Faith & Mission updates

from Mrs Trish Schofield, Deputy Principal – Faith & Mission

Vinnies

The focus for this term has been about creating awareness of the great work of Vinnies in our community. One area of support provided by Vinnies is for Housing and Homelessness.

According to St Vincent de Paul, more than 116,000 people are homeless on any given night in Australia, despite the fact that housing is a human right.

Every day, St Vincent de Paul staff and members see the human face behind the homelessness statistics. They know that homelessness doesn’t discriminate – the homeless population comprises people of all ages and backgrounds.

The website explains how “for some, homelessness is a one-off occurrence. For others, it is a prolonged experience that may be interspersed with periods of being housed. The experience of homelessness in Australia can also vary greatly – from sleeping on the streets or moving between temporary situations, to living in a crowded or unsafe dwelling that effects a person’s ability to participate in family and community life.”

https://www.vinnies.org.au/page/Our_Impact/homelessness-in-Australia/

Catherine McAuley College will hold our annual Rug Up Day next week on Thursday 6 June. Students and staff are encouraged to wear the warmest jumpers, jackets, trackies and beanies to school as heating will turned off where possible. This is one way to create awareness of the issue facing many in our local community who experience the harshness of winter on the streets or are without basic necessities to stay warm.

Samoa Immersion

We wish our 11 students and staff travelling to Samoa all the best for their immersion. The students have been busy fundraising this term to support the schools they visit in Samoa. They will be visiting St Therese’s primary school in Savai’i and Fiamalamalama, a special school in Upolu.

Shane McConvill, Rhiannon Hercus and Sarah Gross will be the staff accompanying Chiara Artavilla, Georgia Smith, Mikayla Murphy, Alexandra Nicholas, Chelsea Furlong, Gemma Ritchie, Anais Mott, Lily Dickson, Clare McCarthy, Grace Broderick, Holly Jeffrey, Ireland O’Rourke, Brianna Harris, Charlotte Lapalme-Daly, Joel Burns and Darcy McIntosh.

Stronger Rally

The next Stronger Rally will take place at St Kilian’s Hall on 14 June from 6pm-9pm. The Rally will be further exploring Sandhurst Youth Ministry’s theme for the year; ‘Upon This Rock: The Imperfect Disciple’.
We are very excited that Fr Rob Galea will be present for the evening to lead our Praise and Worship. This will be Fr Rob’s first appearance at a Stronger Rally for a while so I’m sure there will be some students and staff interested in attending!
We are also very pleased to welcome Sr Melissa Dwyer, a Cannossian Daughter of Charity from Brisbane. She currently works for Vocations Brisbane and is the Spiritual Advisor for the St Vincent de Paul Society Queensland. She has spent time teaching in Malawi, Africa. But prior to becoming a Sister, she was on track to become an Olympic Javelinist. Sr Mel will be speaking about the importance of Trusting God.

Alternative Schoolies 2019

Celebrate the end of 13 years of schooling in a different way. Help Others . . .Meet New People . . .Travel  . . .Change your life!

• Where: Cebu, Philippines
• When: from 1 – 11 December (to be confirmed)
• Indicative Costs: $2,500 (to be confirmed)
• Register your interest now: Mrs Trish Schofield, Deputy Principal – Faith & Mission
• Organised by Catholic Education Sandhurst
• Enquiries: David Walker dwalker@ceosand.catholic.edu.au 0439201307

STEP OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE

Information evenings will be conducted in May/June 2019

Reconciliation Week

At this week’s St Mary’s Reconciliation Assembly, Arts Captain Blaze Houlden spoke about the Tree of Truth image on the Reconciliation Week poster. Read his speech: https://www.cmc.vic.edu.au/?p=8510&preview=1&_ppp=8213eb6290

Year 12 student Emily Brown called on our community to take action and show respect in her thoughtful speech at today’s Reconciliation Week Assembly. “National Reconciliation Week. A time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia…” Read full speech: https://www.cmc.vic.edu.au/exploring-how-each-of-us-can-contribute-to-achieving-reconciliation-in-australia/