From the Principal

END OF TERM PRAYER

We thank you Lord, for this term.

For the challenges, the successes,

and the mistakes from which we have learnt.

Be with us as we spend our time with family and friends.

Give us strength and courage to do what is right;

to be witnesses of our faith.

Help us to be a practical Christian these holidays,

to appreciate what others do for us,

to give time and effort to help others,

to be peacemakers in our family.

Keep us safe in our activities;

give us good rest and good fun.

Bring us back refreshed and ready for a new term.

We thank you for our classmates, teachers, parents

and a community that cares for us.

May we always be conscious of you in our lives. Amen

Dear Parent, Students and Community Members,

Term 2 has come to an end and let's hope we never have a term like this one again. Our Junior students have had five weeks at school and the Senior students only three weeks. Despite this, it has certainly been a long term with most of it spent at home doing online learning. Once again I wish to thank everyone - students, staff members, and parents for ensuring that continued learning occurred during that period.

It was nice to be able to catch up with a number of you on Tuesday night at our Parent-Teacher interviews. Hopefully we will be able to see you in school more regularly again soon.

Today we ended the term with a range of activities throughout the day. The students rotated through various stations with fun and engaging activities at each station. Students looked great in their various Footy Colours, although I'm hoping to see more Port Adelaide colours next time!!

For now, however, it is time for the children (and staff) to recharge the batteries over the next two weeks and then to return for a fresh start in Term 3.

Ann Munro celebrates 30 years with St Patrick's

This week we recognised the marvellous achievement of Mrs Munro who has worked at St Patrick's School for 30 years. Ann commenced her employment here on the 19th June 1990. For the past 30 years she has worked diligently in the roles of School Secretary and Administrative Assistant. Ann has also been the Parish Secretary for many years and provides a strong link between the school and the parish as the Parish Representative on the School Advisory Council.

Ann provides a wealth of knowledge on the history of both the school and the parish. During her 30 years on staff, Ann has worked with 12 Principals and more than 30 teachers.

Australia’s Biggest Child Safety Lesson

Yesterday our Senior students watched a live presentation on personal safety education strategies that they can use if they feel unsafe when online. Children were made aware of the signs and feelings that they may experience if they found themselves in a situation that made them feel uncomfortable. Australia's Biggest Child Safety Lesson was run by the Daniel Morcombe Foundation.

At St Patrick's School we are committed to child safety and maintaining a safe and inclusive environment. The Victorian Child Safe Standards and in particular Standard 7, Participation and Empowerment of Children, underlines the critical importance we have as a school to assist in fostering an environment of openness, inclusiveness and respect where children and young people feel valued. We are aware of the importance of working with agencies such as the Daniel Morcombe Foundation to help raise safety awareness and deliver appropriate education about child abuse awareness and prevention that includes the views of children about their safety.

Parents are encouraged to talk with their children about the presentation they watched and to discuss online safety at home. An overview of the presentation is visible by clicking on the following link.

https://danielmorcombe.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/ABCSL_2020-ParentCarer-Guide.pdf

Fr Peter's Birthday

Wednesday was the birthday of Saint John the Baptist who prepared the way for the coming of Christ by baptising him in the Jordan River.

Wednesday also happened to be Fr Peter's 75th birthday. We wish Fr Peter a very happy birthday and I am sure that he celebrated the day well.

Thank you to those who have provided feedback on the new look newsletter. It has been very pleasing to receive positive comments from parents and community members alike. Last week we added our assembly to the newsletter so as to allow parents who can't make it to the assembly to still be able to watch it later. We are glad that you appreciate this addition. Thank you to Mrs Rintoule for filming and uploading the vision.

Jo Murphy

Today we farewell Ms Murphy who will commence working at St Patrick's Primary School in Stawell next term. We thank Jo for the contribution she has made to our school and to our students during the past ten months. Our school was very fortunate to be able obtain Jo's services late last year at a time when the school was very much in need of someone to come in and take charge of our Juniors. Ms Murphy will be greatly missed and we wish her and Lexi well for the future. You are both very welcome to come and visit us again at any time.

Principal Appointment

I am very pleased to be able to announce that I have been re-appointed Principal of St Patrick's School. My initial appointment was only for this year as an interim appointment so that a full process could be gone through this year. I am most grateful that the Selection Panel made a recommendation to Bishop Paul that I be appointed and he has ratified that recommendation. I look forward to continuing to working closely with our school community over the coming years.

Condolences

We offer our prayers and condolences to Mrs Hamilton and her family following the passing of 'Nana' Joyce Hamilton. Nana Joyce was 99 years old.

Our Josephite Heritage

The Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart, often called the "Josephites" or "Brown Joeys", were founded in Penola, South Australia, in 1866 by Mary MacKillop and the Rev. Julian Tenison Woods. In 1949, three Josephite sisters arrived in Nhill to open St Patrick’s School. In 1978, the Sisters of St Joseph informed the Nhill Parish that they would no longer be able to maintain their role within the school.

We endeavour to honour our Josephite heritage through the regular presentation of the Little Joey awards at our assemblies. In support of this we also include a reflection from Mary MacKillop on our newsletter each week.

"I seem in my prayer to be finding so many corners in my own heart for one place after another, and one person after another" Mary MacKillop, 1873

God Bless you all,

Kingsley Dalgleish

Principal