Welcome to another year at Holy Trinity! First of all, thank you to everyone for welcoming and supporting me in my new role as the Parents and Friends (P&F) President. I’m not sure I’ve ever been around such a wonderful bunch of people, and I have certainly loved meeting everyone I have so far. It may take me a little while to remember your name, sorry!

Thank You

Before I go too far into what’s ahead, I want to thank Mark Bullock and team for making the Welcome BBQ and Parent Information Night (on 15 February) such a great success.

Also a huge thank you to Jen Graham for the absolutely fabulous Movie Night (on 1 March). You did it again Jen, and we are all so very grateful for your hard work to pull it all together. It really was a fun night, and Jen had a large and wonderful team of volunteers involved that saw the night run smoothly (popcorn, poppers, candy bar shoppers, set up and servers, cheese plate construction crew, ticket collectors and clean up gang). Thanks also to Mark Bullock and team for another great BBQ.

Who We Are 

P&F Meeting Dates

Here is a list of the P&F meeting dates for the year, all parents are invited to attend any or all of the meetings, or please send me any items you want included for discussion (contact details below):

There are a couple of things I now want to explain about the role of the P&F that will fit nicely under the following headings – Community, Services and Fundraising. 

Community

There will be a number of community based activities throughout the year that we would love to see as many of our families participate in. For example, there’s BBQs, vacuuming of the school by parents (that actually saves the school thousands of dollars each year), a parents revue night (fun and laughter in Term 3), and a casserole bank (provides home cooked meals for families that could do with a helping hand).

The P&F have also established a Facebook page (Holy Trinity Community). This is a closed group only for Holy Trinity parents  and offers another avenue for communication. 

The P&F will continue to support our charities this year. A few people have asked for more details about them, so I will provide more information in a later Newsletter.

My commitment to you

Provide information in advance of events so that you have an opportunity to contribute to the planning etc. I also commit to follow up with any queries you might have, and continue to be an avenue for parents to raise issues or suggestions with the school.

Can you help?

There are still some volunteers needed for vacuuming. Please contact Paul Osbourne if you can spare some time to help out this year.

Services

Two valuable services run completely by volunteers are the Uniform Shop and the Tuckshop.

The Uniform Shop is open on a Friday afternoon from 3.15pm until 4.00pm, or you can place online orders through Qkr!. There is also a good range of secondhand clothing available at very reasonable prices.

The Tuckshop is open every Monday, Thursday and Friday. We are finalising a roster and hope to have the Tuckshop open from next week. 

My commitment to you

To offer a broader uniform store service that provides convenience to all families, while continuing to maintain a viable financial outcome to the school. 

To engage with families willing to offer suggestions regarding Tuckshop services.

Can you help?

There are still some volunteers needed for the Tuckshop. Please contact Kirsty Brogan if you can spare a day this year to help out.

Fundraising

I have included many events below that probably fit more logically in the Community section. The P&F are committed to organising the events, with or without a profit. They all contribute to our wonderful community and we are pleased to offer them. If we end up with some money at the end, well that's a bonus.

Throughout the year the P&F will organise, among other things, the following fundraising events:

Movie Night held last week (1 March). Numbers may have been down on previous years, but it was a great night enjoyed by all. I loved seeing the kids running around with glow sticks, while us parents sat around chatting enjoying a yummy BBQ and cheese platters (all prepared by fabulous volunteers). When all things are finalised, I will report to you the total amount raised from this event. At this stage it looks like there will be a profit after expenses, thanks to the late surge of ticket sales on Friday afternoon. 

School Disco to be held during Term 2 on 24 May.  

Walkathon held during Term 2 on 23 August. 

Entertainment Book available through the P&F, more details to come soon.

Holy Trinity Cook Book still available through the P&F.

Mother’s Day/Father’s Day stalls the week before the day. More information will be circulated closer to the dates.

What are we raising funds for?

Last year, the P&F funded $40,000 for the refurbishment of the basketball courts, and how fabulous do they look! That was the big ticket item, but there was also School Readers, Robotics, and a contribution to the Literacy and Maths Curriculum.

