Welcome back St Monica’s families and friends,

What an absolute joy it has been to see the smiling faces of our students, as they walk onto the school grounds to begin the 2023 school year. This year our whole school theme is ‘Walking Together ~ You’re Invited’

Jesus, our greatest teacher; talked, walked and ate with everyone. When we explore his public ministry through the Gospels, we see that Jesus was either going to, already at, or leaving a meal. These invitations to gather and eat, extend to you. Just like Jesus did, you’re invited to join in the many celebrations, events and opportunities at St Monica’s Primary School.  

In 2023 You’re Invited to:

• be part of your child’s learning by; attending Parent Information Evenings, the Get to Know you Meetings, reading the communication that comes from your child’s classroom teacher and communicating with your child’s classroom teacher through the appropriate channels.
• join in our numerous whole school celebrations such as Class Masses, Prayer Liturgies, Awards Assemblies, Sports Carnivals, Book Week, Grandfriend’s Days.
• share your skill set with our community such as gardening, communications & marketing, fete committee, giving a talk or presentation.
• volunteer in a range of capacities; cover library books, become a reading tutor, assist in the canteen!

Introducing….

Frank Curran – Frank is our new Grounds & Maintenance Officer. Frank is mad about all kinds of sports, particularly Touch Footy & Rugby League and has a passion for keeping as fit as he can. Frank is a family man, who loves to head out of town to his farm on the weekends! If you see Frank around the grounds, be sure to say “G’day” You can’t miss him in his High-Vis shirt!

Meaghan Younger – Meaghan joins us from St Michael’s Primary School as Acting REC and 5Blue classroom teacher for 2023. Meaghan is passionate about making a difference in the lives of everyone she meets and a devoted Brumbies supporter! Meaghan loves a chat and coffee!

A warm welcome to the following families who have joined the St Monica’s community this year:

To the Billerwell, Budworth, Dawe, Dowell, Elliot, Fulton, Gray, Hay, Jakovljevic, James, Lockwood, Maloney, McNeill, Millar, Njoroge, Nobakht, Piccolo, Rozas, Sauvao, Singh, Tarbuck Taylor, Williams, Yee and Zhou families we wish you a long and happy association with St Monica’s Primary School.

Dates for your diaries:

Whole School Prayer – Tomorrow Friday 3 February, 9:10am, in the Church

Parent Information Evening – Tuesday 7 February, in the classrooms

• Session 1: 5:30pm
• Session 2: 6:00pm

Opening School Mass – Wednesday 8 February, 9:30am, in the Church

Year 6 Leadership Commitment Liturgy – Friday 10 February, 9:10am, in the Church

Sacramental Program General Meeting – this is for all families who will be registering their child to receive the sacraments of Reconciliation, First Eucharist & Confirmation. Thursday 16 February, 6:00pm, in the Church.

School Swimming Carnival – (Ys 3 – 6 & competitive Y2 students) Monday 20 February, Gungahlin Leisure Centre.

Peace and blessings to all families,

Happy Birthday to the following students  celebrating a Birthday this week.

Ava C, Isabella H, Ainslea S, Jett S, Sophia R, Kaihran T, Vincent A, Luca C

Welcome to the school year of 2023. My name is Meaghan Younger and I look forward to meeting all the families as I try to fill the shoes of the wonderful Haley Stonham and Anthony O’Connell this year in the role of Religious Education Coordinator. We keep Mr O’Connell and his family in our prayers.

Our theme for this year is Walking Together; You’re Invited. Throughout the year you will find yourself regularly invited to join us on the journey in Jesus’ footsteps; trying to always become closer to our Lord and Friend, Jesus. A core Scripture will be the Emmaus story, where two disciples met the Risen Jesus as they fled Jerusalem after his death at Calvary. The accompanying picture depicts the scene where they first meet this stranger/beloved friend whom they do not recognise.

You are invited to join us as we investigate the man who was Jesus and learn about his mission. It is fascinating to explore the Gospels and find how often references are made to Jesus gathering around a meal. I think I love Him even more to realise he was obviously a lover of good food and company! ? Come with us and join the many opportunities we are hopeful of providing to gather again this year – we promise to include delightful treats and include a meal whenever possible.

Opening School Year Mass

Our Whole School Mass to celebrate the beginning of our new school year will be on Wednesday 8February at 9.30am, in our own St Monica’s Church. We will gather with members of our Our Lady of Perpetual Help parish and all families are warmly invited to join us. Come be nourished by communion and community.

Leadership Blessing

Year 6 will be blessed and commissioned as leaders of the St Monica’s School Community at a special liturgy on Friday 10 February at 9.10am in the St Monica’s Church. The whole community is invited to join us to witness this special moment for our young leaders.

Information Evening for Sacraments

For families with children planning to take part in our parish sacramental program this year, to prepare for and receive the sacraments of Eucharist, Confirmation or Reconciliation, you are invited to attend an information evening on Thursday 16 February at 6.00pm in the St Monica’s Church. That would traditionally be children in Years 3, 4 and 6 planning to receive the sacraments. I look forward to seeing you all there and meeting with our new Parish Priest, Father Mick, and Sue Collins our Sacramental Coordinator.

If you have a child in Years 4- 6 in 2023 this may be a Sacramental year.

A Parish Sacramental Program Information Evening will be held on Thursday 16 February 2023 at 6.00pm in St Monica’s Church for the families of students in Years 4-6 in 2023.  You are very welcome to attend the information evening where all the relevant information will be available.

First Eucharist will be celebrated on the weekend of 17 and 18 June 2023.

Confirmation will be celebrated in September during Term 3, 2023 (dates to be confirmed with the Bishop).

Reconciliation will be celebrated in Term 1, 2024.

For further Information – please contact the Sacramental Program Coordinator at sc.belconnennorth@cg.org.au or check the parish website for updates at www.cg.org.au/belconnennorth

Staff List for 2023 - We are pleased to announce the following staff members and their positions for the 2023 school year.

Greetings loyal customers!! The canteen is back in business in 2023 on Thursdays and Fridays. Please order all lunches on Qkr! prior to the automated 8:45am cut-off.  As lunch is now half an hour earlier it is essential that we have this strict cut-off so that we can ensure enough time to get our delicious food out to our hungry students!  Please ensure you update BOTH your child’s year group and the CORRECT class. This will ensure that your child’s lunch is delivered to the right classroom. We are once again opened for cash sales for snack, drinks and cold treats at both recess and lunch. It is wonderful for children to practise monetary transactions and communicating using big voices and manners. Of course you can also simply order on Qkr! and recess and lunch time treats will be delivered to your child’s class.  I have made some pricing adjustments to our menu, this is not a decision taken lightly, but was necessary to continue the viability of our canteen. I will attempt to keep any increases to a minimum. Of course I cannot do this work alone, having wonderful volunteers ensures a job well done, but also that prices can be kept low. Our canteen volunteers work hard, but enjoy the community atmosphere and friendships with like-minded parents and carers, did I mention delicious food and chocolate biscuits?  Do you want to delight your child by volunteering in our canteen?  Please sign up if you can afford some time on a Thursday or Friday, whether it is once a week or once a year, we would love to see you, just click on the web link and follow the instructions on the page. volunteersignup.org/3RPFL