From the Principal

Benvenuto - Welcome

Dear Students, Families and Friends

The end of term has arrived and we a fortunate to have a few weeks to rest and recharge our batteries. It is also a time to contemplate the last day of Jesus life. This period in our Christian faith is the most life changing and challenging. Jesus gives His life for us. Yes he died for us. Can you imagine giving your life for the ones you love most? For you and I? We refer to this as ‘the Passion of Christ’. As a faith community we gather in prayer in what we call the Easter Triduum. The Easter Triduum begins with the Vigil of Holy Thursday. It marks the end of the forty days of Lent and the beginning of the three-day celebration of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ - Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Vigil/Easter Sunday. The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council reminded us of the extraordinary significance of the Triduum : "Christ redeemed us all and gave perfect glory to God principally through his paschal mystery: dying he destroyed our death and rising he restored our life. Therefore the Easter Triduum of the passion and resurrection of Christ is the culmination of the entire liturgical year."

These last Forty Days were a time of preparation for these great Three days, which is what Triduum means. These three days lead us to an empty tomb and an Octave, eight days, of celebrating the Resurrection. They also introduce an entire liturgical season, the Easter Season, which lasts for Fifty days until Pentecost.

I encourage to spend this time in prayer and celebration with the ones you love most. You will find Mass times and liturgies for Holy Week in the Parish News section of il giornale.

We pray for Nate Hall and his family as they mourn the death of Nate's Grandmother. In particular we pray for Brad, Nate’s dad, and his family at this sad time.

Eternal rest grant unto her, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon her.

If you have not yet completed the Enhancing Catholic School Identity survey you still have time to do so. The survey closes on April 5. Your input is valued and much needed. You will find out the details in the Catholic Identity section of il giornale.

Project Compassion, run by Caritas Australia, works hard to make a difference for those in our world that may be suffering such injustices as Jesus experienced. You can find out more about Project Compassion in our Catholic Identity section of il giornale and I would encourage you to make donations to Project Compassion via our CDFpay portal on our website or going to https://sackialla.cdfpay.org.au and following the links.

Buona Pasqua.

Alla prossima volta

Dom Poppa

Please take time to read each section of il giornale you will find information that is important for you to know and also allow you to engage in the many events, celebrations, associations and learnings associated with St Anne’s College.

If you would like to contribute an article to il giornale please email newsletter@sackialla.catholic.edu.au

Upcoming events...

A curriculum day will be held on Friday April 5. This will be a pupil free day and hence the beginning of the school holidays for our students. For the staff this will be a normal working day with the opportunity to fine tune learning and be ready for an exciting Term Two.

ANZAC Day, April 25, is a public holiday. It is a day when we remember our War Veterans. I encourage you to attend one of the ceremonies in your local area. St Anne's will be laying a wreath at the 11:00 a.m. service in Shepparton. Please join us.

Our Middle School students will attend camp at Camp Howqua from Monday April 29 until Wednesday May 1. This will have an Outdoor Education focus, with the inclusion of Social Emotional Learning and Spiritual reflection.

A Learning Information Session for Foundation parents will be held on Thursday May 2 from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. In the session parents will hear about how we help our students learn in Religious Education, English, Mathematics, and Digital Technology. More information will be given in Tem Two.

ASSEMBLIES are held once a fortnight on Thursdays starting 12:00 p.m. These are usually held in the Tired Collective. At each assembly a Pastoral Group leads us in prayer. These are the assembly dates for Term Two:

May 2 PG KM
May 16 PG CR
May 30 PG CS
June 13 PG EA
June 27 PG SK

You are welcomed to join us at assembly if you are free.

Reminders...

We all love our toys and gadgets. They are a source of great joy. They can also be a source of great distraction. We ask that if a student brings a toy or gadget to school, they be to be kept in their bag or given to a teacher for safekeeping.

Thank you to our students that wear their uniform with pride and joy. If a student is out of school uniform a note is to be provided to the school. If you are unsure of the dress code please refer to you parent handbook. There you will note what students are to wear and what accessories are acceptable.

Happy Birthday...

Congratulations to the birthday celebrants for the past two weeks – we hope you enjoyed your special day. Tanti Auguri a:

Navi Mandahar – March 30

Seamus Whitzell – April 3

Cloe Vanderwerf – April 6

Caleb Cox – April 10

Cosimo Rando – April 18

Riley Okely – April 19

and anyone else that may have celebrated a birthday.

Something to ponder…“Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit.” —E. E. Cummings

Do you believe in yourself?