Dear Parents,

A very exciting welcome to our 2020 school year. It was wonderful to see 79 smiling faces return to school last Wednesday and all enjoying a lovely settled start to the school year.

 A special welcome to our new students, Corby and Essie in Year 2, Tahlira in Year 4 and Nicholas in Year 5. We also welcomed 7 beautiful little Kindergarten students, Zoe Morgan, Zoe Paton, Maeve Ryan, Leila Gaskin, Mackenzie Little, Lane Johnson and Lele Rui. Welcome also to our new families, the Little, Rose and Rui families. We are very excited to welcome you as part of our St Patrick’s school community.

A busy start to this week with our St Patrick’s School swimming carnival this Thursday followed by our Opening School Mass on Friday at 12pm. On Friday evening the Community Council are holding a welcome gathering at Lott’s Family Hotel to welcome our new families and to welcome back all our other families. Please come along at 6pm to enjoy each others company. Children are welcome.

We have all been touched or impacted by the devastating bushfires that tore through our local and surrounding communities over the school holidays. Our Tumblong and Snowy Valley’s Mountain Highway families were evacuated during that time as well. Many family members have been involved in the emergency response services such as RFS, SES etc. Thank you to all those who have fought so hard to keep our communities safe. We are extremely grateful for the hard work of all involved.

A very grateful thank you to Sue Holstein and her team of volunteers who set up the donation centre at St Patrick’s Hall and worked continuously to provide food, water and other items to emergency personal as well as families that were evacuated in the local regions. A huge thank you to the very generous donations from all our local shops and individuals as well. As one of the evacuees, I can tell you first-hand how much everyone’s generosity meant to our families and communities.

Catholic Education have also responded very generously to the effected communities by offering extra support services including counselling services for our students. Our school counsellor Mel, will be at school for 5 visits during Term 1 to help provide additional support for any students effected by the events of January. We will offer some whole class visits from Mel as well as parents being able to ask for individual sessions if required. Please contact our front office if you wish to access this support.

We look forward to a wonderful term of teaching and learning and inspiring the minds of the young people in our care.

Enjoy your week

Regards

Christine Baron

Principal 

Welcome back everyone. I hope everyone was able to enjoy some valuable family time together over the holiday period. For many people these holidays were a time of great upheaval and stress. We pray that things will improve and 2020 will bring many blessings to those who have suffered in any way.

 Our Opening School Mass will be held on Friday 7^th February at 12 noon in St Patrick’s Church. During this Mass our 2020 School Leaders and SRC Representatives will be inducted and presented with their badges. A special presentation will be made to our new Kindergarten children by their Buddies. An invitation is extended to all our St Patrick’s families to celebrate with us on Friday. The theme of our Mass is ‘Let Your Light Shine.’

Thank you to all those children who undertook altar serving duties over the holiday period and to their families who assisted their children to be able to come to Mass. Your efforts were very much appreciated.

A new Altar Serving Roster will be sent home this week which will take us up to Term Two. Thank you for your continued support of this special ministry.

 Reflection

 What will this year bring?

We do not know;

It will bring its usual times of work and play,

Experiences of success and failure,

All the things that are part of school life.

It is a new beginning;

The planting of a seed that will grow for a year,

The seed of fruit that will blossom in times to come.

It is new hope;

Hope for good work, for successful results,

For friendships, for fun, for learning.

In this coming year, may there be learning, prayer and fun.

May there be hard work, faith and friendship.

May no one in this school be lonely;

May no one be left out in class;

May no one suffer through the others here.

As we begin this year in hope, in prayer and in friendship,

May the Lord begin it with us, be with us during it,

And successfully bring it to its conclusion.

Kate  Howe

REC

Our Kindgarten students have settled into their new school life and routines.  Thank you to their Year 6 Buddies for being so helpful.  A special presentation will be made to our new Kindergarten children by their buddies on Friday's opening Mass at 12pm. 

Our students and classes have elected our 2020 SRC (Student Representative Council Members). Congraluations to the following students:

Year 2 - Corby Rose & Archie McDonnell 

Year 3 - Abigail Bock & Nate Tozer 

Year 4 - Tahlira Rose & Hugh Ryan 

Year 5 - Juliet Pearce & Jack Peterson 

Standing with our 2020 SRC Members are our School Captains Sadie Eccleston, Will Gaskin, Sam Turck and Asher Jones. 

These students will be presented with their SRC Badge during our Opening Mass on Friday at 12pm.  All family are welcome to attend 

We still have a few sizes available for sale of last year's Sunglasses if anyone would like to purchase a pair.  They are $15.00. Just call into the office to try on sizes.   First in best dressed as there are limited sizes 

We would like to once again thank all families for your Woolworths Earn & Learn sticker collection during 2019.  We have this week received our order of goodies, toys and classroom equipment.  The St Patrick's school community THANK YOU. 

