Principal's News
Dear Parents and Carers,
Sadly, this week, we offer our deepest condolences to the Whittle family and keep in our prayers, cherished member of our school community Mark Whittle, father of Elsie.
Heavenly Father,
We pray for the Whittle family and all within our school community who feel the pain of this loss. Surround them with Your comfort, grant them peace, and strengthen them with the hope that comes from knowing You are near. Help us to support the Whittle family, and each other, to find comfort in community.
Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, And may perpetual light shine upon him.
May his soul and the soul(s) of all the faithful departed rest in peace.
Amen.
A Magical Night to Remember – Beauty and the Beast Jr. at St Joseph’s!
What absolute joy and celebration for our school community this week as we watched our talented students from Prep to Year 6 bring Beauty and the Beast Jr. to life on stage at Malvern Town Hall.
We were swept away into an enchanting world of Beauty and the Beast magic, music, and memorable moments. It was a spectacular celebration of community and most importantly a celebration of the shining stars of the night - our students! We congratulate them all!
It truly was “a tale as old as time,” shared on the stage with energy, imagination, and heart by our wonderful students – and what a celebration of The Arts it was! From the moment the curtain rose, the audience was captivated by the outstanding performances, colourful costumes, and the pure joy radiating from the stage. Our students, from Prep to Year 6 sang, danced, and acted with confidence, creativity, and a sense of joy that made the entire production shine. Whether playing Belle or Beast, a dancing teacup or enchanted vase, every student contributed something truly special to this magical event.
A heartfelt thank you goes out to our audience on both nights– thank you for "being our guests"! Your presence, your cheers, and your support meant the world to our students and staff. We hope you left feeling just as enchanted as we did.
Special Mentions & Acknowledgements
A production of this scale is only possible with the support of a passionate and dedicated team. We are incredibly grateful to:
- Wendy D’Arco, our Performing Arts Teacher and Production Director – her vision, dedication, and belief in our students bringing out the best in them, is what made their performances so special. Wendy waved your magic wand and created Beauty and the Beast magic! She inspired our students, and helped them to believe in themselves and grow in confidence, helping them to perform on the stage with joy, excitement and pride. We are immensely grateful to Wendy and I extend the warmest, and most heartfelt thank you to her.
- Dean Butler, our Deputy Principal and Creative Director – his passion and creativity, attention to detail, and tireless work behind the scenes helped shape every element of this performance from our social media presence to the program design, to photography and prop and costume design. You were involved in every part of this production.
- Marta Cummings, our Art Teacher – for her stunning backdrops and props, turning the stage into a work of art!
- Clare Smith – for her work on the production program and the beautiful closing video that captured the spirit of the show and all the behind the scenes action!
Amanda Jackson – for choreographing our fabulous staff dance and keeping the fun alive backstage!
To every amazing staff member at St Joseph's who helped to create an amazing show – from weeks of rehearsals with the students, to sourcing and creating costumes, supporting backstage in the green room and helping with quick costume changes; from back stage photography to technical support, seating, ticketing and so much more, we thank you for going above and beyond. Your dedication made this production the success that it was and your love and care for our students helped them shine!
To our wonderful parent volunteers, especially Sami and Caz, who led an incredible team of parents- Bryony, Mary, Jess Dennis, Jess Purcell, Jess Groenheide, Angela Nicolai, Angela Lam, Elma, Annie, Astrid, Preema, Liv Healy, Yvonne, Nicole, Tetyana, Eunice, Sue, Nicola, Vita, Jasmine, Greyson’s grandmother Georgie, and Valentina’s grandmother Gisinda - who crafted costumes and props with love – thank you! I also extend a special thank you to Matthew O’Connor for your work in designing and creating the amazing chairs and pages for the books! I’d also like to mention that all of our costumes from Prep to Year 2 were hand made and made from recyclable materials, which is pretty amazing!
We also thank the St Joseph’s P&F – Laura, Jane, Kylie, and James – for adding sparkle to the evening with the organisation of the bar. We had a few last minute surprise and you worked to hard to make this amazing for our
A special thank you to Fleur, for the beautiful roses, and to Michael Tuohey and his father Patrick for volunteering to capture the evening through your photography.
A Standing Ovation for Our Stars
To the shining stars of the show - our students – we are in awe of you. Your enthusiasm, effort, and talent brought this story to life in the most beautiful way. An extra special congratulations goes out to our lead stars Bridget as Belle and Max as the Beast - you were outstanding and led the show with confidence, grace, and heart. I think you had everyone in the audience completely mesmerised!
A big thank you also to our wonderful Arts Captains, Stella and Sienna, for their leadership and words of reflection on stage – you represented our school with such pride and poise. Stella and Sienna, you’ve been true ambassadors of the Arts at St Joseph’s this year, showing dedication and inspiring others throughout the entire production.
The Mrs Moore Award for Excellence in The Arts
This year marked the introduction of a very special new honour: the Mrs Moore Award for Excellence in the Arts, named in memory of our much-loved former principal Michelle Moore, who held The Arts so close to her heart.
With the support of Dean and Ellie, Michelle's Moore's children, and David Stegehuis from the School Advisory Cou it was my absolute honour and privilege to announce a very special, new St Joseph’s award.
