’t want to miss this!

🔹Alicja Podgorski ‘96: Turned personal tragedy into a purpose-driven mission as a Gates Cambridge scholar researching childhood trauma recovery.

🔹Bronwyn Davies ‘13: A competitive triathlete and award-winning commercial and documentary director who is shattering industry ceilings, hiring female crews.

🔹Jill Brocklehurst-Booth ‘82: A Vancouver Island retreat leader who is helping people of all ages live authentically.

🔹Tina Maio-Twofoot ‘03: Turned a spontaneous declaration on a girls' trip into a trek up Mount Kilimanjaro, relying on a lifelong foundation and pact with a friend to reach the summit.

🔹Leading Ladies: For the first time in SMLS history, alumnae hold all four of the school’s top leadership roles.

🌟Celebrating our 2025-2026 Community Award Recipients:

🔹Nadine Farran-Gatti Distinguished Service Award: Tanya Brown, with nearly a decade of dedicated volunteer leadership, she has led with integrity, steadiness, and deep commitment to SMLS.

🔹Outstanding Alumna Award: Dr. Anita Zijdemans-Boudreau ’77, an accomplished educator and international leader, Anita has dedicated more than 30 years to advancing innovation, equity, and excellence in education, mentoring future educators and championing meaningful change.

🔹Life Governor Award: Donna Cossitt, has served SMLS for nearly four decades in multiple roles, welcoming generations of families and helping shape the culture of warmth and belonging that defines our community today.

🔗 Read the online version here: https://www.smls.on.ca/about/publications

We are filled with immense pride and celebration as we celebrate the SMLS Class of 2026! 🎓

Our 41 graduates are an inspiring cohort of young women who have defined what it means to be supportive classmates, lifelong friends and fierce achievers. Their dedication and talent have opened doors around the globe, with 42% of our grads securing offers to international schools, and receiving a total of 265 offers of admissions. 🌍

As our graduates step into their next chapters, we remind them that SMLS will always be their home. Once a Millie, Always a Millie ❤️
We also want to extend a huge congratulations to all of our Senior School students, with a special shoutout to this year’s award winners! Your hard work, leadership, and passion have truly shone through this year.

Our Grade 5 students recently traded their classrooms for the great outdoors during a magical spring trip to Norval Outdoor School.🛶🌲 From the thrill of tubing down the Credit River and hitting bullseyes in archery, to pushing boundaries on the high and low ropes courses, they fully embraced every adventure.

Living the camp life meant sleeping in tents for two nights, a brand-new challenge for many of our students that turned into an incredible lesson in resilience and bonding. They wrapped up their unforgettable trip by roasting marshmallows to perfection and cheering each other on during a fantastic grade-wide talent show!

Our Grade 7 & 8 Millies teamed up with RSGC - Royal St. George's College for an epic Day of Service across Toronto! 🌿🤝

Students were placed at various locations throughout the city, rolling up their sleeves to support local community organizations with the vital work they provide every day. A huge thank you to RSGC for being the ultimate partners in change, to our incredible host organizations, and to our students for leading with enthusiasm and heart.

Evergreen Brick Works
Daily Bread Food Bank
The Stop Community Food Centre
FoodShare Toronto

Grand Pals’ Day in Junior School filled our halls with unforgettable memories today! 💫

The event was an incredible celebration of connection and community partnerships. Special guests enjoyed a welcome assembly filled with student reflections and performances, they visited classrooms, explored our campus, and stepped into the life of their JS Millie.

It was the perfect day filled with proud smiles, deep connections, and memories that will last a lifetime. We loved opening our doors to so many special guests and giving them a front-row seat to the daily magic at SMLS. Thank you so much to all the wonderful Grand Pals’ who joined us on campus—you make our community truly complete! ❤️

’Day