Sea, Tree, Life….The times they are a changin’...

Just as the pandemic and our 6 lockdowns have forced us all to reorganise our lives and adjust to a new covid normal, it has inspired many of us to think about our longer-term priorities and goals. I’m sure many of you have heard of colleagues, family members, or friends who have decided to change their lives in some way- maybe by changing companies, careers, homes, state, or country!

When we face experiences that remind us of the fragility of life and that change can strike with little or no warning, we tend to be motivated to evaluate what makes life worthwhile and to focus our attention on what gives us meaning.

On that note- some changes:

We farewell our beautiful Year 1 student, Heidi, who will be boarding a plane in the coming days to begin a new life with her family in Bath, England. We wish Heidi and her family the very best of luck and we hope they keep in touch.
At the end of the year we say goodbye to the McNamee family: Jacki, Sam, Jacob, Annie and Eliza, who will be returning to Sam’s home country of New Zealand. We will miss you all very much!
Also during the holidays, the Fletcher family will be relocating to Christine’s home state of Queensland. We will miss Nate very much and we wish the Fletcher family the best of luck with their move.
Next week, we welcome a new student, Beatrix, to the St Joseph’s family and after spending a day with us this week, the Year 3 girls are ‘beside' themselves with excitement to have a new friend join them!

Is Mrs Hawksworth going ‘round the twist? Well, not figuratively but Joanne has purchased a beautiful property at Aireys Inlet, right near the famous lighthouse, and will be making the move at the end of this term. Joanne has worked at St Joseph’s for many years, manning the front desk and being the welcoming face of our school, along with her important financial and administrative roles. We thank Joanne for all of her commitment and hard work over the years- she will be missed and we wish her all the best with her sea-change!
Next year we welcome three new teachers to St Joseph’s and I am certain we have found the cream of the crop with our new hires! All three teachers took part in a long and rigorous hiring process, where we had to reduce the 30+ applicants down to a final 10 interviewees. Kate, Jasmine and Donnella were standouts during their interviews and come to us with outstanding references:

Kate Bascombe joins us after a long stint teaching in the UK: "Hello! My name is Kate and I am really excited to join the St Joseph's community in 2022. I have spent the last three years living in London, where I worked in Years 2 and 5. I am really passionate about Reading and Writing and love all things Performing Arts. I look forward to working at St. Joseph's next year and can't wait to meet you all soon!

Jasmine Victoire joins us from another Melbourne Catholic school: "Hello St Joseph’s families, my name is Jasmine and I’ll be joining the junior team next year! I am a bubbly person who loves to have fun and laugh! I am very hands-on and enjoy all things arts and crafts, as well as cooking and baking. I became a teacher to help little humans learn and flourish and I look forward to working with the students at St Joseph’s in doing exactly that."

Donnella DeVisser also joins us from another highly regarded Melbourne Catholic school: "My name is Donnella DeVisser and I am extremely privileged to have the opportunity to become a part of, the St Joseph’s family. This year is my fifth year as an educator. My hobbies include a love of reading, travelling and spending time with my family. I also enjoy taking my dog Jett, for long walks on the beach. I am excited to get to know the students and the wider school community of St Joseph's. I also look forward to working alongside the families and staff to support and plan engaging, contemporary and relevant learning experience for students."

Monday onsite activities:

We have organised a couple of fun language and arts sessions for this Monday and both sessions were originally booked when we thought remote learning would still be going ahead. Both sessions will be streamed into the classrooms, and can also be streamed if your child is at home:

9.15am Carp Productions present FAIRYTALES – WITH A TWIST!

“The famous writer Ima Star is in trouble! Her brand new ‘Traditional Fairytales’ book is being released today – but somebody has mixed up her stories! Cinderella has become Cinderelephant! The Big Bad Wolf is now a Big GOOD Wolf! And the Gingerbread Man is now the Ninja Bread Man! Help us untangle these twisted tales before it is too late!

