Newsletter Term 2, Week 6 2023
Dear Members of the St Joseph's College Family,
1970, when I was in Year 6 at primary school, a performer named Joe Smith, released a song entitled, “Walk a mile in my shoes.” The chorus of the song:
Walk a mile in my shoes
Just walk a mile in my shoes
Yeah, before you abuse, criticise and accuse
Just walk a mile in my shoes
This song was about thinking about others. Maybe even putting other people first! Walking in another’s shoes simply means thinking about someone else’s lot in life… being selfless and putting others before yourself. Counter cultural? Let’s hope not.
In Catholic terms, its about showing compassion. Author Richard Carlson in his book, Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff … and it’s all small stuff, writes:
Compassion is a sympathetic feeling. It involves the willingness to put yourself in someone else’s shoes, to take the focus off yourself and to imagine what it’s like to be in someone else’s predicament, and simultaneously, to feel love for that person. It’s the recognition that other people’s problems, their pain and frustrations, are every bit as real as our own – often far worse. In recognizing this fact and trying to offer some assistance, we open our own hearts and greatly enhance our sense of gratitude.
… It involves two things: intention and action. Intention – open your heart to others. Action – what you do about it. (page 17)
St Mother Teresa reminds, “We cannot do great things on this earth. We can only do small things with great love.”
Carlson suggests we ask ourselves:
- Make a list of ways a person can show compassion eg. share a smile with a stranger, help a harried friend shop for groceries or volunteering time at a nursing home.
- What compassionate gestures have you witnessed in others?
His final suggestion is to take time every day to visualise incorporating compassion into your daily life.
Times of hardship and great personal challenge brings out the best in most people. I’m thinking of the mud army in the Brisbane floods of January 2011 and the people assisting the flooding victims in the Northern Rivers in 2022. People turning out to help strangers who were suffering loss of their homes, pets, even loved ones. Even something as simple as paying it forward for another is an example of compassion in action.
Jesus fed the five thousand. The reading starts with the following: As Jesus went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had great compassion for them for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. Mark 6:34
Let’s all practice acts of compassion in the coming weeks.
Yours in Jesus, Mary and St Joseph.
Mr Peter McLoughlin
College Principal
29 May 2023
Student Illness
No doubt our families are aware that there has been a spike in illnesses of late. At present, we have several staff and students who are quite unwell with a variety of respiratory illnesses, including Covid-19.
Schools are always heavily impacted by these types of illnesses. While health experts say we're going back to our ‘normal’ winter pattern after three years of precautions, they have also said we might expect a fifth Covid wave in Australia.
It appears that despite being unwell before leaving home, a number of children are still coming to school while very unwell. We ask that you please keep your child home if they have any symptoms such as nausea, coughing, headache, sore throat, runny nose.
There have also been a number of children with symptoms of a gastro virus. Viral gastroenteritis symptoms include nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, fever, abdominal pain, headache and muscle aches. No doubt our families are aware that with gastro symptoms, your child should not come to school until 48 hours after symptoms have stopped.
If your child is ill for any reason they should not be at school. As soon as they present with any symptoms, you will be contacted by the office to collect them so that you can care for them at home.
Please accept our thanks in anticipation of your cooperation in this matter and pray for those who are unwell.
St Joseph's Parish
St Joseph's Catholic Church
56 Frances Street, Tweed Heads
Weekday Mass times
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- Monday to Friday – 9:10am
Weekend Mass times
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- Saturday – 9:00am
- Saturday Vigil Mass – 6:00pm
- Sunday – 7:00am & 9:00am
St Camillus Catholic Church
36 Urliup Road, Bilambil
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- Sunday – 9:00am
St Anthony's Parish
St Anthony’s Church, Kingscliff
12-14 Pearl Street, Kingscliff
Weekday Mass times
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- Wednesday – 8:00am
- Thursday – 9:00am in the school term and 8:00am in the holiday period
- Friday – 8:00am
Weekend Mass times
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- Saturday – 5:00pm (6pm during DST)
- Sunday – 9:00am
Sts Mary & Ambrose Catholic Church
1 Charles Street, Pottsville
Weekday Mass times
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- Tuesday – 9:15am
Weekend Mass times
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- Sunday – 7:30am
Reconciliation Times
- Kingscliff – Saturday 5:00 – 5:30pm
- Pottsville – Sunday 7:00 – 7:25am
National Reconciliation Week (NRW) is a time for all Australians to participate and learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.
The dates for National Reconciliation Week remain the same each year; 27 May to 3 June. T hese dates commemorate two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey— the successful 1967 referendum, and the High Court Mabo decision respectively.
