Dear Parents,

A reminder to all that our school start time is 8:55am, this is when students line up for morning announcements. By 9:00am students are heading into their classrooms and teachers are mandated to complete the roll at this time. 

Children arriving after 9:00am, are to be brought to the office to be signed in by a parent/guardian and will be marked as late arrival on the roll. Students will then be escorted to their classroom by a support staff member.

For the safety of children, it a parent’s responsibility to ensure you sign your child in and walk them to the office, students should not be doing this unaccompanied. 

School Assemblies

As previously advised there will be no Virtual Assembly next Thursday (9th November). Instead we will provide a list of reminders about upcoming school events via our SZAPP Platform.

Beginning Monday 20th November, 2:30pm, each fortnight assemblies will go back to being face to face. These school assemblies will be held in the open area of our new classrooms and parents are welcome to attend.

Staffing Announcements 

We are still currently in the process of finalising our staffing requirements for the 2024 school year. I would like to advise you of the following appointment;

Classroom Teacher: Miss Bree Alger

We also farewell Mrs Lindsay Tweedie who has accepted a position at St Paul’s in Warragul, and Mrs Holly Peterson who has accepted a position at St Gabriel’s in Traralgon. We thank both Lindsay and Holly for their efforts at St Angela of the Cross and wish them well for their future endeavours. 

Once our staffing needs have been finalised, we will communicate teacher placements for 2024. 

Melbourne Cup Long Weekend

A reminder that the school will be closed on Monday 6th and Tuesday 7th November due to the Melbourne Cup long weekend. The Monday is a Time in Lieu day for teachers and the Tuesday is the public holiday.

Old Gippstown Excursion

All students have an upcoming Excursion to Old Gippstown Heritage Park. Grade 1/2 and 5/6 students will attend on Friday 3rd November and Foundation and grade 3/4 students on Friday 10th November. Further details and permission approvals can be found on parent PAM accounts. (Please do not place a lunch order for the day your child is on the excursion)

As a Catholic Community, we are inspired by the life of Jesus to reach out to those in this world who are marginalised or less fortunate than we are. At St Angela's we are focusing our fundraising efforts on the Children's home by selling Icy Poles at Lunchtime on Tuesdays during Term 4. Every $20 that we raise at St Angela's will provide the students with books and equipment to aid their learning. So far, we have raised, $178.60. Thank you to all of the generous children and families of St Angela of the Cross and our student leaders for organising this fundraising initiative.

As you may have heard, St Angela of the Cross will be proudly displaying student artworks in our bi-annual art show on Wednesday 29th November. It's a wonderful opportunity to bring our school community together and to encourage creativity.

Hypocrites at Home 

Hypocrisy makes Jesus as angry as he ever gets (Matt 23:1-12). Strangely, those ancient scribes and Pharisees, the religious leaders, poncing around as gatekeepers rather than a welcoming committee for the poor, blind, lame and unwashed multitudes, have much in common with the modern world. 

We recognize such figures in our own time. People who make an art form out of looking good rather than doing good. The arrogant bureaucrat who hounds a lowly applicant because he can; the apparently devout person who wants those less pious to see how deficient they are. Jesus calls out the hypocrisy of laying expectations and regulations on strugglers instead of lightening their burden. That is not his way at all!

He has this to say about them, “Anyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and anyone who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Matt 23:12). Such self-promotion reveals deep insecurity, an inner sense of inferiority, leading some to “big note” themselves to create a façade of their own importance. 

Within families too we might encounter those, often men, exalting themselves, trying to be “big frogs in little puddles” at the expense of family. Often under a cloak of respectability, these insecurities lead them to abuse those closest to them. Domestic and family violence in Australia includes physical, emotional, or financial violence and the fear and distress of children witnessing their mother being abused. The roots are abuse of power and the control of one person by another. Overwhelmingly the victims of family violence are women and children. Victims are clearly in need of peace, compassion, and justice. 

Our first call is to live God’s love in our families. And then, beyond our families, being aware and prepared to do what we can to prevent and respond to domestic and family violence elsewhere. Our Sale diocese is firmly committed to preventing domestic and family violence while simultaneously fostering a safe and supportive environment for all.

Deacon Mark Kelly