This year, the P&F will continue to support our nominated charities (approximately $3,500). We have also committed our ongoing support for replacement School Readers (approximately $4,000).

In the coming weeks we will be asking you to vote on what the P&F spending priorities should be for the year. It’s always better to know in advance what we are trying to achieve! Your input to this process will be invaluable and will really set the fundraising scene for the year ahead. 

My commitment to you

I will report back on all fundraising efforts, and continue to seek your input into our spending. I, along with the P&F Committee members, are your representatives so I need to know what your thoughts are around what we are doing. Please get in touch. 

Can you help?

If you have a fundraising idea, or want to get involved in any of the fundraising activities please feel free to contact me. We are always looking for people to help out. You may only be able to help for an hour or so, but honestly, it all helps!

In summing up, this year will be great because we have great children, great parents, and great teachers and staff. I am hoping we can all work together to maintain the very high standard already set, so please, I need to hear from you – all the good, bad and the ugly feedback will be gratefully accepted! 

Contact the P&F

Please feel free to contact me directly on htpspfpresident@gmail.com, or contact your Class Coordinator who can pass messages through.

I think I’ve said enough, so here’s cheers to a wonderful year! Thank you and chat soon.

Dear Friends,

Historically the Catholic Church has met with many challenges both within its own community and in conflict with the public.  I know that recent media reports of the trial and conviction of Cardinal Pell in Melbourne has caused distress to many.

Whilst the trial is separate and distinct from our area of responsibility in this Catholic school, it focuses us to be particularly mindful of those who have suffered abuse in the past and how these reports will affect them.

I assure you we currently administer an education system which provides the safest possible environment for all our students and staff and, while the trial and media reporting has been extremely difficult to watch, it in no way detracts from the work we are doing.

The safety and welfare of students remains our absolute top priority. The child safety approaches administered by our dedicated teachers and leaders assure we are held to the highest professional and regulatory standards. They are embedded in organisational governance, policy, procedures, practice and culture. It is a key responsibility for everyone who works or volunteers in Catholic education.

Our system already undertakes training on a regular basis in areas of child protection such as reportable conduct, mandatory reporting, privacy and confidentiality, detecting and responding to trauma, conducting investigations and how to identify signs of harm and facilitate child-friendly ways for children to express their views, participate in decision-making and raise their concerns.

The creation this year of the Child Safe Advocate role (Emily Capper has this role at Holy Trinity)  supporting every systemic Catholic school in the Archdiocese, consolidates our commitment to child safety and protection from all sources of abuse. This commitment to child safety in every aspect of school life will continue and we must remain vigilant.

Catholic schools are highly valued because they provide safe learning environments. I am confident this will continue to be the case.

Please remember that every support is available for any members of our community whose suffering and distress may be heightened at this time. As Christian communities, we are called to listen and tend to the needs of the wounded, whatever may be the source of their suffering. We do this with open hearts and open minds, addressing the needs before us.

Ash Wednesday and Project Compassion

Yesterday, the 6th of March, marked the first day of Lent for 2019. Our Kinder to Year 4 students headed to mass and ELC students had their own prayer celebration. Our 5/6 students on camp in Jindabyne ended their day in prayer and reflection. 

The start of Lent also marks the start of Project Compassion. Project Compassion is Caritas Australia’s annual Lenten fundraiser and awareness-raising appeal. With the focus to come together to end poverty, promote justice and uphold dignity. Each class has been given a Project Compassion box to place on their classroom prayer table to put small change in. This is encouraged by alms giving. The act of students earning the money they put into the box. Over the coming weeks there will be more information about the fundraising appeal.

To end this week please read the reflection below form the Ash Wednsday Gospel reading.  It explains nicely our faith in connection to Ash Wednesday.

Why gives alms? Why pray? Why fast? Why do it all in secret? And what is the reward for these things? Simply put, when we give alms we love others, and when we repent and practice self-denial, we draw closer to God. 