2020 Opportunities to Trial for Sports

Online Registrations for Primary students are available for AFL, Cricket, Basketball, Tennis, Netball, Rugby League, Football (Soccer), Hockey, Touch Football, Rugby Union and Softball via the Archdiocese of Canberra Goulburn’s Sport website https://www.sport.cg.catholic.edu.au/  Teams will be selected to attend the MacKillop trials based on the Canberra Goulburn trials. To register your child please go to the above website, click on the Registration tab and follow the Registration instruction process. Please note that the trials are essentially for students in years 5 and 6, however younger students may be considered if they are exceptional within their chosen sport.

Anyone can register for these trials however they are an expression of interest only and will be discussed with your school sports coordinator (Mrs Wilson and Mrs Flanagan) the suitability of the student to trial and require Principal Approval.  Canberra Goulburn advises that to trial the basic requirement is that the student plays in an organised competition within their local community preferably with representative experience within that club. 

To register your child for sport trials you will need to go online to the Canberra Goulburn’s Sport website https://www.sport.cg.catholic.edu.au/ and click on the sport you wish to register for and follow the Registration process.

 Key Term 1 sporting dates are:

Week 4 - 17 February - Western Region Swimming in Harden 

Week 4 - 20 February - Canberra Goulburn Soccer Trails in Lyneham (Canberra)

Week 5 - 2 March - Archdiocese Swimming Carnival Swimming Chaps in Narooma 

Week 7 - 20 March - Canberra Goulburn Cricket Trials in Gundagai 

Week 9 - 3 April - Canberra Goulburn Netball Trials in Lyneham 

Week 9 - 3 April - Canberra Goulburn Rugby League Trials in Lyneham

Week 10 - 8 April - Canberra Goulburn Touch Football Trials in Lyneham 

Term 2 - 2020 

Week 1 - 30 April - Western Region Cross Country in Grenfell

We would like to extend our birthday wishes to the following children who celebrated a birthday during the school holidays:

25 December - Emily Ryan 

28 December - Christyne Calub & Garvita Joshi 

29 December - Darby Jones 

31 December - Anson Chew 

14 January - Lele Rui 

22 January - Dale Paton 

26 Januaray - Sophie Graham 

2 February - Archie McDonnell & Jack Peterson 

3 February - Eliza Hargreaves 

4 February - Lachlan Morgan 

We hope you all had a wonderful birthday

Altar Serving Roster 

Saturday 8th Feburary - Asher Jones & Josie Quine 

Saturday 15th February - Sarah Scott & James Reardon 

Saturday 22nd February - Harry Crowe & Juliet Pearce 

If you are unable to attend Mass on rostered dates please arrange a suitable swap. 

RADIO ROSTER

Year 6 Read out St Patrick's weekly news every Wednesday at 2.15pm on "Sounds of the Mountains" 

Week 2 (5 Feb) - Asher Jones & Sarah Scott 

Week 3 (12 Feb) - Will Gaskin & Sadie Eccleston 

Week 4 (19 Feb) - Addison Fairall & Sam Turck

Besure you tune into the local radio to hear our weekly news reported by our Year 6 students 

Team nomination forms for the 2020 Autumn Competition are available from Pie in the Sky Bakery and Sportspower or www.tumut.basketball.net.au This season the committee will again be accepting Kindergarten aged children. Active Kids Vouchers can be used. 

Team nominations must be submitted on or before Thursday 20th February 4.30-6.00pm at the Club Tumut. 

Any registration enquiries can be made to the Registrar Debbie Webb on 0427 647 27 or through Tumut Basketball Facebook Page.  Further information for the upcoming comp can be found on the website above. 

GUNDAGAI NETBALL CLUB 

WINTER COMPETITION REGISTRATION DAY 

At Netball Courts, Sheridan Lane, Gundagai 

Thursday 26th March 4pm-5.30pm 

Individual and Team Registrations for the Tumut Winter competition welcome. 

Divisions Include: 

* NetSetGo (5-10 years) Thursday afternoons in Gundagai 

* NetSetGo (5-10 years) Thursday afternoons in Gundagai and Saturday mornings in Tumut 

* Juniors (Yr 4 at school - 17 yrs)

* Seniors (18 years and over) 

Names will be taken on registration day but payment and registration is completed online.  Help will be available if required. 

If you have any questions or are unable to attend registration day please email names to carmel.lemon@bigpond.com 

If you have a Gundagai Netball dress at home that no longer fits your daughter please consider handing it back in. 

GUNDAGAI NETBALL CLUB IS A REGISTERED ACTIVE KIDS PROVIDER

ITS THAT TIME AGAIN........

SUMMER TWILIGHT COMPETITION

Commencing Tuesday 11th February 2020 and ends Tuesday 7th April 2020

Further information will be provided on our FaceBook page.