eNews Term 4, Week 3, 2023

ALL SAINTS DAY -  November 1^st
Most of us would be able to name at least one or two saints – St Joseph, St Mary MacKillop and more recently St Teresa of Calcutta would probably be ones that come to mind more readily.  Though they led vastly different lives, they all had uncommon kindness and were examples to us not to forget those people who are the “forgettables” in our world.

The Archbishop of San Salvador in El Salvador during the 1970’s, Oscar Romero is one of the most recent saints to be canonised in the Catholic Church.  During his time as Archbishop he spoke out about human rights violations in El Salvador.  He denounced violence that was occurring during their civil war and urged soldiers and police not to follow orders to kill civilians and stop the repression.  St Oscar Romero is an inspirational figure to hundreds of millions of Catholics around the world.  He didn’t simply talk about the need to love your neighbour, but courageously named the injustices that plagued his country.  He reminded us that Christ is found in people living in poverty, and that we cannot ignore the suffering of our brothers and sisters in need.  He was shot dead on 24 March 1980, aged 62, while celebrating Mass and his words, “Aspire not to have more, but to be more” continue to inspire us today.

The saints are always calling us back to our Christian roots.  They are real human beings like us with their own personal problems but who battle on to achieve extraordinary deeds.  Because of this, we should not leave them as lifeless statues or stained-glass windows and excuse ourselves from our responsibilities to other people on the pretext that we aren’t perfect.  The very fact, that they are human like us, is a reminder to us of our responsibilities even if we are flawed and imperfect persons.

Some saints are famous.  Their names are in prayer books and their pictures are in the newspaper or on the walls and windows of churches.  Their stories teach us that there are many ways to follow Christ.

From the moment of our birth we were all given the chance to become a saint.  Even in our time we can probably recall many people throughout the world who have lived the truth of Jesus but have not been canonised by the church as a saint.  The world needs more saints in the making, people like us who can do something, if only of a minor nature, to improve the quality of life of disadvantaged and neglected people.

Dear parents, carers, teachers, and students,
Last Friday, October 27, we joined the world in celebrating World Teachers' Day, a day dedicated to honouring and appreciating every staff member in our school. All staff, especially our teachers, are the heart and soul of our school, and their dedication, passion, and hard work are the driving force behind our students' success. They go above and beyond to inspire and educate, instilling knowledge, values, and a love of learning in every child.

As educators, we see an enormous number of positive moments in our students' lives. Every weekday, forty weeks of the year, we see them making discoveries, laughing, playing with friends, solving problems, and growing their knowledge and understanding. We see them working hard and achieving their goals. At times, we also see the challenges that our students face. We see them struggling with complex concepts, feeling frustrated, and making mistakes. But we know these challenges are necessary for growth and critical to work through as they build their skills for life.

So, let's celebrate the joy of learning, both in our homes and in our schools. Let's acknowledge the small challenges and disappointments that come along the way, but let's not let them overshadow the many, many positive moments.

Student Leaders 2023-2024 
This Semester, our school Wellbeing Leaders, Mrs Monica Doherty and Mrs Nicki Clifford, have taken the time to carefully review the processes and roles of student leadership and elections within our school. After thorough consideration and consultation with the staff, we have implemented a new strategy for selecting school captains for the 2023-2024 academic year and beyond. This process involved students applying for leadership positions and expressing their interest in various areas where they wanted the opportunity to volunteer their time and contribute to discussions and initiatives that will positively impact our school and drive improvements for the future.

We are grateful to have received applications from over thirty students who generously offered to serve our school community as Indigenous, Religion, Inclusion, Environmental, and Cultural and Diversity Leaders. After a rigorous selection process, a shortlisted group of students proceeded to the interview stage. It was with great pleasure that we announced the following students at our prayer assembly last week who have been appointed to their respective leadership roles.

School Leadership St Joseph’s School 2023-2024

Successful applicants

I want to express my gratitude to all the students who applied for specific roles for the 2023-2024 academic year and Mrs Monica Doherty for her time spent with all the students. I understand that there may be disappointment for those who were unsuccessful, but I want to assure them that there will be opportunities to reapply in the future, specifically for the 2024-2025 academic year. The process for the selection of our two 2024 Senior School Captains will take place these coming weeks, and the announcement will be made at our Year 9 Graduation Mass and dinner later in the year. 

Staffing Updates
At St. Joseph's School, we are pleased to announce the addition of two new members to our staff for the 2023-2024 academic year. Ms. Claire Paice has joined us as a new teacher, bringing with her a wealth of experience in education and curriculum development. She will support our Year 5 classrooms this term and transition into a teaching role in 2024. Additionally, we are excited to welcome Scharlee Williams as a new education support worker in our junior primary classrooms. Scharlee recently completed her Year 12 studies and plans to pursue a university course in teaching next year. We extend a warm welcome to both Claire and Scharlee as they join our staff.

