Dear Parents and Carers

The reflection and prayer today is the Our Father with an explanation of what this prayer means for us. Teachers have been reflecting on this with their students. The history comes from Jesus sharing the prayer with his disciples. Jesus teaches us always to understand ourselves not only as individuals but as members of God's family and to pray accordingly. During these challenging times in our world, prayer can be an opportunity to reach out to others whilst also practising mindfulness and  finding moments of peace. At Our Lady Star of the Sea, we begin the day with Prayer in a circle and incorporate a wellbeing check in and welcome. We know that Prayer can be an important practice for primary school-aged children, providing them with emotional support, teaching them gratitude and empathy, and helping them develop a moral framework. Whether practiced individually or as part of a group or family, prayer can contribute to a child’s overall well-being and personal growth.

Mission Fete: The Mission Fete provided us with more opportunity to pray before participating in our Social Justice Action. Central to our whole school “I am a Gift” liturgy on Friday, were the values of Gratitude, Empathy and Compassion.

We enjoyed a wonderful day!

The day began with a beautiful liturgy in the church, where we were reminded to reflect on the gifts we have that improve the lives of others: a smile, kindness, thoughtful words, inclusivity, generosity, to name a few. In class students completed an activity which highlighted the needs of the people we were raising money for and provided greater insight into how they may feel.

Steve McPherson and Kylie Leigh then cooked close to 700 sausages for lunch. What a huge effort and thank you so much! After lunch the fete began and it was a wonderful time for everyone. There were plenty of stalls and lots of fun for every age group. This year we were particularly pleased with how so many students enthusiastically helped run stalls. In total we raised $10,753.50. How amazing!!!

To our parents and carers, we thank you for your contributions to the day and preparing your children so well in life to love and care for others. You are all to be proud of your beautiful, kind and compassionate children.

This money will be divided in the following way:

Feed Geelong: $600

Vinnies Christmas Appeal: $1,653

Bulbula: $8,500

Please read the email from Sr Abeba in Bulbula, Ethiopia about the generosity of our school community. Thank you all so much!

Dear Marianne Caddy

How are you? I hope this letter will find you well with all your families? 

I am writing this letter to say how much we grateful to work with you and all the support that I have received. So to shared with you we have stated the school and academic year it is nice to to see the children back at school. All together we have 1004 children and kindergarten children 284 and we provided food at tea break. So my dear your support it means allot for the poor and for us. To be honest with you to get  donation at this time is very hard so we need your support. Thank you for all your kindness.

with love and prayer

Sr Abeba kidane

   

Congratulations also to our Mission Fete Raffle winners:

Ruby Kelsall-Ralph, Harper Lancaster, Kenley Dixon, Lilah Bennett, Jessica Counihan,  Macy McCall, Jordan Wiltshire, Scarlett Tyers and Sylvie Hardwick.

Year 6 Music night: What a wonderful night we had being entertained by Year Six students. It is truly heartwarming to see them shine in this event as part of their graduation celebrations. Many thanks to the year 6 team who prepared them so well: Miss Emily, Mr Casey, Miss Caz, Miss Lis, Miss Rebecca, Jane and Shel. Thank you also to the teachers who supported backstage: Miss Marianne; Mr Anderson and Miss Helen.

WELCOME Fr Linh Pham: Last weekend, we welcomed Fr Linh Pham as our new Parish Priest. He came to visit the classes on Mission Fete day and has also celebrated Mass with our Year 4’s last Thursday. We look forward to getting to know him as our Parish Priest and friend and we pray that he will feel at home in our community and enjoy his role .

PFA AGM Monday 25 November: The annual general meeting for the PFA will be held at the covenant bar in the main street from 6.30pm- 7:30pm. All are welcome. We're excited about looking to the year ahead and how we can further engage you all in family friendly events for 2025. This will also be an opportunity to farewell our wonderful Deb Maud, who has volunteered at both PFA level and School Advisory Council level over the years of Caitlin and Josh's education. You may also know Deb from the second hand uniform shop sales. With a grateful heart for your endless, voluntary contributions Deb.

Wishing you all a peaceful fortnight ahead.

Kerryn