St Pius X College Newsletter

Pastoral Care

  • World Kindness Day
  • Year 7 Orientation Day
  • Year 9 Ceroc Dance Workshop
  • Year 11 Leaders
  • Remembrance Day
  • RIP Patrick Martyn

Student Wellbeing Anecdote from the Diary

“It's not what you do once in a while.  It's what you do day in, day out that makes the difference.”

 

Wold Kindness Day

Today our student body, led by Year 11 College Vice Captain Tyson McCallum and the Student Empowerment Wellbeing Team, highlighted World Kindness Day to the school community. To mark the occasion the Year 11 Student Wellbeing Team facilitated sessions in every homeroom, leading the conversation on the community-building and life-building benefits attained when we are kind to others.

Let’s be kind to one another including the most vulnerable amongst us as we will all benefit and know that it will be our turn one day!

Year 7 Orientation Day

A huge rap to Mr Virgona, Ms Jennings and Ms King who welcomed our Year 7 2020 students and new parents on a very warm Tuesday 12 November, with all due respect and regard for the Catastrophic Fire Warning which meant that the Chatswood campus was also populated with our current Year 7 who normally access Oxford Falls for Triple PDHPE on a Tuesday!

The new Year 7s coped admirably with a morning of diagnostic testing in a relatively cool gym before a lunch in the shade at Beauchamp Park.  Period 5 in Year 7 Homerooms was spent learning of the joys of maintaining a locker, student diary planner and timetable of 6 teachers and lessons per day, and period 6 tour of the Senior School. Thank you to the staff who supported their wellbeing and learning on the day including Mr Russo, Ms Fileman, Mr Formosa, Ms Allington, Ms Dempsey and Mr Donnelly. The students were well organised by members of our Year 11 Student Wellbeing Team including: Ivan Macolino, Nicholas Parson, Jakob Jennings, Elliot Inman, Will Turner, Bailey Sutton, Luke Galati, Louis Brockwell, Hunter Bird, and Willem Janssen.

Thanks to all these students who did a great job preparing our Year 7 2020 cohort for the adventurous and rewarding journey that is high school at St Pius X College.

Year 9 Ceroc Dance Workshop

Year 9 Students and parents are reminded that this Friday, 15 November, we will host Brigidine College St Ives to a Ceroc Dance Workshop at our Oxford Falls Campus. St Pius students will wear correct sports uniform ie Correct Polo shirt, PE shorts, socks and sandshoes. If you are unable to wear Sports Uniform for whatever reason please wear your correct polished summer uniform.

A small student group led by Nick Lough, Jack Thornton, Harry Melloy, Ben Cullen, Ronan Crispe, Harry O’Brien and Patrick Lee will travel as an advance party to prepare the venue, Gym, PA, welcome, prayer and acknowledgement of country for our guests and Year 9 students alike. This group will set the tone and standard for the day which will be a positive spirit of integration, sharing and learning with our guests from Brigidine College. The Ceroc Best and Fairest Trophy first won by Angus Growden and Abbi in 2015 will be on offer as well as a host of other awards.

Buses will depart school directly following assembly with Mr Lynch directing movement in base / PDHPE Class groups.

Bring your recess and lunch as no canteen facilities will be available. Please don’t bring valuables. Bags will be stored in the Curtin Stand for the day and the Walsh Oval will be available for integrated games during recess and lunchtime. Students should return to school for normal transport home.

It should be a good day of positive and community interaction and learning for all involved.

Mr Brannan and the Year 9 Ceroc Dance Workshop Organising Team.

Year 11 Leaders

Our Year 11 Student Leadership Team celebrate the culmination of their Speechcraft public speaking and presentation course tonight with a speaking dinner to practice and showcase their learning in front of a dinner audience at Chatswood RSL. Their greatly improved public speaking abilities were on show at the recent Student Leaders’ Investiture in the Concourse. We can be immensely proud of the way these students have prepared themselves for their public tenure of leadership and indeed a lifetime of positive communication over the course and we thank Valerie our Speech Trainer and Ms Janes Year 11 Coordinator for their facilitation of the course.

We also thank the SPX Old Boys Association through President Jeff Clarke and past Presidents David Bullard and Chuck Kilby for sponsoring this invaluable course for our students and school community’s benefit. David first proposed the idea shortly after Liam Knight suffered his head injury, to prepare Liam, and his class mate Lucas Kilby, for a lifetime of public speaking, the benefits of which were demonstrated at the recent Community Dinner for both Liam and Greg Wade

Remembrance Day

On Monday our Remembrance Ceremony featured an address from Old Boy of the College David Lethbridge who served at age 21 in Vietnam, after leaving school, along with his brother and many other ex-students such as Billy York, Terry Edwards and Jim Fitzgerald. David explained to the College the community the literal and functional meanings of ANZAC to those who have served and those who stayed in Australia. David’s eloquent address was a fitting commemoration of those who have served and suffered, as well as an educational opportunity for our school community to learn and reflect on the sacrifice and service of Australians in conflict.

Lest We Forget

RIP Patrick Martyn, Old Boy 1950s

Coinciding with our Remembrance Services both at school and the local Chatswood Garden of Remembrance where we were represented by Student Leaders Will Oner, Daniel Halverson and Year 6 Red, I was sadly called to attend a funeral service commemorating and celebrating the life of a revered Old Boy of the College, Patrick Martyn. Patrick grew up in a family of 12 siblings near Beauchamp Pk, attended St Pius and Our Lady of Dolours (Mercy College) Chatswood. After training as a motor mechanic, Pat ran a garage with another Old Boy Tony Virgona (Great Uncle of College Vice Captain Tyson McCallum) while also running a chicken farm at Castle Hill. Subsequently Pat worked as Plant mechanic at Buladelah DMR depot and then Newcastle, commuting from his 68 acre farm on the Stroud Rd. Later in life he moved to Fullerton Cove and Stockton. He was buried from St Peter in Chains Catholic Church Stockton. 

Vale Pat

Fide et Labore

Mr Sean Brannan - Assistant Principal Pastoral Care and Wellbeing