I'm also pleased to inform the community that Mrs Sonja Smith has been selected as the Principal at St Mary’s Memorial School, Glenelg, commencing Term 1, 2024.

Sonja has been a valued St Mary’s Memorial School community member since commencing as Acting Principal in January 2023. She has held various teaching and leadership roles at St Joseph’s School in Murray Bridge since 2016, including Deputy Principal. I want to congratulate Sonja Smith and acknowledge the enormous amount of work, time, and effort she has put into St. Joseph's School, Murray Bridge, for the past eight years. For those of you who know Sonja, she is a passionate, committed, and a dedicated educator whom we will miss dearly. St Mary's Memorial School, Glenelg, will be fortunate to gain her expertise and dedication. On behalf of our school community, we congratulate Sonja on her appointment.

Mr Jamie Mulcahy will remain in the Acting Principal position for the remainder of 2023 while we advertise a position of Deputy Principal, commencing Term 1, 2024. 

Preparation for 2024
Thank you to the families who have participated in the Parent/Guardian Forms Survey. Your input is invaluable in helping us plan for the upcoming year. However, we have noticed that some families still have not provided us with the necessary information. To ensure we have all the required details, we will send out paper forms to those families we have not heard from next week. We kindly request that you fill in the form and return it to the Administration office as soon as possible. Your cooperation is greatly appreciated.

Special School Events
The school staff is currently arranging the last term and end-of-the-year celebrations. Please put the following important dates in your diaries. Other class events are in the newsletter dates list to refer to.

·      Saturday, November 17: Christmas Pageant at 4 pm

·      Friday, December 1: JOEY’s Graduation at 2 p.m. in the School Auditorium

·      Wednesday, December 6: Year 9 Graduation Mass and Dinner at Most Holy Redeemer Church. 6 p.m. Mass followed by awards and celebration in the parish hall.

·      Monday, December 11: Whole School - Picnic Dinner on the Green. Community Christmas event led by the Reception classes 5 p.m. to start at 5.30 p.m. till 7 p.m.

·      Wednesday, December 13: End of Year School Mass led by Year 6 and End of Primary School Celebration.

·      Wednesday, December 13: School concludes at 3.05 p.m.

Swimming
During Week 8, Monday, December 4 to Friday, December 8, the Reception to Year 4 classes will participate in the annual Swimming program at the Murray Bridge Swimming Centre. These swimming lessons are important for developing water safety skills for our students, and we are grateful to the School Board for fully funding this opportunity.

We want to thank Mr. Josh Law for coordinating the Swimming Program. In the coming weeks, additional information regarding the program will be provided to parents and guardians of the classes involved. 

End of Year Reports
Our class teachers are currently engaged in the assessment process, which plays an important role in informing the ongoing report writing process. Assessments come in various forms and are used by teachers to clearly understand each student's progress in their learning journey. While formal testing is one method, teachers also rely on anecdotal records, feedback conversations with students, and general observations of their commitment and enthusiasm for learning. All this information contributes to the development of the written end of Semester 2 Report, which will summarise your child's learning throughout 2023.

If you have maintained regular communication with the class teacher through meetings and informal conversations, the content of the report should largely align with what you already know about your child and their capabilities. The reports will be distributed on Friday, December 8th.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Mrs Ros Oates
Principal

Reminders 
As the weather heats up in Term 4, students must wear their School hats when playing outside as part of our commitment to being a SunSmart school. 

The final school closure days for 2023 are:

• Thursday 14th December and Friday 15th December – Term 4 (Last two school days of the year) – Curriculum, Data and Handover Day

5/6 Boys Country Schools State Basketball Finals
After winning the local Murraylands Schools basketball competition back in June, the team headed to Wayville Basketball Stadium on Friday 17^th October for the State Basketball Country Finals. The team included Hamish Hankin, Jaxon McKenzie, Kane Fiegert, Josh Roberts, Chase Fiegert, Harrison Webb and Eli Smith-Lindsay. We were put into Division 1. Our first game took a little time to settle some nerves but the boys finished the second half strongly to win 21 to 11 against Redeemer Lutheran.

Game two was against Bordertown who were too quick for our full court press and took an early lead. A change in our defensive strategy dried up their scoring opportunities and some great team play got our team scoring freely winning 27 to 17.

Game three against Kadina was tight. We missed a lot of shots and were level at 12 all inside the last minute. The boys managed a goal and locked down the final seconds of the game to win 14 to 12.

