Faith News

Important Dates

Term Four

Whole School Mass: Cry of the Earth, Cry of the Those in Need 

Thursday, October 17th. St Brendan’s Church at 11:30 am.  

Leaders: Year One & Two staff and students. All are welcome. 

Whole School Mass- The End of the 2024 School Year-Advent Week 1 Hope

Thursday, December 5th. St Brendan’s Church at 11:30 am. 

Leaders: Foundation staff and students. All are welcome. 

Year Six Graduation Mass- Wednesday, December 11th, St Brendan’s Church, 

Somerville at 5:00 pm. Leaders: Year Five & Six staff and students

Thank You 

Thank you to the Year One and Two students and staff for their gorgeous Mass for fathers on Thursday, August 29th. Special thanks to Fr Shymon for celebrating this with us, and to Tracey Clarke for her support with this Mass. It was a delight to welcome so many families and parishioners to these celebrations as we remembered the important roles of fathers and other special men in the lives of our students. I hope that all of our Dads, Grandads, God Fathers and other special men, had a great day on Sunday, September 1st. 

On Friday, August 16th, the Year 3-6 students and staff welcomed Kalma from Catholic Care to talk about the importance of Social Justice, and the vital support that Catholic Care Victoria provides for vulnerable members of our community. Catholic Social Teaching forms part of the Religious Education program at St Brendan’s and more widely, in Catholic schools across the world. Of the many principles of Catholic Social Teaching, this infographic from Caritas Australia features the principles that are taught at St Brendan’s. Further details to explain these can be found here.

Catholic Care provides support services in Mental Health, Family  Youth and Home Support, as well as Multicultural Services School Support, Crisis Support and Chaplaincy. For further information about the services offered by Catholic Care for those in need, please visit: https://www.ccam.org.au/

Social Justice Action Team (SJAT) News

SJAT Excursion & Meeting at St Joseph's School this Thursday

Please keep the SJAT in your thoughts and prayers as they head to St Joseph’s school this Thursday to meet with the staff and students from St Mary’s, Hastings, and St Joseph’s, Crib Point.  The SJAT & ‘Mini Vinnies’ Team have been invited to gather to reflect on their accomplishments in supporting St Vincent de Paul, and to work on future planning for social justice action for Term Four.

Mini Vinnies Project

Another way that student voice is actively supported here at St Brendan's is through the work of the SJAT. The SJAT are coordinating an ongoing donation drive into the foreseeable future, for items desperately needed by the Westernport Conference of St Vincent De Paul. Thank you to the families who have so generously donated grocery items. Please keep them coming, and please refer to the details below which are still urgently required until the end of this term:

Donations of blankets, jumpers and jackets are not being collected in the school office. Please take these to your closest Vinnies Store. 

Catholic Baptism

Did the disruption of the ‘COVID-19 years’ disrupt your plans to seek Catholic Baptism for your child?

Now is a great time for families considering The Sacrament of Catholic Baptism for their child/ren, to contact the Western Port Parish Centre on (03) 5979 4374. Should you make Baptism arrangements with the Parish, please inform me so that this special milestone for your child can be acknowledged within the school community. Please also forward a copy of your child’s Baptism Certificate to the school so that this can be reflected in the school records.

Families who wish for their children to receive any sacrament or The Rite of Reception through the parish have been requested by Fr Shymon to make timely arrangements, as adequate preparation is required. This is especially important if families wish to pursue sacramental preparation programs in 2025. 

Christian Initiation for Adults: RCIA

Have you ever considered becoming a Catholic or continuing the Catholic sacramental journey that you commenced as a child or younger adult? 

Adults who wish to begin or continue their faith journey through the reception of the Catholic sacraments are invited to contact the Western Port Parish Centre on (03) 5979 4374.

Western Port Parish News

Please follow this link to the Western Port Parish web page, and to find out more about parish happenings.

Access to Australian Catholics Online Magazine

Hard copies of the Australian Catholic Magazine will be distributed to all families whose eldest children are in Years 3-6 this year. Please look out for these throughout the year and have a read over a ‘cuppa’ to discover more about happenings in Catholic schools and parishes. 

ALL families have FREE access to the Australian Catholics online resource. To access this fabulous resource, please click here  and use the following login details to gain access:

Email: parents@sbsomerville.catholic.edu.au 

Password: acparents

Yours in faith & harmony.

Emma Chapple

-Religious Education Leader

-Performing Arts Classroom Specialist Teacher echapple@sbsomerville.catholic.edu.au