Dear Parents and Carers

“Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and, lifting up his hands, he blessed them. While he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshipped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy; and they were continually in the temple blessing God.”

Luke 24: 50 – 53

These last three verses are the last verses of Luke’s Gospel and formed part of the Gospel reading last Sunday. The reading tells the story of Jesus ascending into heaven and prefigures the coming of the Holy Spirit, which we call Pentecost. Interestingly, Richard Rohr, whom I have quoted in this newsletter on other occasions, says that at this moment Jesus is most recognisable as the Christ. He goes on, in one of his homilies, to discuss the difference between the earthly Jesus and cosmic Christ and makes a very difficult piece of our Christian theology very accessible. Richard Rohr, a Franciscan priest based in New Mexico, has a podcast at which you can hear his homilies. I encourage you all, if you are interested, to have a listen to his most recent offering. It is 10 minutes very well spent. You can find Rohr’s podcast here.

Fr Drinkwater

By now many of you, if not all of you, would be aware that Fr Drinkwater has formally retired and has moved out of the parish. He is now living at Calvary Nursing Home. Fr Drinkwater will be well looked after and cared for in his new home. We all feel a great sense of loss with Fr Drinkwater’s departure. He was a wonderful priest who began the parish some 45 years ago and built the school 44 years ago. An extraordinary achievement and his life stands as a record of fidelity and commitment. On a personal level, I feel very honoured and lucky that I managed to have these years working with him. He has been a constant support to the school and the school community. He is a good man. The school will organise an appropriate and proper farewell for Fr Drinkwater and we will invite the parent body to the farewell. It will take place late in Term 2 or early Term 3. In the meantime, health permitting, Father will still say Mass for the children on Thursdays during the month of June.

First Eucharist

Also taking place last Sunday, at the parish, was the celebration Mass for the children in Year 4 who have made their First Eucharist this year. It was a wonderful Mass and celebration, and it was a privilege to be there and to witness the children and families come together in this way. My thanks to our wonderful REC, Anne Gowen, and our excellent Year 4 teachers for their great work: Kristy-Lee Kaden, Sam Pigram and Simon Hargraves. My thanks too to Dennis and Pauline Hally-Burton, from the Parish School of Religion, and to
Fr Drinkwater and Sr Colleen for their great work and support.

Vinnies Van

Last week the St Vincent de Paul Night Van visited the school and all children from K – 6 had the opportunity to visit the van and learn more about its activities, role and purpose. The school had a simultaneous fundraising day for Vinnies, which saw children bring in unwanted coats, beanies and other warm clothes, to aid the distribution of clothes to homeless people. It was a great success and I would like to thank the parent community for their great generosity. My thanks also to Anne Gowen for organising the day.

Athletics Carnival

Last Friday we held our annual Athletics Carnival. We were blessed with good weather (especially after a very chilly start to the week) and it was a beautiful day. The children had a great deal of fun and everyone participated to the best of their ability. We were fortunate in that we had a great deal of help from parent volunteers, as well as Year 9 students from St Francis Xavier College. My thanks to the many parents who helped and volunteered, in one way or another, and my thanks too to SFX for their help. Finally, I would like to thank Kelly Scanlan, our excellent Sports Coordinator, for her great efforts.

Parent/Teacher Interviews

As I write, parent/teacher interviews are taking place this week, today and tomorrow. These interviews offer a vital opportunity for parents to connect with their child’s teacher and work collaboratively with the school for the betterment of their child’s education. If you have not yet signed up, I encourage you to contact your child’s teacher directly and make a time to meet.

Staffing News

In staffing news, I am very pleased to welcome Oliva Cowell to our staff. Olivia is our new Speech Therapist. She is seconded one day a week, on Tuesdays, from Brindabella Speech and Hearing, and will be working with students and families, and with staff as well. We are currently in the process of setting Olivia up with an email account so that you can contact her directly. Olivia will provide a great service to the school and we are lucky to have her.

Student Achievement

Year 3 student Paige Cole has been given the opportunity of a life time to compete in the 2019 World BMX titles for Australia and will compete on the 21st July. Paige will travel to Belgium to compete. Understandably, she is very excited to be representing her country at such a young age. Well done, Paige! A wonderful achievement and we are very proud of you. Well done!

 Have a wonderful week with your families.

Best wishes

Cameron Johns

Principal

Cameron Johns

Principal