Reconciliation must live in the hearts, minds and actions of all Australians as we move forward, creating a nation strengthened by respectful relationships between the wider Australian community, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
2023 marks twenty three years of Reconciliation Australia and almost three decades of Australia’s formal reconciliation process. Reconciliation Australia’s theme for this year, Be a Voice for Generations, encourages all Australians to be a voice for reconciliation in tangible ways in our everyday lives – where we live, work learn and socialise. For the work of generations past, and the benefit of generations future, let’s choose to create a more just, equitable and reconciled country for all.
Reconciliation prayer
Holy Father, God of love, you are the creator of all things.
We acknowledge the pain and shame of our history and the sufferings of our peoples, and we ask your forgiveness.
We thank you for the survival of indigenous cultures, our hope is in you because you gave your son Jesus to reconcile the world to you.
We pray for your strength and grace to forgive, accept and love one another, as you love us and forgive and accept us in the sacrifice of your son.
Give us the courage to accept the realities of our history so that we may build a better future for our nation.
Teach us to respect all cultures teach us to care for our land and Waters
Help us to share justly the resources of this land.
Help us to bring about spiritual and social change to improve the quality of life for all groups in our communities, especially the disadvantaged.
Help young people to find true dignity and self-esteem by your spirit.
Amen.
School Photos
AdvancedLife, the photography company St Joseph's College uses for our school photos, would like to communicate to families that the delivery of photos is expected in the second half of Term 2.
Vaping - Regulations and Laws
Are you aware of the regulations and laws regarding Vapes? The North Coast Youth Vaping Taskforce has provided a flyer for the information of our parents and carers. Please take the time to sit with your child or children and discuss with them this most serious health topic. Today you could start with these Regulations and Laws.
Positive Choices Free Webinar
Commencing at 12:30pm this coming Wednesday, 31 May, SJC parents and carers have the opportunity to join a free webinar to discuss the impact of peer influence on substance use and mental health during adolescence. Presented by Dr Louise Birrell and Dr Jack Andrews, this webinar will:
- Examine trends in adolescent substance use and mental health
- Explore the profound impact of peers on shaping mental health and substance use patterns among young people
- Reveal new interventions attempting to harness the positive aspects of peer influence to improve outcomes among adolescents
31 May commencing 12:30pm (Australian Eastern Standard Time)
Term 2 Webinars from the eSafety Commissioner (Australian Government provided) FREE!
A reminder that more free webinars in the remaining weeks of this term for parents and carers to join the eSafety’s expert education team. These live webinars give parents and carers the knowledge, skills and tools to support their children to have safe online experiences.
Getting started with social media: TikTok, YouTube, Instagram
This 30-minute webinar is designed for parents and carers of young people in primary and secondary school. It includes practical tech tips, conversation starters and digital parenting advice. It will cover:
- creating a positive digital identity
- privacy and sharing online
- managing what you see online
- good practices in group chats
- help-seeking.
Term 2 dates (Australian Eastern Standard Time)
8 June 12:30pm to 1:00pm
Online relationships and consent: sending nudes and sexting
This 30-minute webinar is designed for parents and carers of young people in secondary school. It will cover:
- the impact of sharing nude images without consent
- practical suggestions for starting the chat about respectful relationships, consent and pressure to send nudes
- where to get support for a young person who has experienced abuse.
Term 2 dates (Australian Eastern Standard Time)
14 June 7:30pm to 8:00pm
Mr Eamon Brown
Assistant Principal - Mission
Year 10 into 11 2024 Subject Information Evening – Wednesday 7 June 2023
This evening will be held for students and their parents in the Doyle Centre, and we ask you to be seated no later than 5:50pm for a 6:00pm commencement.
The 2024 Stage 6 Handbook will be distributed at this time.
- This evening is very important for Year 10 students and will assist families in discussing HSC Patterns of Study. HSC and Preliminary Couse information and the course preference process at SJC will be explained. Staff will be available to answer questions about course preferences after this meeting.
- Please ensure, if possible, the attendance at the Information Evening of an adult family member with each Year 10 student. Year 10 students should rearrange casual employment so that they are able to attend this evening.
- Students will be required to submit their preferences form on or before Friday 23 June 2023 (Week 9, Term 2).
Mr Matthew Hall
Leader of Curriculum
Two of the ladies, who were only babies became small children, shared their specific life story, being taken in trains by the German army and how they were separated from their fathers and brothers. They also shared photographs of the concentration camps, the conditions of the camp, along with their families, their paperwork, people that saved them and maps of their travels during the time period.
