Dear St John the Apostle families,

On Wednesday and Thursday evenings we attended very beautiful First Eucharist celebrations at our Parish. Many of our Year 3 students received First Communion, along with a few older students from our school.

At each celebration a student was also received into the Catholic Church, Sophie N and Ryan S. What an amazing moment.

I would like to offer my sincerest thanks to our Parish team for the way they organised the celebrations over the two nights, ensuring they complied with all health regulations for the current climate. It was important to them that the children and families were able to celebrate this Sacrament together. Everyone commented at how lovely it was. Thank you also to the members of our parish who read, served at the altar and played music. It was lovely to have a welcoming parish presence.

Congratulations to all of our children who celebrated their First Eucharist.

Student safety walking home

Earlier this week a parent contacted me to let me know of some people that were

hanging around at one of the underpasses nearby, worrying some of our students who walk home. I was very thankful that the parent contacted me and I was able to gather these children and have a small chat with them, reminding them of the ways they can stay safe on their way home. I made sure the children understood the importance of stranger safety and the need to report any unusual incidents or approaches to staff and parents immediately.

While the situation caused students to feel a little worried, there was no actual incident. I would just like to remind everyone that if you become aware of an incident or notice anyone acting suspiciously around a school or child, contact police immediately on 131 444. In the case of an emergency, call 000. If you witness an incident or if you have any information that could assist police, you can contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. Information can be provided anonymously.

Please support us to keep our children safe by having conversations with your child about moving safely around the community and what to do if they ever feel unsafe. You may wish to visit the Australian Federal Police website that contains child safety information. In addition, Safety4Kids is a non-government website that has useful information and links. The Constable Kenny website also has a number of child safety tips for parents.

Our social media presence

You may have noticed that in the past few weeks we have increased our social media

presence, particularly on Facebook. Facebook is an excellent way to share our school story with the wider community and for families to share school happenings with their family.

We are very careful with our use of children's photos on Facebook. We use the permissions provided on enrolment and updated at the beginning of each year. If you have any questions about photo use, please feel free to contact Leanne in the Front Office (Front.Office@cg.catholic.edu.au).

Father's day breakfast

Unfortunately, we won't be able to hold our traditional Father's Day breakfast this year. The current health restrictions recommend we don't have any large gatherings if it is not essential to the running of the school.

We look forward to when we are able to get together with all of our families again.

On leave

For the last three weeks of Term 3 I will be taking leave. Next week will be my last week of the term. Like many people, this leave was booked last year to travel overseas. I was to visit the Holy Land with a group of other Principals. Obviously this can't happen now so I will be taking the time to rest. It has been more than 10 years since I have taken any leave and I am looking forward to returning refreshed in Term 4.

During my absence Rebekah Brown will be Acting Principal, Stephanie Stewart will be Acting Assistant Principal, Alison Ewyk be Acting REC and Bree Dess will continue as Coordinator. This will mean a few small changes to the teaching arrangements for 3 Blue and 6 Maroon for those three weeks. I will write to these classes directly to inform them of the details.

Have a lovely weekend. Spring is nearly here!

Matthew Garton (Principal)