Finishing top of our pool, we had a cross-over semi final win against Tennison Woods scoring 14 to 6 to set up a grand final against the other cross-over semi final winners Bordertown.

The boys took the lead early and starved off multiple mini comebacks from Bordertown to win the Grand Final 20 to 14.

Congratulations to the players for winning the State Basketball Country Final and thank you to the parents and supporters who come along to cheer the team on.

5/6 Boys School Sport SA Knockout Cricket Round 2 vs Littlehampton PS
On Friday 27^th October, our school’s 5/6 Boys cricket team took on Littlehampton PS in Round 2 of the School Sport SA Statewide Knockout Cricket Competition. Losing the toss, we were sent in to bat first for our twenty overs. Opening the batting was Mason Williams and Archer Rowe. Both boys protected their wickets well but runs were hard to come by. With some retiring of players to give all players an opportunity to have a bat, Lochie Bates came to the crease and started the run counter ticking over steadily. A few wickets fell and boundaries were hard to get. The team ended their innings 8 for 75.

Littlehampton managed to find the boundary a few times, but our lead bowlers slowed their scoring. After the 6^th over we had par scores. Unfortunately, we gave away too many runs via no balls and a knock of 26 to Littlehampton’s top batsman saw us defeated after the 12^th over.

The game was played in good spirits with a fantastic energy and atmosphere.

7/8 Boys School Sport SA Knockout Cricket Round 1 vs Unity
On Wednesday of Week 2, the Year 7/8 boys played against Unity College in T20 Cricket. This is the first time St Joseph’s Murray Bridge have competed in this event. Unity were able to come away with the win, however the boys played the game in great spirits and should be proud of their efforts.

7 Aquatics
The Year 7 cohort have engaged in two days of aquatics activities this Semester. They were blessed to have two beautiful days of sunshine, and students had a fantastic time participating in various aquatic activities such as kayaking, canoeing, sailing, knee-boarding and small boat handling. See more photos at the end of the article.

District Representatives
Congratulations to Milla Smith who has been selected in the Murraylands Tennis team to play in the State Carnival at West Lakes in Week 6.

State Representatives
Zaxton Sward plays Softball in the Hills Association for Mount Barker Redsox as the Primary Catcher for the Under 14 team on Saturdays and also plays in the Under 16 team on a Friday evening. He has been selected in the State SAPSASA U12 Boys Softball team to play in the National Carnival being held from the 20^th to 24^th November at Barrett Reserve, West Beach. He will play against Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland and ACT. Congratulations Zaxton, and all the best for a fantastic week.

Up coming events:
7/8 mixed table tennis Monday 6^th November
Catholic Schools Athletics Day at Mile End on Tuesday 7^th November.
Reception to Year 4 Swimming Lessons each day of Week 8.

Congratulations to St. Joseph’s Festival Choir who performed magnificently in the festival theatre at the end of last term. The audience feedback was that they were blown away and were not expecting what they heard and saw. The student’s performance from our school was outstanding as they performed proudly in the second row of the mass choir. I hope the children will cherish forever the incredible experience of singing at the Adelaide Festival Theatre. Congratulations St. Joseph’s Festival Choir of 2023.

We would also like to acknowledge the astounding work and commitment from Mrs Lynne Liebich and Miss Caitlin Angel who do an amazing job in making sure our students are well rehearsed and prepared for this amazing event. Thank you to you both.

Traditionally at St Joseph’s School we have supported the St Vincent de Paul Christmas Appeal through our Giving Tree and food collections for those in our community who may struggle during the Christmas season.  We will send home in a few weeks’ time a note reminding families about these 2 ways we can support Vinnies.  Our new Religious Leaders will also be organising a fund-raising activity so watch out for notes and Seesaw messages coming home. 

I am pleased to share these links to the The Southern Cross newsletter and the online edition of The Southern Cross October 2023.

Vinnies Uniform Shops are all located within Vinnies Charity Stores and are serviced by appointment only, by making a booking ensures we have an appropriately trained uniform staff member onsite to assist with uniform fittings, selections, and purchases.

Parents can make a booking with Rochelle and the Murray Bridge Vinnies Uniform Shop Team by scanning the QR code or visiting Vinnies - Uniform Shop (simplybook.me)

We encourage parents to contact us by email (schooluniforms@svdpsa.org.au) for consideration of appointments outside available booking times.

For parents who prefer to personally make a selection, or complete fittings themselves, we welcome you at any time during normal Vinnies Shop trading hours (refer to vinnies.org.au for trading hours) – no bookings required. Vinnies Shop volunteers will only able to assist with finalising the purchase of school uniforms, it is recommended parents make a booking if assistance and advice in uniform fittings and selection is required.