PFA

Dear Robbie Mac families,

Here is the late news article from your PFA for 2022. How time has flown!

Thank you

State Election Day Sausage Sizzle, Saturday 26 November – So election day has come and gone, and many democracy sausages sold and served. The team did a fantastic job, especially considering the wind was not on our side. For those unaware, the wind and the BBQ flame were not playing nicely and as a result, there was not much sizzling happening at our peak time (yep, lunch time).

This resulted in a packed carpark where many very patient customers waited for their sausages to be cooked and served. We really appreciated everyone’s understanding! Luckily Mr Roche came to the rescue with the great trestle table barrier, enabling the BBQ to recover and sausages to start moving. We ended up raising a bit over $1000 for the school with the wonderful help of our two coordinators, Carolyn Steart and Paul Richardson who really worked well together and were a great help. We would also like to thank our volunteer helpers including Barry Gargan, Jarrod Porter, Justin McKinlay, Karla Bennet, Kate Pearson, Katherine Fullarton, Kim Little, Lam, Nicole Adey, Prisca Languila, Sarah Lander, Soraya Montgomery, Stan Rychlik, Vanessa Huang, Warren Kemp and Zoe Frost; and of course, Peter Watson and Steve Roche. We were also assisted with donations from Coles and Woolworths, and we would like to give a special mention to Dench Butchers at Forest Hill Chase who helped with sausages and Bakers Delight at Burwood One who donated the bread. The help we received all around was amazing. Thanks! Here are a couple of happy snaps from the day…

Only a few days away

School Colour Fun Run, Wednesday 14 December – The RMPS PFA is offering all students the opportunity to participate in the School Colour Fun Run “THE BIG SHOW + COLOUR DAY”, which will be held on Wed 14 December on the school oval between 1-3pm with the Principal colour bombing/sliming at 3pm. We will (hopefully) have Chase the mascot helping and are otherwise all set for a fantastic day. All being well, the weather will be on our side this time around! We cannot wait to see the students getting blasted with colour, sprayed with water, and running around enjoying themselves. We welcome parents and family members to attend and cheer the children on. Spectators will be able to watch from the blue synthy grass.

As mentioned in the last newsletter, the fundraising has contributed about $10,000 towards the school’s indigenous garden playground and putting on the event – everyone’s efforts in this are truly appreciated by the school and the PFA. The student prizes have been ordered and are hopefully not too far away now.

We need our community to make this event successful and currently have 78% of roles filled, so it would be fantastic if you can help on the day! Our most pressing gaps are for people to be Chase the mascot and course supervisors.

Help on the Day – Are you available for 30 minutes or more on Wednesday 14 December to be a fun run volunteer helper? Please pick your slots and sign up as following these 3 easy steps:

Click this link to go to our SignUp page: https://signup.com/go/HJnoXXk
Enter your email address (You do NOT need to register an account on SignUp)
Sign up! Choose your spots – SignUp will send you an automated confirmation. Easy! Tip: You can check the ‘Hide Full Spots’ checkbox to see the ones that still need filling.

Note: SignUp does not share your name, mobile number or email address with anyone other than the organisers. If you prefer not to sign up online though, please contact the PFA via rmps.pfa@gmail.com and we can sign you up manually. You can still use the online form to see what spots need filling.

Important: This is an event that is working with children and therefore, requires a current Working with Children Check (WWCC). Please show your WWCC to the school office for their records or refer to the article on applying for a FREE volunteer’s WWCC if you do not already have one; and, see the links to the associated school policies.

What to wear –

Students

Come to school in an outfit that they can run around with, preferably a WHITE or light-coloured T-Shirt that may get stained with colour
Will most likely be messy and wet when picked up as this event is at the end of the day – a towel will be handy!
Will use their school hats when not running in the fun run and have access to their classroom tub for storing water bottles

Adults

Spectators – Spectators are spectators only, so do not need any specific clothing but should be prepared for stray colour powder and water
Helpers – Helpers are likely to get wet and/or come into contact with colour powder, so it is advised to come in older clothes and lighter colours, if possible

Note that the colour powder to be used is non-toxic, non-hazardous and de-gradable, and made from corn starch and various food grade dye colours.

