Dear Parents and Carers,

Spirit of Wisdom,
guide our actions so they tell of God’s love.

Spirit of Truth,
open our eyes to see the world as it really is.

Spirit of Power,
enthuse us to work for justice throughout the world.

Spirit of Love,
inspire us to respect the dignity of each person.

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful.

Come, Holy Spirit.

Come.

This Sunday we celebrate the feast of Pentecost. This word means fiftieth, as it marks the fiftieth day of the Easter season. On Pentecost, we celebrate the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles gathered full of fear in the upper room in Jerusalem. This marks the beginning, or birth, of the Church.

In that upper room in Jerusalem, Jesus greeted his disciples with the gift of peace. “Peace be with you,” he said. Jesus then commissioned his disciples to continue the work that he had begun: “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” He breathes the Holy Spirit upon the disciples and sends them to continue his work of reconciliation through the forgiveness of sins. Both the Greek and Hebrew words for “spirit” can also be translated as “breath.”

As we celebrate this great feast of the Church’s fifty days after the resurrection of Jesus, how have we been a sign of reconciliation in our families, in our world, and among people of faith everywhere? Have we been an instrument of God’s peace to everyone we meet?

National Sorry Day/Reconciliation Week

This Friday is National Sorry Day which then marks the beginning of Reconciliation Week. This provides our country with an opportunity to acknowledge the pain and suffering caused to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia. Our school benefits from having children from a large number of different cultural backgrounds, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander. The children at St John's are well placed to be a future generation of genuine reconciliation as they learn and play with others from different backgrounds and cultures.

The theme for National Reconciliation Week 2023, Be a Voice for Generations, encourages all Australians to be a voice for reconciliation in tangible ways in our everyday lives – where we live, work and socialise. We are all urged to use our power, our words and our actions to create a better, more just Australia for all of us.

Staff Development Day

You are reminded that our next Staff Development Day (pupil-free) is Monday 5 June. Aspire, the company that runs our before and after school care, will be open all day if you need care for your children.

Wishing you a great week,

Paul Moroney

Principal

MAPLE’S DONATION & PLAYGROUND AWARDS

Maple received a generous donation recently. She would like to thank Bunnings at Hoxton Park for their generosity. One of our parents, Felicia (Julian 3G) and her colleague Amber donated a basket for Maple and a $100 gift card. We thank them greatly for their donation and will certainly purchase items that Maple requires here at school.

Maple has also been very busy providing time for students who have managed to collect three playground awards. Last week she worked with some students in Kindergarten and Year Four, where they got to spend time with her, play fetch and have lots of pats.

CELEBRATING NATIONAL RECONCILIATION WEEK

National Sorry Day 2023 falls this year on Friday, 26 May and is a day when we pause to remember the Stolen Generations of Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Today, 24 May, three Year 6 student leaders, Chelsea, Lowana and Payten represented our school at the Sorry Day Service, Minto. Photos below are of the girls with our Aboriginal Education Assistants- Ms Janelle and Andrew. They also had a photo with Sr Kerry who works with the Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Minto, to organise the Sorry Day Service.

It leads us into the Week of Prayer for Reconciliation and National Reconciliation Week which is held each year between 27 May and 3 June.

This year's theme 'be a voice for generations' asks each and every one of us to use our words and our actions to create a better, more just, and equitable Australia for all. 

 

ENVIRONMENTAL CLUB

Term 2 has seen the establishment of the St John’s Environment Club. The aim of this club is for the students with the support of the teachers, to take a more active role in the awareness and taking action at St Johns in relation to the environment. Our guiding document for this club is Pope Francis’ encyclical (Papal letter) Laudato Si’, which is a letter to everyone in the world to take environmental action to take care of our common home, the earth. 

Already the students have come up with some fantastic ideas and plans for environmental awareness at St Johns. Our major focus for this Term and beyond is Waste Free Wednesday. The students in the Environment Club have been carefully working on a presentation for all grades to explain Waste Free Wednesday. Below are some examples from St Johns of a Waste Free Lunch.

 By Mr Zamroz

PRIME HYDRATION DRINKS

For the health and safety of our children at St John's, we are not allowing students to bring in Prime Hydration Drinks. 

These drinks have an extremely high caffeine content and are labelled NOT SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN UNDER 15. This message cannot be seen unless you read the back of the bottle.

If a student brings one of these drinks to school, their teacher will hold onto it until their parent/carer can collect it.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact the school office.

FEAST OF MARY, HELP OF CHRISTIANS- 24 MAY

Today we celebrate the Feast of Mary, Help of Christians. She is the patron saint of our country, Australia. We celebrate the many gifts God has given us here in Australia – one people from many parts of our world, the beauty of our country, the freedom and peace that we are so lucky to enjoy. 

We look to Mary for her help, her protection and her guidance. We try to follow her example of love and strength in everything we do.

Mary, The Mother of God, is given many titles or names such as: 

Mary, first among disciples

Mary, Mother for all people

Mary, woman of faith

Mary, Queen of Peace

These are just some of her titles, but today, we remember her as Mary, Help of Christians.

Almighty God our Father,

You placed the love of Mary Help of Christians 

in the hearts of those who first brought the Catholic faith to Australia. 

We ask, that with Mary’s help,  

our leaders can be wise and that we can all be people of truth and goodness. 

Under Mary’s protection, may Australia be filled with harmony, justice and peace.

Amen.

DIOCESE OF WOLLONGONG- CROSS COUNTRY CARNIVAL

Yesterday, 23 students represented St John’s at the Diocese of Wollongong Cross Country Carnival. The event was held at ‘Willandra’, Nowra. Mrs Skinner went with the majority of students by bus early in the morning. Some of the parents made the journey down with their children to watch them compete.

All the children are to be congratulated on giving it their all on a challenging course. The names of our Cross Country Team are listed below.

Happy Birthday to the following students and staff who are celebrating their birthday this week  21st may - 27th May

Week 4 - Awards: PRIMARY 

ATHLETICS CARNIVAL 

Clothing Pool will be open tomorrow afternoon from 3pm in the clothing pool room

Cash and eftpos accepted

We are also in need of clothing donations and coat hangers

We are seeking your help to support the students in our school who are at risk of anaphylaxis.
Anaphylaxis is a severe allergic reaction that is potentially life threatening.
Food allergies are the most common cause of anaphylaxis in children. Currently, there is no cure
for food allergy and the only way to prevent allergic reactions is to avoid the food.
Children can be allergic to any food and it is not possible to completely remove these foods from
our school. However, we have chosen to remove peanuts and tree nuts from our canteen menu
to minimise the risk of accidental exposure through errors or cross contamination. As peanuts and tree nuts
are not staple foods (such as milk, wheat and eggs), this is a reasonable strategy to implement.
We ask you to support students at risk of anaphylaxis by:
• Not sending food which has peanuts or tree nuts (e.g. hazelnuts, cashews, almonds etc)
in the ingredients list.
• Teaching your child not to share food with friends that have food allergy.
• Encouraging your child to wash their hands after eating.
• Asking your child to get help immediately if their friend with food allergy gets sick.
• Explaining to your child that teasing a child with an allergy is bullying and not
acceptable behaviour.
With community support, our school can provide a safe environment that meets the needs
of all our students.
Thank you for your assistance with being allergy aware