Dear Parents and Carers,

I hope that you haven't been too impacted by the rain that has drenched the south coast in recent weeks. The deluge last weekend was one of the biggest downpours of the year causing road closures and flash flooding. Fortunately, other than very wet and sodden playgrounds, the school has survived well.

The solemnity of St Mary of the Cross MacKillop was on Saturday 8 August. At this special time each year, we give thanks for the life of Mary MacKillop, her influence in our world and her legacy as a woman of inspiration and deep faith. She was canonised a saint of the universal church on 17 October 2010, becoming Australia's first saint. 

Mary MacKillop founded the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart and together they responded to the educational needs of poor and isolated children, establishing the first Josephite school in Penola SA in 1866. Their mission continued with schools opening across Australia, including our own school, with the arrival of the Sisters in 1880. The Sisters remained at St John's until 1996 before the first lay principal, Mrs Marie Debusch was appointed in 1997. 

As we continue the work of Catholic education, may we never forget their dedication and commitment, and may we be strengthened by our rich history, as we walk in the footsteps of Mary MacKillop and her Sisters.

A prolific writer, Mary MacKillop famously said, “Never see a need without doing something about it.” This message is as relevant today as it was a century ago. What our world needs now, is hope, kindness, and compassion. Let’s follow Mary’s example by living out this message in our relationships and communities.

As we continue to ensure the safety of our students, staff and parents/carers during COVID, restricted access to the school grounds remains unchanged. Work has commenced this week on upgrading the main pedestrian gate at the front of the school, with the installation of a video camera and automatic opening function to reduce the wait time and further enhance security.

As always, thank you for your continued support. Together we are making a difference in improving learning outcomes for all students and upgrading our school facilities. The feedback that I consistently receive is that the school enjoys a positive reputation in the wider community. As our building project nears completion, we are enrolling across the school for 2021. If you know of family or friends, who are looking for a change in schools, please encourage them to contact the school office for an enrolment package.

Yours sincerely

Andrew Heffernan
Principal

SACRAMENTS

Congratulations to the 66 children from our parish who made their first Reconciliation last week.

First Holy Communion enrolment forms have now been distributed to the children who have just made their First Reconciliation. The program for Holy Communion begins straight away. If families wish for their child to make this next important Sacrament, please email the enrolment form through to the parish office (details are on the form). If this is not possible, forms can be returned to school and I will get them to the parish office. Please have all forms returned by Monday 17th August at the latest.

If your child is in Year 4 or above, has received the Sacrament of Reconciliation but is yet to make their First Holy Communion, they are more than welcome to join us this year. Please contact me for an enrolment form.

ST VINCENT DE PAUL WINTER APPEAL

Thank you to the St John’s families who were able to support our annual St Vincent de Paul Winter Appeal by bringing in items for the Vinnies van and/or bringing in a gold coin to give to our local SVDP Society to be distributed as Woolies gift cards to families in need. We collected many, many bags of items as well as $1194.80 in coins. St Vincent de Paul are very appreciative. Thank you for your generosity.

THE FEAST OF THE ASSUMPTION – 15th August

Since the 5th Century there has been an active tradition and belief around the assumption of Mary. The tradition states that Mary was physically ‘taken up’ into heaven at the end of her life. It is believed that her soul and her body remained united. This ancient belief was defined as an infallible teaching of the Church by Pope Pius XII in 1950. It is one of only two infallible statements that have been defined as such and both related to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Let us join the tradition of the Church in reciting together:

Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and at the hour of our death. Amen.

CELEBRATION OF THE EUCHARIST

Masses have resumed at normal times in our Parish but are limited to 100 parishioners at each mass. It is essential to register for weekend masses as we need to ensure that the maximum capacity is not exceeded. To register for mass please call or email the parish office. Alternatively you are able to register your interest to go to mass at the following link:  https://www.dow.org.au/registration

Once your interest to register for mass is received by the parish office, you will need to wait for confirmation that you can attend the mass.

Don't forget that you can also participate in one or more of the many online Masses livestreamed throughout our diocese. Check out our diocesan website for all the links.   

ADULT SPIRITUALITY

“Ripples: Inspired Voices, Treasured Stillness”

In response to the current Covid-19 situation, a significant initiative has been developed by the Catholic Education Office CLEM (Catholic Life, Education and Mission) team for staff and parents to support our ongoing personal spiritual formation. It is a new podcast series entitled ‘Ripples: Inspired Voices, Treasured Stillness’. Ripples seeks to offer a space where people can draw on the wisdom of a series of guest speakers and can experience some treasured stillness through meditation. New Episodes and Meditations are being added regularly. Practices like these create a ripple effect. They have the potential to impact the way we respond to family, friends, colleagues, to others in our world, to creation and to our loving God.

https://ripples.dow.catholic.edu.au/p/introduction-1588201803/

PRAYER INTENTIONS

We pray for all families in our school community who are in need of our prayers, as well as our country and world.

St Mary of the Cross MacKillop, pray for us.
St John the Evangelist, pray for us. 

Kylie Crowe
Religious Education Coordinator

The P&F Meeting will be held online via Zoom on Tuesday 18 August at 7 pm — Zoom link will be shared via Compass. The primary purpose of the P&F is to provide an opportunity for parents to be involved in the school through social events, fundraising and support for school initiatives.

PB4L is an evidence-based framework that emphasises school-wide systems of support for all students and staff. These include proactive strategies for defining, teaching and supporting appropriate student behaviours. Positive behaviour supports are implemented for all students, across all school settings, by all staff, at all times. This continuum of support ensures students’ academic and social outcomes.

All student behaviour expectations are founded on our three school rules that are:

Thank you to our generous families and staff for supporting the St Vincent de Paul Winter Appeal, donating goods and money. On Friday 31st July our lovely school raised $1194.80 for SVDP. What a fantastic achievement!

An afternoon of art with Year 3.

Looking at the building works, it may look as though construction has stalled, but this is definitely not the case. The recent rain has had some impact, but as you can see from the photos, the refurbishment of the learning spaces is now almost complete. In the coming weeks, a new covered area (COLA) will be erected and a tiered seating area will be constructed, completing the outside work. We are on track to relocate classes at the end of Term 3, ready for Term 4. I will provide further details about the relocation strategy as the time draws closer and dates are confirmed.

Jason Gibson – Behavioural Specialist

In this video, Behavioural Specialist, Jason Gibson, talks us through some areas of our kids’ and teens’ technology use that are important to put fences (boundaries) around.

Catholic Care — Area of Needs Survey 2020

At CatholicCare we strive to work with the whole community, supporting people to have positive relationships and connected lives.

To assist in the development of our programs and services for 2021, we would appreciate it if you could spare a few minutes of your time to supply us with feedback around the current areas of need in the community.

This feedback will be invaluable in helping us to develop our programs and services to ensure we are meeting the most relevant needs in the community. By successfully completing this survey, you will go into the draw to WIN A $100 VOUCHER!

* Survey closes on the 21st August 2020

For more information or if you have any additional comments or feedback, please contact Lysa Fitzgerald lysaf@catholiccare.dow.org.au