If you have any queries, please email the PFA via rmps.pfa@gmail.com.

2023 Class Reps

Would you like to become a Class Rep in 2023? We are getting organised for 2023 and looking for parents interested in being a Class Rep next year. Class Reps are an important part of Robbie Mac and help to create a welcoming and inclusive community. Ad hoc tasks do not take much time and many of our reps work part-time or full-time with busy family lives. Perhaps you have or have not been one before, that doesn’t matter as we welcome previous and new reps to fill the roles. Being a rep is a great way to be involved with the school and meet other parents.

As a Class Rep, your key responsibilities will be to:

Welcome new families to the school
Be a point of contact for families in your class. It’s up to you how you choose to communicate with families, i.e., email, Facebook and/or WhatsApp
Arrange a couple of social occasions for class families. These can be specifically your class, or you can organise an event with the other classes in your year group (e.g., Foundation, 1/2, etc). Popular choices include “a play at the park” or a “parent evening”.
Communicate information regarding school events as sent through from the PFA or other Class Reps
Class Reps act as a contact point for the fair’s Stalls Coordinator and encourage their class to sign up to assist on the stall via Signup.com. The Stalls Coordinator is available to support you.
Act as a contact point for the 2023 RMPS School Fair Stalls Coordinator. In 2023, the school is excited to bring back the Roberts McCubbin School Fair! Each class oversees one Fair activity or stall, and Class Reps are a point of contact for the Fair Committee and encourage their classes to sign up to assist on the stall via Signup.com. The Stalls Coordinator is available to support you.

Being a Class Rep is a very rewarding role and a great way to get to know your class. Each class requires two Class Reps, and no prior experience is needed. If you are interested in becoming one in 2023, you will be able to indicate your interest via a SignUp sheet. After the 2023 classes have been announced next Tuesday 13 December, the SignUp link will be distributed for people to register their interest in these roles – watch this space! Class Reps will be confirmed in early 2023. If you have any questions, please contact Kim Jones on rmps.classreps@gmail.com or reach out to the PFA via rmps.pfa@gmail.com.

2023 RMPS School Fair

Planning for the RMPS School Fair, to be held on 18 March 2023, is well underway with Jemma Peles at the helm. And with the delays the fair has experienced due to COVID-19 plus resulting committee changes (as families have come and gone from the school, etc), we are really looking forward to it and encourage the whole school community to get behind this event and the school fair team. You can find out more via this link: https://robmacps.vic.edu.au/rmps-community-fair/ Also, if you would like to get involved in any way (big, small or in between; volunteer, donations and/or sponsor), please email the team via robbiemacfair@gmail.com. They are seeking help to make this a wonderful community event.

PFA

The PFA is a group of volunteer parents and carers who help organise events and fundraising activities for RMPS, welcome families and bring people together from within the community. This helps us all connect more closely with our school and to raise vital funds for school improvements. Without volunteers, there would be no PFA.

All RMPS parents and carers are welcome to register as PFA members, enabling them to receive copies of meeting minutes, vote on items/actions and executive roles, and be elected to PFA executive roles. If you would like to register as a member, please contact us for a copy of the registration form. Note that you do not have to be a member to help on events or attend meetings.

Next meeting: Wednesday 15 February 2023; 2:15pm to 3:15pm – details to be confirmed

PFA President – Vacant Position

The PFA has been a vital part of hosting events for the school and raising funds that ultimately help our children and the community. The president is a critical role that leads the operation of the PFA. Please get in touch if you'd like more information on the role, a copy of the position description or to express your interest in taking it on – rmps.pfa@gmail.com.

2022 Wrap Up and Season’s Greetings

And lastly, we would like to thank everyone for their support with and engagement in the different activities run by the PFA and the school at Robbie Mac this year (including the couple being squeezed in before the end of term). Their success is completely dependent on you. Also, to Kim Jones, our super Class Coordinator and the Class Reps, your assistance, dedication and support is also very much appreciated. Well done and thank you!

May the summer holidays be a wonderful time for you and your family, and the Festive season bring lots of joy and fond memories. Take care and we look forward to seeing you in 2023.

Happy Holidays,

Elizabeth (Secretary) and Bård (Treasurer)

The PFA Team