Dear parents and carers,

Last week I was incredibly fortunate to spend some time in Spain with my beautiful wife, Janelle. We travelled to Madrid, enjoying the old cobbled streets and piazzas, surrounded by amazing buildings and history that dates back to before Christ. We spent a day in Segovia, where the aqueduct built by the Romans in the first century AD still stands, and was in use until the 1970s! A highlight of the trip for me was visiting Catedral Primada Santa María de Toledo, otherwise known as the Catherdal of Saint Mary of Toledo. It was awe inspiring to spend time in this immense cathedral, reflecting on the lasting presence of our Catholic faith around the world. Thank you to all the staff who kept the school going, while I had this wonderful experience.

Staffing

As communicated earlier in the week, Melanie Stratford has been appointed as Religious Education Coordinator at St Monica’s Evatt from the start of 2024. Melanie continues to foster a wonderful faith life across our school and is a dedicated and passionate classroom teacher. We will certainly recognise her contribution here at St Joseph’s, towards the end of this year.

More immediately though, is the announcement today that Amy Doszpot has been appointed as Assistant Principal at St Bede’s Braidwood, from the start of Term 4. This appointment, while very quick, is a wonderful opportunity for Amy as she prepares to relocate to the coast in 2024, at the same time continuing to provide great leadership and capacity in a new school community. We will farewell Amy this Friday as a school, so please feel free to join us for Morning Gathering. I take this opportunity to thank Amy for her tireless efforts and support over the past 5 years. She has made a lasting impact in our school community and will be missed. Good luck Amy as you start a new journey.

This time of year always brings about change within a school, and while it is sad to see wonderful staff members leave our school, it is pleasing to know that they are moving onto exciting opportunities in other schools. Moving forward, an Acting Assistant Principal for Term 4 will be appointed from within our current staff, with the substantive Religious Education Coordinator and Assistant Principal positions advertised and appointed for the start of 2024.

Musical

Things are starting to come toegther for our upcoming musical, Peter Pan. Over recent months, our lead cast members have been learning their lines and rehearsing with Mrs Fletcher. It is all sounding great. Today the staff have spent the afternoon preparing some of the backdrops and planning the production… still lots to do! As we move closer to the opening perfomance, please keep an eye out for information from the clasroom teachers about items for costumes and also the opportunity to purchase tickets. There will be a matinee and evening performance on both Tuesday 24 and Wednesday 25 October.

Catholic Community Survey

Below is information that Catholic Principals have been asked to share with communities, inviting participation in an online survey.

NEEDS OF LAY CATHOLICS TODAY

What do adult lay Catholics need today to help them live a committed Catholic life amid the circumstances of modern society? To find out and to help improve their services to our Archdiocese, the Canberra Circle of The Catenians, an international association of lay Catholics, is conducting an Archdiocesan-wide online survey.

Please help by completing this brief, anonymous, tick-box survey via this URL. Thank you. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CLTZGMW

Contact: Phil Murray, President, Canberra Catenians 0419 695 927 or phil13murray@gmail.com

New Bus Timetable

Below is the Term 4 bus timetable for Route 51 that services St Joseph’s Primary School.  

End of term

Thank you to all the students for their efforts this term. Today we had guests from the Parramatta Diocese who visited classrooms to see the wonderful teaching and learning that is taking place. I could not be more proud of our students and teachers, with our guests commenting on the energy that is in the classrooms and the focus on learning that is evident.

I hope you all have an opportunity to have a break from the busy routines of school in the coming weeks. I look forward to seeing all the students on Monday 9 October, the first day of Term 4.

Have a great end to the week.

Yours in Christ,

Cameron Tarrant

Cameron.tarrant@cg.catholic.edu.au