Link: https://meet.google.com/mhy-fhdi-gju

‘The Monster Show’ with Author/ Illustrator Michael Salmon

A fantastic session will be held for our students, with lots of fun and learning about illustrations and cartoon drawing:

12pm Prep-2 Link: meet.google.com/mjo-bnwe-rab

2pm 3-6 Link: meet.google.com/acz-teyi-jod

More about Michael and the show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIZpilinLL8&t=8s

Thank you:

To the members of our SAC for a productive meeting on Tuesday evening. We are very grateful to our business manager, Priscilla Marukutira, who presented us with a comprehensive overview of all things financial. An absolute highlight was Priscilla’s announcement that MACS have given St Joseph’s the approval to not have any increase in school fees next year. We are delighted at this outcome for our families.
Thank you to our leadership team and Georgie Mardling for an exceptionally informative Prep Parent Information Night on Wednesday. I am also extremely grateful to David Stegehuis and Courtney Jendra for presenting important community information to our new families. We are excited to be able to welcome our new preps onsite next Thursday for their third orientation session.
Thank you to Chris Buick, who came to the rescue once again by removing the damaged and very dangerous sail shade which received a real battering during the storm. Thanks Chris!
Thank you to Siobhan Byford for organising the second-hand uniform sale to coincide with our prep orientation on Thursday. Thank you to all of those who have volunteered to help on the day.

And Finally...

No more onsite request forms! Thank goodness we are all back as of next week and although the staggered return has worked very well, we cannot wait to see all of our students back together again.
Music lessons will resume next week! Yay!
We loved the lockdown fashions in Grade 5 today; what a marvellous way to ease back into school life!

And who could forget...

Thank you to our exceptional group of educators at St Joseph's and I am so very privileged to work alongside you each day...Happy World Teacher's Day!

A special gift was dropped into school today to say 'thank you' to our teachers (thanks Paul V) ... Mrs Carman was very excited!

This weekend marks the beginning of The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as COP26, held in Glasgow, Scotland, between 31 October and 12 November 2021, under the co-presidency of the United Kingdom and Italy.

The conference is the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the third meeting of the parties to the Paris Agreement.

We pray that we see positive change in our world as a result of this conference.

A Prayer for the Climate Change Summit, Glasgow

Inspired by Francis of Assisi

Earlier this month, on 4th October it was the feast of St Francis of Assisi.

A time to pray for our pope who has taken his name and a time to focus, as St Francis did, on our prayerful intentions for the earth and for creation.

Francis challenged the culture of his era. In our era, the Australian Bishops invite the entire Catholic community in Australia to join them and Pope Francis on the seven-year journey towards greater care for creation and sustainability. At the Global Summit soon to be held in Glasgow, we pray that our international and national leaders have St Francis’ courage, reverence for creation and foresight to enter into the dialogue, debate, decisions and action that will impact on our earth and on the quality of life for generations to come.

Creator God, we can choose to live differently.

Inspire us as we make choices so that we will recognize the impact our lives have on our environment and our human family around the globe.

Encourage us to be and to lead people of hope as we look forwards in faith, knowing that we can build a world of justice and peace.

May we choose to live in a way that creates a better world for everyone.

Help us to know that our individual actions are made in solidarity with others.

You invite us to live simply, to live sustainably, and to live in solidarity with the poor.

Help us to respond to that invitation with conviction and generosity.

God of grace and love,

We bring you our prayers, our commitment, and our intentions to you on this day.

Let us who have a keen dedication and awareness of your creation

and all that it brings to the human family,

have the courage and conviction that we are able to contribute to the sustainability of the Earth.

May your Providence lead the way in our Health and Services.

May each of our actions reveal our awareness that we are partners with You in the creation and sustainability of this earth that you have given to us to appreciate and enjoy.

We ask this in Your name.

Amen

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend ahead and I hope the easing of restrictions leads to much-longed-for reconnection with family and friends. (or shopping)

Stay safe and see you all next week,

Michelle

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