This award honours the exceptional efforts of two of our senior students, who have grown in confidence, demonstrated exceptional passion and creativity, and shown dedication and commitment, not just in their own performance, but in helping others to shine. These students received a certificate as an acknowledgement, as well as a financial award, which will go towards pursuing their artistic talents.
It was with absolute pleasure, that we proudly presented the ‘Mrs Moore Award for Excellence in the Arts’ to Xavier Lim and Pip Noonan! Congratulations Xavier and Pip! We are so proud of you.
The ‘Mrs Moore Award for Excellence in the Arts’ will continue to be presented annually as a lasting tribute, ensuring that Mrs Moore’s spirit, her love for the Arts, and the inspiration she gave to our school community, lives on through the achievements of our students. This inaugural l award is just one way that we will continue to celebrate the life, passion, and enduring legacy of Mrs Moore, as she treasured nurturing students to flourish through The Arts.
Until Next Time…
As we close the curtain on this magical chapter, we thank each and every member of our community who made Beauty and the Beast Jr. such a resounding success. Whether you danced as a dish, helped with props, or simply clapped from the audience, we
What a celebration of joy, creativity, and community this has been. We will treasure in our hearts the joy that this has brought to our community and most importantly the opportunity it has provided for our students to shine.
We look forward to sharing some of the magnificent photos from our production nights next week!
Dendy District Athletics
Today some of our students in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 participated in an exciting day at the Dendy District Athletics . We extend a HUGE thank you to Ms Birch for all the time and planning that went into organising a major event such as this one and to the teachers who supported on this day- Siobhan O'Dwyer, Kirsten Daws, David Prowse, and to the parents who helped and attended to support the students. It was so great to see our students participate in a fantastic day of competition and sportsmanship at GR Bricker Reserve in Moorabbin. We congratulate all of our students, those who won a ribbon and those who gave it their best! Please take some time to enjoy some wonderful photos from the Dendy District Athletics today on the Dendy Athletics page in this week's newsletter.
Meet our Wonderful St Joseph's Staff
This week let me introduce our Year 3 and 4 teachers - Ms Donnella De Visser, Mr David Prowse and Ms Grace Harrick.
G'day Everyone! I'm Mr. David Prowse, and I'm delighted to be teaching Grade 4 in 2025. This is my first year at St. Joseph's Malvern and I have loved getting to know all the different families, students and staff in this fantastic little community. Prior to coming to St. Joseph's Malvern, I was at another St. Josephs for 10 years in different roles.
At the start of this year, I was lucky enough to get married to my lovely wife, Maddie, and we recently came back from galavanting around Europe on our 6 week honeymoon (I know, must be nice).
Whilst we currently don't have our own pet, we regularly take care of Maddie's family dog, a West Highland Terrier full of personality, Doug! We are currently looking at finding our own pooch and naming him Phil, after our favourite place to frequent, Phillip Island!
In my own time, I love getting involved in all things sport. Whether it's frequenting as many AFL games as I can at the 'G (tragic Essendon supporter here), finding some snow to plow my way down on my ski's or zig-zagging my way around a golf course, if it's sport related, I'm all in! My latest sporting obsession has been Darts, and let me tell you, that is a tough game to master.
I am also right into my music (and can play the guitar) and enjoy frequenting concerts and gigs around town. I recently was lucky enough to tick off a Bucket List gig, seeing The Living End live at the Corner Hotel.
I am a coffee addict and struggle to start a day without a steaming hot extra strong flat white in hand. I love all delicious food, but currently I'm going through a real Mexican phase!
I look forward to spending more time getting to know everyone in this wonderful community over the remainder of this year!
Hi everyone,
I’m Donnella and I teach Year 3 here at St Joseph’s. I’ve been part of the St Joseph’s community for 4 years, and this is my 9th year as an educator. I feel very blessed to work with such wonderful students and staff.
At home, I have a cheeky black Labrador named Jett. One of my greatest joys is taking Jett to Phillip Island, where we enjoy long walks together. It’s also my favourite place to relax by the beach and enjoy a good book.
Fun fact: When I was little, I loved lining up my toys and pretending they were my students — and now I’m lucky enough to do it every day with my students.
Grace Harrick
The class I teach: Grade 4
How long I have been at St Joseph's: 1 year
My pet: Dog called Axil ( he is named after the coffee roaster Axil)
Favourite colour: Blue
Favourite Food Cheesecake
Movies/Books: I love Harry Potter Books and Movie
Hobbies: I like going for walks on the beach and exercising
Sports: AFL
What I like to do on your weekends/ holidays: I like going down to my holiday house on the Peninsula
School Closure Day- Monday 25th August
A reminder that we have a School Closure Day on Monday 25th August. This date affords our families a timely opportunity to have a good rest and enjoy a long weekend after the busyness of the School Production week and the Dendy District Athletics. Our staff will be engaged in School Review work in preparation for our Review in Term 4.
Let's Stay Connected...
If you have any concerns or worries about your child's wellbeing, learning, or friendships, please do not hesitate to have a chat with your child's teacher as your first point of contact.
If you have other concerns, please feel free to touch base with our wonderful admin team, a member of our school leadership, or myself.
For more serious concerns, I encourage you to reach out to me directly, either by making an appointment through the office, or contacting me via my email.
After a huge week I wish you all a restful weekend. See you on Tuesday!
With warmest regards,
Annabelle Marinelli
Principal