Dear parents, carers and the St Joseph’s community,

October is the Month of the Rosary. As Fr Paul wrote about in the Bulletin on Sunday, the importance of prayer, and in particular the Rosary, is simple in nature but offers a great deal –

“The Rosary is my favourite prayer. A marvellous prayer! Marvellous in its simplicity and its depth.” St John Paul II.

“There is no surer means of calling down God’s blessings upon the family… than the daily recitation of the Rosary.” Pope Pius XII.

During the month of October, I encourage us all to take an opportunity to pause in prayer, and ask our Blessed Mother Mary, to watch over us as we work and learn together here at school and in our daily lives.

Welcome back to the start of Term 4. It has been wonderful to have the students return this week and to settle into school for what will be a very busy but exciting term. A reminder that the school calendar has been updated on Compass and the school website, and I encourage all parents to take some time to look ahead to plan for the many events coming up. Some important points to note –

• COVID Update – Pleasingly all restrictions have now been eased within school and the wider community. While there is no longer any requirement to inform the school of positive cases within your household, or a required period of isolation, it is still important that students remain at home when they are unwell.
• Parents and Visitors – With no restrictions in place, it will be wonderful to once again welcome all parents and visitors back into the school for our community gatherings and for any other opportunities to visit the school. There will be lots on this term to ensure we get back to being our great school community!
• Boorowa Carnival – Unfortunately for the third year in a row, the Boorowa Netball and Touch Football Carnival has been cancelled. The continual wet weather in recent months has meant the ovals could not be prepared to ensure safety on the day. Thank you to Koby Allan and other staff who had been organising our teams for the day, and to the students and parents who were looking forward to a great day. Maybe next year!
• Family Photos – The family (sibling) photos are now available for sale at the Front Office for $15. All sibling photos were taken on the day and are available for purchase, if you wish. These sales are returned back to the school as a contribution to fundraising.
• Nature Playground Opening and P&F BBQ – I am looking forward (sort of…) to seeing many of you at the Official Opening of the Nature Playground and the P&F BBQ on Friday. As part of the opening celebrations, I am told that I am heading down the slide into a pool of slime!

Floriade Extravaganza

On Tuesday this week, our St Joseph’s Choir and Bucket Drumming Squad headed out onto Stage 88 at Floriade to entertain the assembled crowd. What a wonderful opportunity to showcase the students and our school! Congratulations to all those students involved and who gave up their break times to rehearse and prepare for the big day. A huge thank you to Tiffany Fletcher and Jake Kucher for supporting the students. I know that a number of members of the community came up to me and to others there on the day, to comment on how well the students performed and how proud we should be of our school. Well done!

Sports Days Term 4

Throughout the year there are often sport clinics that run at different times that require sports days to change. This term Foundation to Year 5 are doing Zumba sessions on a Monday as part of their sport program! To make it easy for parents, please see the set sports days for each grade.

Carpark

It is timely to remind all parents and carers about the need to be safe and extra careful in and around the school, particularly during drop off and pick up times. We often see some concerning behaviours that quite simply, place the students’ and others’ safety at risk. Your continued attention to this is appreciated. Please see the attached carpark guidelines.

Carpark Guidelines

Fete

A reminder that we are now in full production mode for the St Joseph’s Fete and Family Fun Day on Sunday 6 November. There will be regular updates and information being sent out over the coming weeks. Please make sure you keep up to date and support the efforts of the Fete Committee as best as you can. Please see the P&F News in today's Newsletter for the latest information.