Parents Working for Parents 

Do you know we have four key parent groups in our school?

These groups are: the Parents and Friends Association; the Holy Spirit School Board; Class and Community Contacts and the Finance Committee.

These parent groups fulfil different roles and support and assist students, parents and staff members in a variety of ways.

Last Saturday, members of the School Board attended a formation day. School Boards do not operate like other boards. 

The Holy Spirit School Board operates on a model based on ‘shared wisdom’. This means no voice is greater than another. The School Board has been involved in the School Master Plan. The members looked at plans visited other schools and were the advocates who ensured the school would not have to fund the building project.

The Board is comprised of parent reps, parish reps, staff reps and administration reps. The members are: Fred Nucifora, Matt Lyons, Michael Catt, Damien Farrington, Fr. John, Blanche Crisp, Begona Bengoa, Caroline Fuller and Geraldine Egelton. 

The Parents and Friends Association is another vital parent group. While this group  is interested in fundraising, it is not their primary focus. In the very near future the new Urban Warrior playground and Rainforest Boardwalk will be completed. This project has been a joint P & F and school project. Our loyal  P & F parents are to be congratulated for their effort in seeing this project through and ensuring that an exciting playground will be accessible for out students. A great addition to the playground in our fiftieth year! 

The P and F are a small but active group who assist with helping to improve our school facilities for our students. The P & F AGM is Monday, 4 March. All are welcome!

The Class and Community Contacts are an essential group which assist with communication between the class and families. 

The Finance Committee has parent reps and members from the wider community. This committee meets once a term to ensure we are staying on target and meeting our budget.

We are currently looking for parents to fill the role of CCCs (Class and Community Contacts), please speak with your child’s teacher if you would like to be involved.

We look forward to your involvement in our school community!

God bless,

Geraldine

Parent teacher interviews will commence next Monday, 4th March.   Parents will need to use  their Compass  log in  details to book an interview.  

Thank you to the many families who have collected their letter with the log in details from the school office. As time is running out to collect your letter, please contact the school office for your log in details. 

Parent teacher interviews are a great way to see how your child has settled into the new school year.  Our teachers are looking forward to meeting with you.

Happy Days,

Paul Martin

This week at Holy Spirit, we value stewardship.  The earth and all life on it are part of God’s creation and we are called to respect this gift.  We are responsible for taking care of the world we live in and for sharing all the wonders and resources the earth gives us.  Our changing environment prompts us to stop and think about how we live on our planet.  As stewards of God’s creation, we are called to respond and to adopt new ways of living as Pope Francis highlights in his encyclical, Laudato Si': On the Care of our Common Home.  Project Compassion is Caritas Australia's annual Lenten fundraising and awareness-raising appeal.  Millions of Australians come together in solidarity with the world's poor to help end poverty, promote justice and uphold dignity.  Over the coming weeks, a feature story from the Caritas Australia website will be shared.  You can find out more and how our donations by using the Project Compassion boxes will help by visiting https://lent.caritas.org.au/#blank

This year’s theme for Project Compassion is ‘100% HOPE – Lives change when we all give 100%.’  The first week’s feature story is ‘100% DETERMINATION’ with twelve year old Thandolway from Zimbabwe.  Life in her village in north-western Zimbabwe wasn’t easy for twelve-year-old Thandolwayo.  Her father left several years ago and her mother lives in a town 90 kilometres away where she works as a casual labourer. Thandolwayo lives with her grandparents and attends the local school which has just 35 students.  Every morning she’d walk seven kilometres and risk being attacked by crocodiles as she collected clean water for her family. She’d then go to school feeling exhausted.  Thandolwayo’s grandparents sell pearl millet bran to fishermen and farmers for animal feed. They also sell chickens - but the income it brings isn’t enough to support the family.

Thandolwayo’s hope to be a nurse seemed almost impossible to realise, until Caritas Hwange helped the village to install two solar-powered pumps to draw the water up from the river, as well as two 10,000 litre storage tanks.  Thanks to Caritas’ support, water is now on tap in the village, benefitting its 500 residents - and Thandolwayo can concentrate on her education.  “Now I can bathe every day, the distance to collect water for the family has been drastically reduced,” Thandolwayo says. “We now drink clean, safe water and diseases are no longer affecting us.”  The plentiful water supply has also triggered new ventures. Water is being used to mould bricks for building houses and to pound maize to sell. Plans are underway to establish a community garden and a fish pond, to generate a better income.

Next Tuesday, 5^th March, is Shrove Tuesday.  In ancient times, this was a day of celebration, when there were processions and people feasted together before they entered a time of fasting and prayer during Lent.  Today, many still follow this tradition by eating pancakes.  This is associated with the ancient custom of eating the last supplies of milk, flour and eggs before the beginning of Lent.  A number of leaders from Year 6 will be attending the Caritas Project Compassion Appeal Launch which will be taking place at St Joseph the Worker Church, Stuart Drive, Wulguru.

Lent also begins next week with Ash Wednesday on the 6^th March.  Our Grade 3 to 6 students will be attending Mass in the Church with Fr John at 9am and our P-2 students will have a Liturgy in the Lynch Family Hall at 8:40am.  Everyone is welcome to attend.

God Bless

Caroline

4- 8 March 8.15am - 3.15pm in the Library

For step by step instructions to book for Parent Teacher interviews through Compass please clink the link below.

Holy Spirit Catholic School uses Flexischools ordering system.  To register, login or to place orders, please click this link:  

Flexischools

We are open Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 8am at Tuckshop.

Your support with donations of spreads (not nut based) would be appreciated.  Donations can be dropped off at Tuckshop.

Parents, it is essential that you advise the office if your child is going to be absent. This can be done by emailing absent@hsstsv.catholic.edu.au or via the skoolbag app.

Natalie Arnel

(School Psychologist)

narnel4@hsstsv.catholic.edu.au