A healthy dose of fate was an unknown recipe in the making for three former students of Endeavour Sports High School.
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Ex-students, Kogarah's Elizabeth Drakopoulos and Florim Binakaj, 2009 and 2011 graduates respectively, welcomed their baby Delphi, five weeks ago. But the story doesn't end there.
Their daughter was delivered by another fellow student - 1987 graduate, Associate Professor Emmanuel Karantanis.
Elizabeth and Dr Karantanis were inducted into the school's Distinguished Achiever Hall of Fame. Dr Karantanis was school Dux and always maintained connections to the school. "My sister's kids still go there and I kept my school captain tie," he said.
Another connection was forged - the day Elizabeth crossed paths with the doctor at St George Hospital, where he works as an obstetrician and gynaecologist.
"About two years ago I was chosen as one of the school's Hall of Fame high achievers, and I went back to the school to give a speech. By chance, a patient of mine, Elizabeth, came to see me," Dr Karantanis said. "She told me she was also a previous high achiever of the school - she was one of the first recipients. It was a lovely coincidence."
Elizabeth, who was also Dux of the school, remembers seeing a photo of Dr Karantanis on the Endeavour Facebook page.
"I saw that he got inducted into the Hall of Fame - that was the first time I saw him. I thought 'I think that's the specialist I'm seeing'," she said. "I mentioned it to him. He has the Hall of Fame award in his office. I said, 'I have the same one'...Emmanuel was in the Hall of Fame for grander reasons.
"It's really special to have that additional connection with your obstetrician, who you go through quite a lot with."
Elizabeth and Florim were in the school's soccer program together, but they didn't start dating until they attended the same university. "He is a couple of years younger than me, and he was also Dux," Elizabeth said. "We now work in the same building."
As for Delphi, there may be another tradition in the making.
"We look forward to receiving Delphi's enrolment application," Endeavour Principal James Kozlowski said.
