Acting Principal's Report

Dear Members of the St. Cecilia’s School Community,

Today I was very fortunate to be able to attend the funeral of Fr Gerard Dowling. You will have most likely read the message sent out last week about Fr Dowling and what he meant to the St Cecilia's community.

The funeral nearly filled St Patrick's Cathedral. Both the enormous number of attendees and the beatuiful words of tribute from family and friends were great testament to the breadth and depth of impact Fr Dowling had throughout his life.

The message that really shone through in all that was shared, were the qualities of patience and sincere, authentic care Fr Dowling had for people. He had dedicated his life to God and more importantly, God's people. The way that Fr Dowling chose to serve was to relate personally and to truly listen to people. Through his work on his radio show, The Family Counsellor,' his work counselling individuals and his chaplaincy, it was estimated by those who spoke at the funeral that Fr Dowling must have listened to and helped tens of thousands of indivuals throughout his life. A remarkable life or service, and yet what struck me was the simplicity of his service. It was simply by listening, truly listening to others and letting each individual know that they were loved and worthy that Fr Dowling had such a profound impact on those he encountered.

During this upcoming Christmas season, if we could each follow Fr Dowling's example by listening more and shifting our focus to other's needs, then we will be honoring the legacy of a great man and fully living out the true message of Christmas.

It is always a busy time of year, but I think amongst the busyness it is important to take a moment to reflect be grateful for the amazing expereinces and activities that we get to take part in at this time of the year.

I would like to express my gratitude for the opportunity to share in a number of special events over the past couple of weeks.  Thanks to the Year 3 team for taking time away from their homes and families to provide a really special very first school camp experience for the Year 3 students. The joy and delight the students expressed throughout the camp was remarkable. 

The Athletics Carnival last Tuesday was also a great success thanks to all Katherine’s planning and everyone's hard work and willingness to help in any way needed. Thank you to all the parents who came along. You really added to the atmosphere assisted in the smooth running of the day.

Someone was watching over us to make sure all of these major events managed to be squeezed into the very few moments of dry weather last week. 

We also hosted a fantastic edition of St Cecilia's Got Talent, and oh boy, do we ever! Thank you to Mrs Sutherland and the SRC for running a top notch show. For more information about all of these wonderful events and much more, make sure to read on.

Hello from Mr McKenna

We had a wonderful surprise last Tuesday when Mr McKenna came to visit us during out Athletics Carnival. Marty received a remarkable welcome and despite only planning to stay for a short time, was still talking to parents, staff and students hours later. Marty asked for me to pass on that he and his family received some very positive news regarding his health recently and he is eternally grateful for all the thoughts, prayers and well wishes from the community. Marty is now entering the next stage of his treatment and is very much looking forward to his return in 2024.

2024 Staffing and Class Structure

We are very pleased to be able to announce our staffing and class structure for 2024. We are in the extremely fortunate position next year to have retained all of our wonderful staff and have only very minor changes to roles for 2024. This will be a great opportunity for consolidation within teams and levels while we as a staff begin our next cycle of work with our new School Improvment Plan.

Students will find out their 2024 classes next Tuesday, when they will spend the afternoon in their new class groupings. Students will bring home with them a Christmas Card from their new teacher.

Specialist Staff

Learning Support Staff

Office and Administration Staff

Farewelling Our Departing Families

This Friday will be the final weekly assembly for the year. At this assembly we will be honouring and farewelling the families who will conclude their time with us at St Cecilia's at the end of the year.

Each and every one of these families has been a significant part of our community during their time at St Cecilia's and we owe each of them a debt of gratitude for what they have brought to our school. While we won't see these families on a daily basis anymore, we want to stress that they all continue to be part of our larger St Cecilia's community and are always welcome at our school and parish. The assembly will begin at 2:30pm in the school hall this Friday.

Thank you to the following families for their contributions to St Cecilia's:

The Curtain Family

The Knihnicki Family

The Percey Family

The Swerts Family

The De Luca Family

The McCormack Family 

The Morrison Family 

The Murphy Family

The Stewart Family

The Aldcroft Family

The Selak Family

The Bolton Family 

The Judd Family

The Watson Family 

The Eagle Family

The Story Family

The Martyn Family

The Martin Family

The Slattery Family

The Wan Family 

Christmas Puddings for St Vincent De Paul (update)

Thank you to all the families who have already brought in a Christmas Pudding for our St Vincent De Paul Pudding Drive. There is still time to bring one in. The Puddings will be collected next Wednesday

2024 Beginning School Year Dates

Term 1 Week 1

Matthew Mooney

Acting Principal

St Cecilia’s Primary School