Term 3, Week 8

Dear parents and carers,

Sacrament of Confirmation

Congratulations to our Year 6s, who celebrated the Sacrament of Confirmation last night. The celebrant for the evening, Bishop Tony Ireland, was so impressed with how prepared the students were, and the manner in which the St Joseph's community acknowledged the sacredness of this occasion. Proudly supported by their families and staff, the evening was a beautiful celebration for our Year 6s. We sincerely thank Miss Shanahan, Miss Coldebella, Mrs Quitt and Miss Dillon for preparing the students so well, and to Bishop Tony for celebrating the Mass, supported by Deacon John and Father Leenus.

Parents and Friends "St Joseph's Family Footy Classic"

Congratulations to all the parents, friends and students of St Joseph's! Your commitment to our amazing school has once again exceeded expectations, with the fantastic 'St Joseph's Family Footy Classic' held last weekend. I could not be more proud of the way our community has once again embraced this event - with key parent representatives working many hours behind the scenes to ensure the day ran seamlessly.

The generosity of so many resulted in the day raising close to $16,000 - an incredible result. The St Joseph's community does it like no other, and we are so blessed to be a part of it.

We thank our major sponsors, OTS Developments, Capabuild and Sketch for their support.

A special acknowledgement must be given to the P&F for their tireless organisation and contributions, and to Jenny G for her work in pulling the day together. To the many parents who worked on various jobs - Jess F, Amber J, Kathy S, Sarah C, Vanessa R, Laura H, Julia W, Deborah P, Susie A, Sophie B, Jules F, Nic and Daniel P, Liz V, Andrea V, Nicky A, Yas, Amanda T, Tim N, Tim R, Ben and Poppy G, Simon S (who was on the BBQ for hours and cleaned it at the end), Steph C and Matilda A. All the volunteers that helped on the BBQ, running the EFTPOS machines, donating items for the raffle and selling tickets, donating food items/eskys/ice. To Fiona, Kerry and Moira for their administrative work behind the scenes.

To Karly and Steve who were on the microphone all day - thank you! To Lou and Jade who had the very important job of keeping score on the day. To Anna and Adam Skelton for taking photos. To Steve Scott for his graphic design work on the media and the jumpers.

To Ben Gibbs for driving this event for the third year in a row. It has become a much-loved community event for us all.

To the many students who ran fundraising activities - this was their first year being involved and it was a wonderful addition to the line-up.

Lastly, to the players and coaches, the team captains - Nick Ockleshaw and Michael Fothergill, and everyone else involved on the field. Nick and Michael ran footy training every week for several months in the lead up, helping to strengthen community ties through these weekly sessions. This day wouldn't happen if we didn't have so many parents willing to put on their footy boots and have a go. The game was fantastic to watch and congratulations to the St Joseph's Saints for winning the Footy Classic Cup for 2024! The score is now Demons 2, Saints 1. Bring on 2025!

Playground Upgrades

All of our P&F fundraising efforts are going towards upgrading our outdoor spaces and we are in the process of planning for some exciting new additions in 2025 and beyond. This week, we installed the most stunning artwork from a local Bunurong Artist and Elder, Heather Kennedy. Please make sure you read Mrs Harrison's newsletter page where we detail the meaning behind this beautiful piece of art. We remain ever so grateful to our P&F, and entire parent community, for their tireless work in raising funds that directly benefit our students.

Father's Day Breakfast and Assembly

We hope that all the Dads, Granddads, Step-dads, Mums who are Dads and special men in our community enjoyed the breakfast and catch up last week. It was lovely to see so many parents make the effort to come along before school - a wonderful testament to the strength of our community.

We sincerley thank our P&F who were onsite nice and early to set up for the event, in particular Jayde, Lou, Emma and Georgie in addition to Amber, Liz V, Jess F, Poppy, Cat, Nirosha, Sugi, Krisztina and Madeleine for helping out on the day. We also thank our Year 4 Father’s Day stall coordinators - Colleen, Jane, Xavier, Shirin and Sophie for helping the students find some lovely gifts for the special men in their lives.

It goes without saying that our beautiful Year 1s topped off the morning with their assembly, celebrating the significant people in their lives. Thank you to Miss Nardella and Mr Jansson who do a wonderful job in the Year 1 space.

Year 3 Camp Zoo Snooze

Our Year 3s enjoyed their 'Roar and Snore' experience this week at the Melbourne Zoo.

The students participated in an exciting "survival camp" at Melbourne Zoo, where they had the unique opportunity to learn about the animals like never before. They discovered the animals' stories, secrets, and adaptations that help them survive in the wild.

The adventure began with the students arriving at the zoo at 6pm for dinner, followed by the thrilling night-time 'ZooVivor' experience. After a restful (or perhaps not!) night sleeping under the stars, they awoke early for breakfast and a special animal encounter. We thank our staff, Miss Dillon, Mrs Pepper, Miss Matthews, Miss Wilkinson, and Jack Miers and Kate Ramsay for attending as parent helpers.

Year 6 Writing Competition

Congratulations to our Year 6 students who were profiled in the latest edition of the Glen Eira News, celebrating the 'My Brother Jack' writing awards. We have linked the article above.

We send a special congratulations to Oscar and Liza who were finalists, and to Liza who won! We are so proud of you both.

MACSSIS School Improvement Surveys

The 2024 edition of these surveys has been shared with parents, staff and relevant students. We encourage families to please take the time to complete them as, the more feedback provided, the more reliable the data will be. We thank you for your support with this school improvement survey.

Year 6 Ethical Olympiad Competition

Year 6 students Flossie, Liza, Harrison, Sofia and Olivia have been working diligently during their lunchtimes to prepare for our upcoming participation in the Junior Australasian Ethical Olympiad debating competition. During this competition our students will debate ethical issues, via Zoom, against three other schools from around Australia, the Pacific and South East Asia. We're incredibly proud of these students and we're super excited to see how they fare on the day.

Open Learning Morning

On Friday 13th September, our school will be open from 8.30am - 10.30am to our parents and carers, as our students showcase the incredible work they have completed this term. Please read Mr Hartney's Deputy Page for further information.

Footy Colours Day

Students are invited to wear their Footy Colours (AFL or another sport) on Friday 20th September. We will have a parade and assembly at 9am where supporters from each AFL club will be invited up to sing their club's theme song. This day is always a highlight and we look forward to seeing everyone in their team colours.

Staff Leave

I will be on long service leave from September 16th - 20th (inclusive). Tom Hartney will be Acting Principal in my absence.

Little Gems

Ryder and Maxi (Year 3) both had great success at the All Stars Martial Arts Karate tournament. Ryder came first in the 7-9 Blue - Green belt division, and Maxi came second in the 7-9 Brown-black belt division. We are tremendously proud of all the boys that participated!

Ruby (Year 1) entered an art exhibition and it went on display last night at the Glen Eira council gallery. On Thursday 12th September they will judge and pick winners per age group - good luck, Ruby!

Our Gardening Club continues to thrive under the leadership of Mrs Doran. See the photos below for the latest happenings.

Thank you for another wonderful and fulfilling fortnight at St Joseph's!

We are really looking forward to celebrating the incredible achievements of our students at the Open Learning Sessions next Friday morning.

Have a wonderful weekend,

Claire Tobin

Principal

St Mary's College