St Roch’s School theme 2025:

Dear Families,

Welcome to Issue 18 of our iNewsletter! We hope this newsletter continues to keep you up to date with all the news, events and learning that happens at St Roch's.

Congratulations to Father Gallacher

Archbishop Commensoli announced on Fridayn that the beginning of an Oratory Project will commence in our family of Parishes. An Oratory of St Philip Neri is a particular expression of priestly community-secular priests and seminarians living together in a stable household, bound not by religious vows, but by the bond of charity.

This way of life is distinct from both diocesan and religious priesthood. It offers a unique witness to fraternity, spiritual depth and pastoral availability in the service of the local Church. The development of an Oratory follows three stages: an Oratory Project, an Oratory-in-Formation, and God willing, a fully established Oratory. With Archbishop Peter's blessing, and the support of the Procurator-General of the Confederation of the Oratory in Rome the first stage will begin. From 16 November 2025, Fr Michael Gallacher, along with Mr Anthony Wright and Mr Patrick Harris, will begin living as a Melbourne Oratory Project community within the family of parishes of Malvern, Malvern East, and Glen Iris.

Fr Gallacher remains a Priest of the Archdiocese of Melbourne, and Parish Priest of our Parish. Anthony and Patrick will continue as seminarians of the Archdiocese, though now as part of the Melbourne Oratory Project community.

We look forward to being part of this journey with Father Gallacher, Anthony and Patrick.

School Spirit Sports

Sincere thanks to Marjie King for organising and leading our School Spirit Sports Day

Congratulations to Loughnan House who won this year and to Harriett Dabbs & James Reynolds the House Captains for their leadership. We are so proud of all our Year 6 leaders who assisted Marjie with all sorts of tasks today. Congratulations to Bracken House who came second and to Murtagh house who came third. We also thank our amazing staff for their commitment to ensuring this day was a great day!

A lovely note from a parent!

"Thanks to you, Marjie and the team for all the work that went into making Friday another gorgeous celebration of the wonderful and incredible children of St Roch's".

Covering the breadth of St Roch's. Prep to Year 6, one in between and one knocking on the door!!!

THANK YOU - Our Volunteers Are the Heart of Our Community!

A strong sense of community is the cornerstone of a thriving and supportive environment, and nowhere is this more evident than within our school - St Roch's! It is the collective spirit, the shared vision, and the active participation of every member that transforms school from a collection of buildings into a truly nurturing home for learning and participation.

This spirit is profoundly bolstered by the extraordinary time and unwavering commitment of our parents who volunteer. We are immensely grateful for your selfless contributions—the countless hours spent organising events such as the recent Working Bee, assisting in classrooms, raising vital funds and serving on committees.

This dedication not only enriches the educational experience for your children and every student, but also sets a powerful example of the care and investment in the success and well-being of our school family.

Thank you, parents, for being the heart and hands of our community! Your efforts make all the difference.

Gardening Club - Outdoor Classroom

It was lovely to take home some of the vegetables growing in our garden. Thank you Julie and Georgiana who suggested I make a soup filled with these vegetables! My family enjoyed a lovely minestrone last week!!

Sincere thanks to Martin Sayer (Adam's grandfather - Year 3) and Gerard Sayer for the generous donations of plants that Julie Meseha has planted throughout the Outdoor Classroom area. This space created after much thought and preparation and tireless hours of applying for a grant by Julie Meseha and Louisa McCann in 2023 is a beautiful environment where staff can take our students to learn, read and enjoy the serene ambience.

We are so grateful to these ladies and to all parents who add value to our school and make our school a great school!!

Colour Run - 3 December 2.30pm-3.30pm

Today the Year 3 students enjoyed an icypole for having the greatest percentage of students registering for this great event.

Please note the following details from Dave Crew

Any class that raises over $500.00 will be awarded a movie afternoon
Any student that raises $100.00 will go into the draw to slime a staff member
Raising over $5000.00 will enable students to go into the draw to slime another staff member.

I certainly wonder who those staff members will be!!! We may have a surprise guest who will not mind being slimed!! Watch this space!!

Italian Day

This week we enjoyed a day with a touch of Italy - Italian Day!! Thank you to Signora Sorbello for coordinating this day full of rotating Cooking and Sports activities that ended with a lovely Nativity story performed by many students called La Befana. Our students, staff and families were entertained throughout. Thank you again Christina for creating this special day and thank you to our staff who supported the success of the day.

Prep 2026 Transition Session #2

It was so lovely to welcome our new Prep students for 2026 for their second session on Thursday. As parents mingled, the students had such a wonderful time with Alex Granland, Nicolle & Mia. Thank you to all staff who supported us during this morning and to Nadine and Rachel who shared our work at St Roch's with me during our parent session.

Jellis Craig Billboards

Thank you to Jellis Craig and Daniel Joyce & Anita Howgate for the installation of our boards at various locations in Glen Iris advertising our wonderful school.

Warmest regards,

Angie Mastoras

Principal

St Roch’s Parish Primary School

Glenvale Road, Glen Iris 3146

Telephone: 9885 7704

Email: principal@srgleniris.catholic.edu.au

Website: www.srgleniris.catholic.edu.au