Students then broke into groups and discussed the idea that ordinary people have the power to make a difference when they witness injustice, prejudice and discrimination, by not being “bystander” rather than an “upstander”.
Miss Teneille De Luca
Acting Leader of Learning - HSIE
This year's Athletics Carnival is to be held on Friday 2 June (Week 6, Term 2).
The College House Captains have already spoken to their houses during assembly last week, providing them with ideas for this year's theme of Cartoon Characters, along with explaining all the events that we have on the day. Students are encouraged to come to school in their house colours and costumes, they get points for not being in school uniform. Please note: students will still need to wear enclosed shoes on the day.
On the day students will move around to each of the events in their age groups. Students who are younger or older for their year level will need to make sure they are moving with the correct group if they wish to be eligible for championship events.
The 1500m race will be held during lunch on Wednesday 31 May, and students will need to register through the College Sports Desk on Google Classroom. The classroom code is 6v6zikw.
For students who have been trained correctly with an athletics coach or through programs such as Little Athletics and wish to use the Fosbury Flop technique when competing in the High Jump, parents need to email me to give permission for their child to use that technique.
The College Athletics Carnival program can be viewed here.
Students who place 1st or 2nd in an event will be eligible to represent the College at the Diocesan Athletics Carnival which will be held on Wednesday 23 August.
ATTENDANCE & LEAVING THE CARNIVAL EARLY
If students are required to leave early they must follow the same protocols as a normal school day, which are; bring a note signed from their parent/guardian stating their name and the time they will get picked up. Parents/guardians must pick their child up and sign them out from the front office.
A reminder that any community day held at the College is considered a normal school day where we would expect to see normal attendance from students. Whilst there are always legitimate reasons for students to be absent, many students are regularly noted as not attending our College community days, these absences are recorded and reported on the student's report cards.
Ms Madeline Ilic
Leader of Sport
Year 9 Marine Studies students Go Fishing
Term 2 has seen the first of our Year 9, 100hr Marine Studies classes completing the Fish Harvesting unit. As part of this unit students learn a range of line fishing techniques, while also evaluating current fishing legislation in both NSW and QLD. We have also been lucky enough to have Mrs Lexe Busbridge in our classrooms to discuss the local Indigenous Fishing Management Plan and have had the chance to analyse how and why regulations may differ for Indigenous communities.
As a culmination of the unit, students went on a day trip to Cudgen Creek where they put their skills into practice and got a chance to christen the SJC Tinny on its first official outing. The day was a great success with fantastic weather and a large variety of fish being caught and released. Some highlights included Finn Hyne’s 44cm mullet, Lily Mooney’s “biggest flathead”, Arlend Higgins haul of over ten fish, (mostly Butter Bream), and Bronte Borger’s persistence on the bridge, (more Butter Bream), for most of the day.
A big thank you needs to go to Mrs Sands and Mr O'Reilly for coming with us and ensuring that a great day was had by all. We are now looking forward to our other 100hr and 200hr classes completing this unit in the upcoming 5 week block and getting the chance to get out and set some new records at the creek.
Thanks to all for a great day.
Mr Martin Fairweather
Marine Studies Teacher
Current Job Opportunities
Apprentice Butcher position – Panorama Meats
Panorama Meats (located at Shop 11, Panorama Plaza, Scenic Drive, Tweed Heads West) are wanting an apprentice to start ASAP.
If you are interested, please contact the owner, Carl, on 07 5599 9392.
Traineeship opportunity – Cherubs Early Learning Centre
Cherubs Early Learning Centre (located at 94b Pioneer Parade, Banora Point) is offering traineeships to students who are wanting to explore a career in Early Childhood Education.
Interested students in Year 11 or 12 can contact the owner/nominated supervisor, Lisa Damme, on 07 5524 8778 or info@cherubselc.com.au.
Casual Junior Position – Bellakai Coolangatta
Bellakai Coolangatta (located at 82 Marine Parade Coolangatta) are seeking junior staff for their restaurant. Experience is not required as they are willing to train you, however, there are expectations around some weekend/school holiday work.
If you are interested, please contact Bellakai:
Email bellakaicoolangatta@hotmail.com
Facebook bellakai.coolangatta
Instagram bellakaicoolangatta
The uniform shop hours are as follows:
Every Tuesday during the school term: 12:00pm – 3:30pm
Every Thursday during the school term: 8:00am – 12:00pm
During shop hours: (07) 5523 9300
This shop is managed by Lowes staff only
Payments: Cash and EFTPOS Only
NO CHEQUES ACCEPTED
Or, if you'd like to make an online purchase, you can use this handy link.