Semester 2, Week 9 Friday 7 December 2018
Christmas Message from the Principal GRATITUDE Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in Canada, the United States, some of the Caribbean islands and Liberia. It began as a day of giving thanks for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year. Similarly named festival holidays occur in Germany and Japan. Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States, and around the same part of the year in other places. Although Thanksgiving has historical roots in religious and cultural traditions, it has long been celebrated as a secular holiday as well. Source Wikipedia For some time now I ve pondered on Australia s lack of a day to focus on gratitude for the abundance we experience in this country. At times we seem oblivious to our good fortune and desperately need to humbly accede to our reliance on the almighty, posterity and the rule of law. In schools we strive to inculcate our students with just such an attitude, but as a nation we need a collective acknowledgment of our good fortune. Thanksgiving of course has its roots in religious observances but has morphed into a nationally recognised reflection that gives a vital message to young and old along the lines of In God we trust and gratitude is a virtue. In Australia we still have Christmas to give us a similar focus and where would we be without it. No family is perfect and tensions can run high but deep down almost everyone gets it. The potential wrapped up in that little bundle of new life that we call a baby. The need to be magnanimous and reach out. The need for adults to put children first and acknowledge them as our future. The need to reacquaint ourselves with the Christmas story and the optimism it timelessly communicates to every generation. I guess Christmas is our Thanksgiving and rebirth all rolled into one. Let s be a nation that is grateful for all we have, and rediscover the Christmas message. Happy Christmas everyone! Mr Jim Ford Principal
2019 Starting Dates Monday 29 January Year 7 s only with the new Year 8, 9 & 10 s Tuesday 30 January All year levels The holiday season is a perfect time to reflect on our blessings and seek out ways to make life better for those around us. - Terri Marshall Fri 7 Dec... Last day of School Tues 29 January... Year 7 Begins Wed 30 January... All Students Commence Thurs 7 Feb... College Photos Fri 8 Feb... Yr 10 Leadership Day Fri 15 Feb... PFD-Bishops Inservice Day Tues 19 Feb... Opening Mass Semester 1 Term 1: 10 Weeks Tues 29 January Fri 5 April Term 2: 10 Weeks Tues 23 April Fri 28 June Semester 2 Term 3: 10 Weeks Mon 15 July Fri 20 September Term 4: 9 Weeks Tues 8 October Fri 6 December
Students with Formal Leadership positions in 2019 Congratulations from the Staff & Students at the College
Christmas Gingerbread Cookies 3 cups plain flour 120 g butter chopped 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda 1/2 tsp ground cloves 2 tsp ground ginger 1/3 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup golden syrup 1 egg 2 tsp ground cinnamon Preheat oven 160C. Combine ingredients in a large bowl. Knead until smooth. Roll between 2 sheets of baking paper until approximately 2.5 cm thick. Refrigerate until chilled. Place chilled dough on bench and cut out shapes. Place on baking paper-lined tray. Bake for 10 minutes until slightly golden. Ice when cool, if desired.