Dear Parents and Carers,

The Year of Walking Together

Last week, I was fortunate enough to participate in Mass, led by Archbishop Christopher Prowse. During this Mass, he communicated Pope Francis’ vision of ‘walking together’, sharing that The Risen Lord walked together with the disciples on the road to Emmaus, drawing them from anxiety to hope, from confusion to joy. For us, ‘walking or journeying together’ can take a number of different forms. Whether it be walking together in reconciliation, connecting with school, parish and/or wider community. The opportunities to act on this vision are ever present and I am really appreciative of the families and community members who have reached out to those impacted by recent flooding at Adelong. These acts of kindness are the glue that keeps a community together and I am really grateful to those who have supported others in a time of need.

First Eucharist

I would like to wish Primrose, Ollie, James, Billy and Henry all the best as they participate in their First Holy Communion this Sunday at St James’ Parish. Thank all of the people who have played a special part in their preparation and celebration of this Sacrament. Mrs Braun and Mrs Murray, Father George and Father Namora for their guidance and important role in the faith formation of these students and also the parish community for their warm welcome at last week's Liturgy, along with their prayers and support of the students.

Mowing

With the wet weather over the past month, it has been difficult for families to find the time and conditions to mow the school lawns. A huge thank you to Sam and Tim Howell for taking the time to mow both sides of the school grounds on Friday evening.

ICT Form

On Monday, I shared via Compass a Google Form about IT information. As mentioned in previous correspondence, this form has been shared with parents, with the intention of finding out information to better understand the wants and needs of our school community in the area of technology, both in regards to devices at school and information for parents. If parents could take the time to fill this out, this will support future decisions and information shared. The link is attached (click this link)

Ronald McDonald House - McHappy Day Fundraiser

On Friday 18th November, we will be holding our final Year Six fundraiser for the year. Beau, Mason and Riley will be organising a fundraiser for Ronald McDonald House. Ronald McDonald House’s Mission and Vision is to support the ever-changing needs of seriously ill children and their families and to achieve the best outcome for families by reducing the impact of their child’s serious illness.

I acknowledge the significant fundraising efforts over the past two terms and will certainly endeavour to spread these out over the 2023 calendar. I really appreciate the community engagement with these events and look forward to seeing Beau, Mason and Riley showcase their leadership skills and information about the amazing work of the Ronald McDonald House Charities.

Unexplained Absences

It is a legal requirement of the school to account for all students and understand the reason for their absence  when students are away from school. In these situations, it is really important that parents are logging into Compass and giving reasons for student absences. Not only will this allow the school to fulfil this legal obligation, it also saves staff a significant amount of time in their busy roles. If parents/carers receive a Compass notification regarding an unexplained absence, could they please log into Compass and share the absence information. If there are any concerns about this, parents need more clarity or if the app isn’t working on the day, please contact myself, Michelle or Marg at school.

Enjoy the remainder of your week,

Ryan Forsyth

Acting Principal

First Holy Communion

Please keep Ollie, James, Primrose, Henry and Billy in your prayers as they prepare to receive the Sacrament of First Holy Communion on Sunday 6th November at St James’ Church. It would be lovely to see our School Community attend and celebrate this special day.

Stacey Braun

Religious Education Coordinator

We are looking forward to our Canberra excursion next week.  

Students will need to be at school no later than 5:45am for roll call and to pack the bus.

A packed recess, lunch, snacks and re-fillable water bottle, along with students wearing their full school uniform for day 1. 

Any medication that the students are taking will need to be given to Mrs Dean with a medication authorisation form with correct dosages and times to be administered.

Students are required to complete a Personal Health Declaration 24 hours prior to boarding the bus. 

‘As previously advised, Personal Health Declarations are used to determine whether a child is displaying signs and symptoms of COVID-19, and to obtain permission to conduct COVID-19 testing should a child fall ill on an excursion. You must provide a Personal Health Declaration to Mrs Dean on the day your child’s excursion begins. You can use the link below to submit this to the email inbox, or you can choose to print the PDF and hand it to Mrs Dean on the day the excursion starts. Please be aware, the online form is encrypted, and data is held by the school only.’

Every child will receive a hardcopy of the declaration this week

Personal Health Declaration – online form

Personal Health Declaration – PDF

Adelong Liturgy Roster - July-December 2022

Mass times for Adelong: 8:30am - 1st & 3rd Sunday.

Keep up to date with events happening at St Joseph's via our electronic school calendar (please note dates can be subject to change).