Dear Parents/Carers & Community Members

This week saw the return of all our Year7 students who were impacted by COVID last week.  It was great to see their smiling faces and eagerness to be back at school and reconnect with their peers and teachers.  The school community is not the same when our youngest students are absent, the energy and excitement they bring makes the school feel vibrant and more energised.

Celebrating and Respecting Cultural Diversity

This week as a nation we celebrated our countries cultural diversity (Harmony week).  Our cultural diversity is one of our greatest strengths and is at the heart of who we are.  It makes Australia a great place to live and is an integral part of our identity.  When celebrating our cultural diversity, we can reflect and remember how we have learnt and grown as a nation.

All people who migrate to Australia bring with them some of their own cultural and religious traditions and collectively these traditions have enriched our nation.  While also remembering and celebrating the oldest continuous culture of our first Australians.

Celebrating our multi-culturalism is also about RESPECT a key point in our school’s Mission

‘Inspired by the GOSPEL VALUES’ and the practical examples of St Mary of the Cross Mackillop and Clare of Assisi our Mission is to…

RESPECT – Creation

• By showing loving concern for each and every person
• By respecting each of God’s creatures and caring for the environment
• By celebrating our uniqueness

We are all different - different personalities, different backgrounds; different looks; different skills and abilities, this is who we are and makes us unique. As communities and as individuals we have the right to be treated with respect and treat others with respect. I am a strong believer that respect is not just earned it is given in the first place.

Below are some statistics about Australia's diversity from the ABS census data 2016:

• nearly half (49 per cent) of Australians were born overseas or have at least one parent who was
• we identify with over 300 ancestries
• since 1945, more than 7.5 million people have migrated to Australia
• 85 per cent of Australians agree multiculturalism has been good for Australia
• apart from English, the most common languages spoken in Australia are Mandarin, Arabic, Cantonese, Vietnamese, Italian, Greek, Tagalog/Filipino, Hindi, Spanish and Punjabi
• more than 70 Indigenous languages are spoken in Australia.

Unfortunately, we were unable to celebrate Harmony Day this week. Our celebration will occur on Wednesday, 30 March with a ‘Wear It Orange Day’ out of uniform day.

Prayer for Ukraine

As we celebrate our cultural diversity, it is important to remember the people of Ukraine as war continues. We take time to pray and reflect on the devastation and destruction of their country and way of living.

Loving God,
We pray for the people of Ukraine,
for all those suffering or afraid,
that you will be close to them and protect them.

We pray for world leaders,
for compassion, strength, and wisdom to guide their choices.

We pray for the world
that in this moment of crisis,
we may reach out in solidarity
to our brothers and sisters in need.

May we walk in your ways
so that peace and justice
become a reality for the people of Ukraine
and for all the world.

Amen

Finally, as we come toward the last few weeks of term, I take the time to say thanks to all our staff, parents, carers and community members for your continued hard work and support in these COVID times.  Let’s continue to work together and support each other to ensure we get to the end of term safe and healthy.

Regards

Mr Phil Gibney
Acting Principal