Dear Parents, Staff and Students

We’ve had another disrupted week due to the weather. Thank you to all families for responding to the call out on Monday to pick up children from school. We give thanks that our community was not greatly affected by the severe weather conditions.

Congratulations to our students who participated in the Rugby and Netball Carnivals last Friday. It was a successful day for all and we are proud of all students for their participation and sportsmanship. Thank you to all parents who assisted or supported on the day. 

Lent

We have begun our Lenten journey as a school and parish community. Lent is a time to take inventory of our lives and to see where we need to get back on track.

God of life:

You sent Jesus into the world to show us how to live.

Help us to embrace the example and teachings of Jesus, by spending time with Jesus, the living Word.

Draw us deeper into unity with you and our brothers and sisters, through our efforts to live in peace and justice with one another. Inspire and encourage us to be agents of the Gospel as we strive to be an influence for good in our world.  We ask this through Jesus, the light of the world. Amen

During Lent, our Yr 6 leaders are involved in various justice and stewardship activities that support Project Compassion.  We thank them for their leadership.

Volunteer training

Have you completed volunteer training?  All parents assisting with sport training, tuckshop, sport days, transport, excursions, classroom assistance etc need to complete the training found on the Catholic Education website. Go to: https://www.cns.catholic.edu.au/our-school-communities/parent-engagement/volunteer-training/    All parents who are on the tuckshop roster or who are intending on assisting with the upcoming Touch carnival need to ensure they have completed training before the day.

School Review

Next week we will have a visitor in our school for three days – Graeme Hall. Every five years, schools go through a review process. Graeme has been appointed to us for our review and is from an external company.

We completed the compliance part of the review in 2020 and will now be working on the School Effectiveness Framework.  Our reviewer will spend time at school meeting with staff, students and parents, and visiting classrooms, to find out how we address the educative needs of our school.  We look forward to next week and receiving feedback that will allow us to develop a strategic plan for St Clare’s. 

I will be away the remainder of this week at a Principal Conference in Cairns.

Peace and best wishes for the week ahead,

Narelle Harney

Welcome   Community   Hospitality

Prayer for the Lenten Journey 

Loving God,

stay with me in my own time in the desert, as you were with Jesus.

Help me to live a Lent focused on freedom, generosity, and encounter.

Give me a heart hungry to serve you and those who need what I have to give.

Amen

Shrove Tuesday

Thank you to all involved with the planning, organising and supporting our Shrove Tuesday Pancake Breakfast fundraiser. Together, we raised $150.00. These funds will be added to our St Patrick’s Day fundraiser, as well as Project Compassion collection box contributions and will all be donated to the Catholic charity, Caritas Australia.

Ash Wednesday Mass

Our school community gathered to celebrate Ash Wednesday on Wednesday 17^th February with a Liturgy.  Father Joby spoke to the children about the meaning of Lent and gave them examples of what they could do during Lent with regards to prayer, fasting and almsgiving.

Project Compassion Boxes 

During the Ash Wednesday Mass, Fr Joby gave everyone a Project Compassion box. If you feel you are able to support this initiative through the collection boxes as a family, please do so. For example, instead of buying an ice-cream, they may decide to put the money in the box instead.  This is a great way of teaching about social justice and how to be compassionate and show empathy. Anything over $2 is tax deductible. 

Each week, students in each class are invited to bring in their collection box and add the money they have collected to the classroom collection box. This will then be taken to assembly each Friday to contribute to the St Clare’s collection box.

Second Week of Lent

This week through Project Compassion we learn about 39-year-old Margret, a teacher at a vocational school for deaf students in the Solomon Islands. She was born deaf, so she knows the challenges it poses to education and employment. Apart from the difficulties the students all have, the school also faced water shortages, with not enough to supply staff and students with safe water for drinking, cooking, washing and growing vegetables.

Then Tropical Cyclone Harold damaged the school and its vegetable garden, amidst the threat of COVID-19. Staff and students rely on the vegetable garden to provide food for their meals.

With Caritas Australia’s support, the school installed water tanks, provided cyclone-proof building materials and helped to implement COVID-19 prevention measures. Margret’s school now has enough water for its students and the capacity to cater for more, with plans to boost food security, through increased agricultural production. 

• Around 60% of people in rural areas in the Solomon Islands don’t have access to piped water, while about 80% don’t have access to latrines or toilets. (UNICEF, 2019)
• Watch a short film about Margret’s story here.

