A tragic pedestrian accident has built new bridges for St Andrew's Cathedral School as the community unites to support an injured friend.
Year 11 overseas student Katsutaka Takehara is recovering in the Prince of Wales Hospital, Randwick after being hit by a car near the home of his host family in Bellevue Hill on Thursday, May 19.
Katsu " as he is known by his friends " suffered serious head injuries and was put into a medically induced coma for the next ten days to allow swelling in the brain to subside.
The school contacted Katsu's mother Nami in Osaka, Japan who flew out that Saturday.
"It must have been the worst journey anyone can experience," says the Principal of St Andrew's Cathedral School, Phillip Heath.
"A family from Kingsford who normally take in exchange students took in Nami and are looking after her," Mr Heath says.
Mr Heath says he has been "overwhelmed' by the generous support the school community has given to Nami and Katsu. The school community has raised a phenomenal $17,000 through an appeal launched on their website.
"Our families have done things you might expect a local church to do. People have donated clothes to Nami and the students alone raised nearly $5000 dollars."
"It's heartening to know that the school families have really rallied around caring for somebody with no thought of return."
The school has set up an account for Nami so shec can cover future expenses.
"There is every likelihood she will lose her job in Japan after coming here in such a rush for an indefinite period."
Mr Heath says this time of tragedy has been a time of effective Christian outreach to Nami.
"A number of Japanese Christians have taken her to a Japanese language church and encouraged her to think about why so many Christian folk have reached out to her."
Mr Heath is not surprised that students and their families have been quick to support Katsu.
"Katsu is a very popular boy with a reputation as the class joker " not in a distracting way " but he is very adept at the one liner. For a Japanese boy whose facility in English is not good, that's quite remarkable."
Katsu is in a stable condition and able to feed himself but the school is asking the school community to pray for what is expected to be a long road to recovery.
