Term 1 Week 7 Newsletter - 18/3/2022
Principal News
You Can Put Your Weight On Me
There are times in life where, on either side of a difficult season, you're either asking, "How am I going to get through this?” or you're on the other side looking back in amazement saying, "How did I get through this?". And that's where I find that the most sincere, real, authentic prayers get prayed. Whether you're praying out of desperation or gratitude, take a pick. When you find out what your support structure looks like: friends, family, loved ones; people who come around you, hold you up with the words they say, the things they do. They become real signposts for the face of Jesus. But what about those who have no one? What does Jesus have to say to them? He says, “I no longer call you strangers, I call you friends.” This is what I find so compelling about the friendship of God and the message of Christianity… that life is not a stacked tower of personal achievement, pride, ego, success, vanity; like you're trying to build a rocket ship to heaven all by yourself. Rather, it's just extending to others what Jesus says in the scriptures. In this world, you will have trouble but you're not alone and you can put your weight on me.'
Together We Are Strong!
It is hard to find the words to describe the devastation, loss and sadness that has been inflicted on not only our parish school community but the entire community of Lismore.
Whilst it is incredibly sad to see our school damaged, it is not the buildings that define our school, it is our community. It is the people who call OLHC family and the last two weeks has certainly reinforced how strong our community here is and what we can achieve together for our children.
I would like to thank all of our families for their generosity and love as together we wrapped around our most impacted families to provide clothing, vouchers, food, accommodation, a hug or a listening ear as needed.
Considering the circumstances, we have experienced a very settled return to school this week and although our classrooms and learning spaces look a little different, students and teachers have done an amazing job to set up these spaces, making them our own and seeing a very quick return to our focus on learning and student wellbeing.
I am incredibly grateful for the support our families have shown to our teachers and myself. It is easy to jump ship and choose an easy path when things are tough and I am proud of our community for standing strong and walking this journey with us. It is a true test of character and I thank all families who have stood by our school during this difficult time.
Over the coming weeks we will be investigating how to best make use of our learning spaces and looking at any adjustments that may need to be made. This includes new technology, furniture and resources along with the potential for new classrooms and learning spaces and dividing our large spaces into more than one room. A Parent Forum meeting will occur very soon to allow our parents to be part of these important decisions as we move forward togther.
Our OLHC school site is undergoing assessment from builders and engineers over the coming weeks and this will help provide some clarity about the next steps. I will keep our community informed regarding what is happening as soon as I can.
Thank you for all your support.
Michael
Australian Defence Force
A huge thank you to the Australian Defence Force for all their efforts in saving some of our most precious items from the damaged school site and for spending some time with us during the week to listen to the children, share stories with them and give us a tour of their Bushmaster.
Mission News
Our prayers continue to be with everyone who has been affected by the devastaing flooding of Lismore and the greater Northern Rivers. We are so thankful that we are able to continue to serve the children of the community of Our Lady Help of Christians, South Lismore from our temporary site at OLOL.
In our time of need - Our Lady Help of Christians; Pray for us.
Feast of St. Joseph - 19th March
Reflection on the Sleeping St Joseph
While asleep, St. Joseph received messages from God, who warned him about the danger posed by King Herod and entrusted him with loving and protecting Mary and the Baby Jesus.
It was in a dream when Joseph accepted his role as putative father of Jesus and of all mankind, an archetypal figure of protector, defender, and consoler. Joseph is the attentive and tender guardian of the Family, a just man who accepts and guards the mysteries of God, as he willingly chose to accept and protect Mary, the woman chosen by God to be the Most Holy and Immaculate Mother of His only Son.
On January 16, 2015, Pope Francis gave a speech in the Philippines about his love for St. Joseph. He described his special devotion to the sleeping St. Joseph. Pope Francis shared the following refelctions for us to consider:
“I have a great love for St. Joseph, because he is a man of silence and strength. On my table I have an image of St. Joseph sleeping. Even when he is asleep, he is taking care of the Church!”
How is St. Joseph a man of strength and silence?
“Joseph’s rest revealed God’s will to him. In this moment of rest in the Lord, as we pause from our many daily obligations and activities, God is also speaking to us.”
How can you spend more time resting in God?
“But like St. Joseph, once we have heard God’s voice, we must rise from our slumber; we must get up and act.”
Why is it important to first rest and then get up and act? How is St. Joseph a good example for us of rest and action?
“So when I have a problem, a difficulty, I write
a little note and I put it underneath Saint
Joseph, so that he can dream about it! In other
words I tell him: pray for this problem!”
~Pope Francis
Stage 2 Lenten promises and stick crosses
St Patrick's Day 17.3.22 Photo Booth Fun
Learning & Teaching
Donations from our Southern Schools get us started at our new site!
Schools from the Southern end of the Diocese banded together to gather resources for us to recommence learning this week at our new site. These schools supplied every student with a book, lead pencils, glue, scissors and coloured pencils or crayons to share. They also donated reading books, readers and maths equipment so that we could begin on Monday with the learning materials we needed for our students.
A very heartfelt thank you to the following schools:
- St Francis Xavier Woolgoolga
- St Agnes Primary Port Macquarie
- St Joseph's Laurieton
- St Joseph's Wauchope and
- St James' Yamba
Kinder- Humpty Dumpty drawings and writing
Year 1 Drawing
Year 2- Making Playdoh for measurement
Stage 2- Stamina Reading, writing and Monet Artworks
Stage 3- Drama and Marble Run creations
Sports News
School News
Thank you Mrs Ward
A big thank you to Mrs Ward fro helping to replant our vegetable gardens. Our students loved helping during lunch time.
Year 6 Gardening
Community News
Words can not express our gratitude for the amount of support we recieved on Saturday for our Working Bee. Without this support from our school families and staff, we would never have achieved our goal of returning to school on Monday 14th March.
My New Gallery