“Aspire not to have more, but to be more.” Please support Project Compassion: lent.caritas.org.au

Launch of 200 Years of Catholic Education in Australia

The School Captains, Aiden, Marty and Tori travelled to Cairns with Ms Harney and Mrs Andrews for the launch of 200 years of Catholic Education in Australia.  Bishop James celebrated the Mass and our school captains capably read the Prayers of Intercession during Mass.  There will be further celebrations in May to celebrate this milestone of Catholic Education in Australia.

Year 6 Justice Day

Our Year 6 class are participating in a Justice Day on Wednesday 17th March with staff from CES Identity & Mission team.  They will be having a fun day of activities based on developing leadership skills and social justice. 

Year 6 Leaders

All of our Year 6 students are School Leaders and part of the St Clare’s Stewardship team. The Stewardship team are involved in raising awareness of social justice issues, raising money and having the opportunity to organise events in the religious life of the school. The Year 6 class have been divided into three teams – Bulgan team, Banyan team and the Jarra team.  Some events they have already been involved with were the opening School Mass and cooking pancakes for Shrove Tuesday.  The Jarra team will be facilitating our next event which is raising money for Project Compassion on St Patrick’s Day.

St Patrick’s Day (Green Frozen Cup fundraiser for Project Compassion)

On Wednesday, 17th March (Week 8), the Year 6 Jarra team will plan and organise a green frozen cup fundraiser and students will be invited to wear green to celebrate St Patrick’s Day for the cost of a gold coin donation. Frozen cups will be sold at first lunch for 50c each. The Jarra team will share more information with the students next week.

 

School Calendar

	March
	5		School Assembly - Year 1
	12		School Assembly - Year 4
	16	7pm	St Clare's P&F Meeting
	17		St Patrick's Day
	19		School Assembly - Prep
			St Joseph's Day - Yr 3-6 Mass
	22-26		Parent Teacher Interviews
	25		The  Annunciation of the Lord
	26		School Assembly - Year 2
			Southern Zone Touch Football Carnival-TSHS
	April
	1		Holy Thursday
			School Closes for term 1
	2-18		School Holidays
	19		Term 2 Commences

Term 1  

Assembly Classes: Wk 6 - Yr 1, Wk 7 - Yr 4, Wk 8 - Prep,

Wk 9 -Yr 2, Wk 10 - No Assembly

World Day of Prayer Services

Date: 5^th March           Time: 9.30am

Location: Tully Family Church

Contact Person: Dina Milone    0407681634

Mass Times Changes

St. Clare’s Church - Mass times

As of last Sunday 28th February, the morning Mass times on Sundays will be held at 9.30am as a trial for 3 months. This has been changed to give Father a chance to catch up with Parishioners after the 7am Mass at Mission Beach and enough time to have to not race back to the Tully Mass.

As of Monday 1st March, there will also be the following changes:

• Mondays – No mass
• Tuesdays - Mass & Rosary 5.30pm
• Wednesdays - Mass 7.30am (except 3rd Wed)
• Thursdays - Mass 7.30am (except 3rd Thu)
• Fridays - Mass 8am (except 3rd Fri) This will give a chance for School Staff, Students and Parents to attend.
• Saturdays - Vigil Mass 6pm
• Sundays - Mass 9.30am in Tully

Parent/Teacher Interviews will be held during Week 9 of Term 1.  Booking an interview will once again be done via the PTO website.  Further information regarding this website, including your login details, will be forwarded by the end of the week. 

1st Reminder - TERM 1 O/S SCHOOL FEES

Reminder letters were emailed last Thursday.   

               Due date: Wednesday, 10th March 

Please contact the school office if you did not receive the reminder letter so we can check your email address or if you require a hardcopy of o/s fees to make payment.

Please check your junk or spam mail.

If you are having problems with making payments please contact the office to arrange a meeting time with the principal.                        Thank you.

CLASS PHOTOS 2021

Class photos date has been set for Tuesday, 10th August. (Term 3)   

More details will be given closer to the date. 

Friday 5/3/2021 - 

Friday 12/3/2021 - 

Coordinator: J Berge  Helpers: N Lizzio  C Bowden

Bakers: R Salleras  B Crossland  (Cupcakes)

Friday 19/3/2021 -

Coordinator: J Berge  Helpers: L Hansen  L Robertson

Bakers: K Kampe  R Lund  (Cupcakes)

Touch Football Carnival

A note is coming home today with the eldest in the family regarding the Touch Football Carnival and help we require for serving food that day. 

If you don’t receive the note please let me know. 
Marie Vipiana 

Pie Orders

Thank you to everyone for sending in Pie Order’s. More Information regarding collection on the 17th March will be in the next newsletter.