During decisive points in his ministry, Jesus prayed and fasted-- alone, in 'secret!' -- his prayer and fasting become channels through which he drew closer to the Father. Prayer and fasting aligned his will to the Father’s will. They can do the same for us. Fasting, not just from food but from any of our desires, reminds us of our complete dependence on God. 

On Ash Wednesday, we accept a mark of ashes on our forehead, a mark that will distinguish us publically as sinners. What we know privately about ourselves we show to the world. It is also a sign to the world that we have received something extraordinary and undeserved from the Lord Jesus. – the gift of a new start and the unexpected grace of another chance.

Up coming events:

Parish School Mass- Saturday 16^th March 6pm 

Please come and join the community for our first Parish School Mass for 2019, at 6pm followed by supper. If your family would like to do the Prayers of the Faithful or Offertory please send me an email at Emily.capper@cg.catholic.edu.au. Thank you to our Year Two families who will be supplying supper after mass. The Year Two Class Coordinators will be sending an email out with further details to the Year Two families.

Daily lessons in resilience

by Michael Grose

Recently, I saw a mother give a simple, yet profound resilience lesson to her school-aged child, after he missed a much-anticipated excursion due to poor behaviour at school. Replying to the child’s protests about teacher unfairness and his over-reaction to missing out on a learning opportunity his mum simply replied, “Oh well!” Then she busied herself with other tasks. The child stunned by her reaction, shrugged and headed off to complete his homework.

Adult reactions matter

It’s in our reactions to children’s and young people’s every day mistakes, mess-ups, muck-ups and hurts where the real lessons in resilience lay.

The lessons for this child were simple but profound. “Oh well” meant:

• Stuff happens
• Don’t look for fault or blame
• Keep your perspective
• Pick yourself off and continue with what you were doing

How to react

The resilience lesson for this mother were equally as profound. When a minor mishap with a child or teenager occurs:

• Match your response to the incident
• Stay calm and be positive
• Don’t look for fault or blame
• Remember, stuff happens

Resilience lesson for parents – “Oh well”

Every day there are opportunities for parents to give their children lessons in resilience.

A child misses being picked for a team that he had his heart set on joining. “Oh well. Let’s see how you go next time”

When a boy experiences rejection in the playground at school. “Oh well. You’ll find that some people don’t want to be your friend.”

When a teenage girl doesn’t get the mark she thinks she deserves in an assignment. “Oh well. Sometimes we don’t get the marks we think we deserve.”

Match your response to the challenge to promote resilience

There are times when “Oh well” won’t cut it. When a child is bullied he needs your continued support.

When a student’s continuous efforts at improvement are constantly met with criticism then you may need to act on his behalf and meet with a teacher.

When a child always struggles to make the grade and is never picked for a team then you may need to help him make different choices.

These types of situations also present opportunities for daily lessons in resilience, but they require more parental support and teaching.

The resilience lessons learned are deeper and include concepts such as ‘things will eventually go your way,’ ‘there are times when you need to seek help’ and ‘this too shall pass.’

Promoting personal resilience focuses on helping kids cope with life’s hurts, disappointments and challenges in the present, while building strengths for the future.

Daily lessons in resilience are everywhere. You just need to be ready to make the most of these valuable lessons when they come your way.

(Source: ParentingIdeas.com.au)

Holy Trinity Netball is available for all kids from Kindergarten to Year 6.

HT Net Set Go is a program for kids ages 5 -7 years old (Kindergarten -year 1). It runs for 10 weeks starting from 4th of May.

HT NSG Net Set Go is for kids in Year 2 and Year 3. Winter Netball competition starting on the 4th of May.

Holy Trinity netball Year 4 only. This is a stand alone competition for Year 4 with no grading.

Holy Trinity netball Year 5/6 Winter competition starts on the 4th of May.

please note that there is a grading weekend for the juniors. We will keep you up to date with this.

Please let us know your interest at htpsnetball@gmail.com

At this stage we cannot open the Tuckshop as we do not have enough volunteers to create a roster for the Term.