Dear Parents and Friends of St Mary’s,

I hope you all had a wonderful break with your families and spent some time relaxing and recharging, ready for a busy Term 2. We, as a staff, look forward to providing wonderful learning experiences and excellence in education at St Mary’s.

Our school-wide expectations are:

Be Safe

Be Respectful

Be Responsible

And

Be a Learner

As a school community, we will focus on being Safe and Respectful this term, and the students will be celebrated for their behaviours in class and on the playground through our Assemblies. This encourages our students to own their behaviour and make positive choices with their words and actions.

Parents and carers must abide by the 40 km school zone when dropping off their children. Buckley St can be very busy with vehicles accessing the Yarram Recreational Reserve, caravans and school drop-off. Please slow down.

Thank you to the wonderful volunteers who made our Lucky Jars at the Easter Carnival a success. We raised $854.00, a fantastic result of the many hours of hard work invested by Chanel and Olivia Bowden, Erin Medwell and Debbie Isemann.

Also, thank you, to those parents who generously donated and filled jars for the day.

Maria

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

TERM TWO 2023

April

May

June

TERM THREE 2023

July

Mother’s Day Celebrations at St. Mary’s

 Mother’s Day Stall

We will be holding our Mother’s Day stall on Tuesday, 9th May, where all students may purchase a small gift.  Gifts range from $1 - $10

Mother’s Day Breakfast

St. Mary’s Mother’s Day breakfast is on Friday, 12th May at 8.00 am in the Mary MacKillop Hall.

All Mothers, Grandmothers and Special People are welcome. 

Please let the school office know the numbers attending for catering purposes.

Religion News: Thursday 27^th of April

We are now in the Season of Easter.  It began on Easter Sunday and is the high point of the Church Calendar, remembering Jesus’ death and Resurrection.  It is a whole Season extending for 50 days.  Traditionally, it was a time for Baptisms to be celebrated. The Season of Easter lasts until Pentecost which is on Sunday the 28^th of May. 

Pascal Candle 

During the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday night the priest carries the candle in procession into the dark church. A new fire, symbolizing our eternal life in Christ, is kindled which lights the candle. The candle, representing Christ himself, is blessed by the priest who then inscribes in it a cross, the first letters and last of the Greek alphabet, (Alpha and Omega `the beginning and the end') and the current year, as he chants tradtional prayers, then affixes the five grains of incense.

The Easter candle is lit each day during Mass throughout the Paschal season until The Ascension of the Lord; Sunday May 21^st 2023.

The Paschal candle represents Christ, the Light of the World.

The pure beeswax of which the candle is made represents the sinless Christ who was formed in the womb of His Mother. The wick signifies His humanity, the flame, His Divine Nature, both soul and body.

Five grains of incense inserted into the candle in the form of a cross recall the aromatic spices with which His Sacred Body was prepared for the tomb, and of the five wounds in His hands, feet, and side.

Term Two Focus

During Term Two our Religious Education Focus will be “Let’s Celebrate.”  As families we have many times when we celebrate together, birthdays, Christmas, Easter, birth of new baby, weddings, sporting achievements and many more. Children will explore how and what we celebrate within our families, our school and the Catholic Faith.  On May the 21^st we will celebrate a special Sacrament of First Holy Communion when two of our students will receive communion for the first time.  We will celebrate this special event with the Parish.  Each week classes will share, through the Newsletter, some of the learning and exploring around celebrations.

First School Mass for Term Two:

Next Thursday at 10:00 am at St Mary’s Catholic Church. Everyone is invited and welcome.

Kind Regards 

Sue Benc