Last Sunday’s Gospel...

Jesus gave us a number of images of what the kingdom of heaven was like – a pearl, a giant tree and a harvest. I wonder what image we could use for our school because we strive to be a Kingdom of God in our own way at Holy Family.

Did you know...

Jesus’ use of images and parable was very particular to the time he lived in. It is quite amazing they are still so relevant today 2000 years later.

From the Principal...

It has been a very eventful time at Holy Family. While we celebrate Fr Peter’s Golden Jubilee on 15^th August, the Feast of the Assumption, we must also prepare to get used to him not being around every day. Fifty years of dedication to the priesthood is a wonderful life commitment and we are blessed to have had 36 of those years here at Holy Family. When people ask me where I work, everybody seems to have heard of Fr Peter. He has Baptised so many babies, been the person to give countless children their First Holy Communion, not to mention marriages, funerals and all the many visits to support the school. We will all miss him greatly as we also celebrate his lifetime of giving in the service of God.

The Canteen seems to have started well by all reports. I have had positive feedback about the quality, quantity and price of the food. I hope you continue to find the service beneficial. We have worked out many of the necessary procedures now and please let us know if we have missed anything.

The vast majority of parents are doing the correct thing in wet weather but we nearly had a serious accident in the wet weather with parents driving in under the hall awning to drop off and collect their children. Please do not drive in – it is a pedestrian walkway only. Thank you all for the raincoats rather than umbrellas for students. I noticed the effort you have all made – thank you!

Winter uniforms are a focus at the moment with our PB4L procedures. Teachers give the students verbal reminders about their uniforms and if there isn’t a change, you will get a short note sent home. Of course if there is a particular reason to be out of uniform – a cast for a broken arm doesn’t fit in the jacket for example, another item may be worn. Please just let us know. Remember at the start of the year we gave until the beginning of term 3 to be in the correct school and sport shoes if you had purchased the incorrect ones at the beginning of the year. Also that the Holy Family School bag is compulsory from the beginning of 2021, so please don’t buy a different one.

Please be assured that all COVID restrictions remain in place to keep everyone safe. You have done a good job informing us of testing and please keep it up.

The students and teachers are back into teaching and learning with routines helping everyone to learn and be calm and happy at school. I myself have seen some wonderful gains in reading and am very proud of the students for working so hard, the teachers for their dedication and parents too, because without your support from home, we wouldn’t be seeing the gains we have.

God Bless,

Michelle Rolfe

Principal

Our Term 3 Staff Development Day will be held on Friday 21 August, 2020. This will be a pupil free day.  Please note, there will not be any supervision at school as all staff will be offsite on this day.  Thank you for your co-operation.

OOSH will be available on this day and bookings can be made by contacting OOSH on 0417 482 787.

Mary MacKillop and her sisters shared the life the poor and itinerant, offering special care to destitute women and children.  She is remembered for her eagerness to discover God's will in all things, for her charity in the face of calumny and for her abiding trust in God's providence.

Mary MacKillop was canonised on October 17, 2010 at Saint Peter’s Basilica, Rome. Pope Benedict XVI proclaimed Mary’s sainthood during a Canonisation Mass, in the presence of many thousands of people and streamed live around the world.  

St Mary of the Cross MacKillop is Australia's first Saint.

Congratulations to our newest priest in the Diocese, Fr Anthony Crook RAN, who was ordained to the priesthood on Saturday 11 July 2020 by Most Rev Bishop Brian Mascord DD Bishop of Wollongong.

(Extract from Ordination booklet)

Before his Ordination, Fr Anthony had been ministering at the parishes of St Thomas Aquinas Bowral and St Michael’s Mittagong alongside Fr Sean Cullen. On the 15 July 2020, Bishop Brian appointed Fr Anthony as Assistant Priest to St John’s Parish, Campbelltown, under the guidance of Parish Priest Fr John Ho. Fr Anthony will continue to act in a Reserve capacity with the Royal Australian Navy and will work alongside Fr Ho and Fr Feleki Tautunu in ministering to the people of Campbelltown.

A prayer for Fr Anthony as he begins his priestly ministry:

O Jesus, our great High Priest, hear our humble prayers on behalf of your priest, Father Anthony.

Give him a deep faith, a bright and firm hope, and a burning love which will ever increase during his priestly life.

In his loneliness, comfort him; in his sorrows, strengthen him; in his frustrations, point out to him that it is through suffering that the soul is purified. Show him that he is needed by the Church, he is needed by souls, he is needed for the work of redemption.

O loving Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Priests, take to your heart your sons who are close to you because of their priestly ordinations, and because of the power which they have received to carry on the work of Christ in a world which needs them so much. Be their comfort, be their joy, be their strength, and especially help them to live and to defend the ideals of consecrated celibacy.

 Amen.

Sport Cancellations Update:

Please be advised of the following cancellations in early term 3.

Primary: 

• 31 July - Soccer gala days
• 6 August - West Region Athletics
• 11 August - South Coast Region Athletics

These decisions have been made in consultation with Catholic Education, Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) leadership and have taken into account a number of factors.  As important as it is to restart sport it must be done with the safety of students, school staff, officials and spectators as a priority.