Term Two Dates

Term One Conclusion

This week marks the end of Term One. I cannot believe how quickly the term has gone!

We have had an action-packed term with many wonderful events and activities. We ticked off both our School Swimming and Cross Country Carnivals, Gymnastics classes, Year 3/4 Excursion, Three-Way conversations and Van Gogh inspired Art Days for all classes.

This term we have also welcomed many guests, mainly senior consultants, into our school from the Catholic Education Office. All of the visitors have remarked about the wonderful 'feel' the school has and they have been impressed with our student's engagement with their learning.  I believe one of the reasons we have such a positive school culture is due to the consistent parental and community support we receive.

With the uneasy and slightly disrupted end to our first Term, I would like to thank everyone for your contribution to school life at St Mary's. Thank you for supporting your child and our teachers, communicating clearly with us and volunteering your time and assisting with our fundraising events, it is very much appreciated!

I would like to wish everyone a happy, holy and safe Easter. Following are the Easter service times for Crookwell and Taralga.

• Holy Thursday Mass 7pm (Crookwell)
• Good Friday Stations of the Cross 11am & Mass 3pm (Crookwell & Taralga)
• Easter Saturday Vigil 7pm (Crookwell & Taralga)
• Easter Sunday Mass 9am (Crookwell)

Term Two will commence for students on Wednesday 27 April.

Welcome

Last Sunday, Hendrix McWilliam (Kindergarten) and his parents welcomed a new baby sister, Banksia Jamie, to their family. Congratulations Stuart, Amber, Hendrix and Nix. She is just adorable and blessed to be part of your family.

Missing Technology

Found an iPad or Chromebook at home that doesn't look familiar? We are still missing 4 Chromebooks from when we were engaged with remote learning in 2021.

PLEASE RETURN THESE as it means there are 4 less for use in the classrooms.

These items are expensive for us to replace and makes lesson planning hard if we do not have the required number for each class.

Your assistance is greatly appreciated.

Morning Club

Morning Club is a free service that we like to offer to our families that provides early supervision for students from 8am (strictly) to 8.40am before our playground supervision commences. Morning Club is to assist parents and carers who have early work commitments or need travel for appointments, etc. It is coordinated by Mrs Nicola Spackman and is made possible through her staffing allocation. Mrs. Gwenda Romer will also assist with Morning Club supervision this year. The Club is supported by other staff members when required.

This year we will commence Morning Club from Week One Term Two, Wednesday 27 April. 

Parents and carers will be required to register their child/ren for Morning Club and it will only run Monday - Thursday each week. Parents can make a permanent booking or just book a 'one off' session, as required. These can be made up until 7.30am each day.

This year Morning Club will be held in the Library and students will engage in quiet activities such as drawing, colouring, construction, board games and card games.

Children arriving at school unregistered or after 8.30am will not be permitted to attend Morning Club. We ask that children not registered, only arrive at 8.40am, the time that regular supervision commences. 

The booking form is available below and can also be found on Szapp. 

https://smpscrookwell.schoolzineplus.com/form/25 

Showcase of Learning

This year we are pleased to be able to present our Stage 3 Showcase of Learning Assemblies. Our first assembly will be presented by Years Five and Six on the last day of term, Friday 8 April.

The parents and carers assembly will be held at 12.30pm. Please enter the Hall through the hall front doors, and sanitise before taking your seat. 

ANZAC Day

This year ANZAC Day falls within our holidays on Monday 25 April. We invite all students to participate in the ANZAC Day events.

This year we have organised for St Mary's students to march and lay wreaths at both the Crookwell and Taralga ANZAC Day services.

Students participating in the Crookwell events are asked to assemble for the March in the RSL car park from 10.40am. The March will move down Goulburn Street to the Memorial Park for the ANZAC Day Commemoration Ceremony. Students remain assembled until this Ceremony concludes.

Our students who wish to participate in the Taralga march and Commemorative Service are asked to assemble at the Northern end of the Main Street, near Taralga Public School at 2.30pm. The children will march down the street to the cenotaph for the Commemorative Service and wreath-laying. After this, our assembled group will disperse prior to the Memorial Hall program. 

Students are asked to come dressed in their full winter uniform.

It would be wonderful to see many of our students at either of these special ceremonies.

Uniform Matters

As the term draws to a close, uniform pieces accidentally get mixed up between students. Please check all the uniform items you have at home to ensure they belong to your family as we have some students who have items missing which are clearly named.

Please also ensure you have all your children's uniform labelled.

Next term the students are to wear the full winter uniform, however, a two-week leeway is given if the weather is still warm enough for the summer uniform. 

In preparation for the cooler months, you might like to order our school coat, which is a warm bottle green parka style coat, from our Uniform Shop. No other coats will be permitted, however, bottle green gloves and beanies may be purchased elsewhere. 

Some other reminders about our school uniform- hair accessories must be in the school colours only, earrings must be sleepers and studs and no nail polish is to be worn to school.

Holy Week

This morning our students gathered in the Church to share in the re-enactment of the most important event in human history, the events of Holy Week. Holy Week. Holy means "set apart." Christians set apart an entire week (Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday) to recall the greatest tragedy and sorrow and the most important time in our history – the suffering and death of Jesus for humanity’s sake.

Palm Sunday

This coming Sunday is Palm Sunday and it marks the beginning of Holy Week. On this day Christians celebrate Jesus’ joyful entrance into the holy city of Jerusalem. Jesus, along with thousands of Jewish people, were making the annual pilgrimage to the holy city to worship at the holy temple and celebrate the Festival of the Passover (when they remembered God leading their ancestors out of slavery in Egypt hundreds of years before). Pilgrims had to be in the city no later than seven days before the beginning of the Passover Feast to worship at the temple and purify themselves. for the annual Passover Festival. Word had spread about Jesus being the Messiah, and as he entered the city humbly on a simple donkey, crowds gathered to welcome him and worshipped him laying down palm leaves before him.

But this joyous return to Jerusalem is only one side of the story of Holy Week.

Many people did not believe Jesus was the Son of God. They called Him a blasphemer. They were worried about his popularity and and wanted to see him dead.   

Holy Thursday

After His triumphant entry into Jerusalem on ‘Palm Sunday’, Jesus celebrated the Passover Feast with his mother Mary and his apostles. He knew this was to be his Last Supper and he wanted to give his friends the greatest gift ever… the gift of himself.  

‘Then he took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you” (on the cross) “Do this in remembrance of me.” And he did the same with the cup saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.”’ (His blood poured out in death) (Luke 22:19,20).

Catholics go to mass each week to remember Jesus’ last supper and his sacrifice and to be nourished by him.

Good Friday

After Jesus’ Last Supper’, whilst praying in the garden, He was arrested and put on trial by the Jewish leaders, who did not believe he was the Messiah (God’s only son sent to save humanity). It was against Jewish Law to kill, so they sent Jesus to be tried by the Roman Governor Pontius Pilot. Pilot condemned him to die by crucifixion. He was tortured and made to carry his cross to Golgotha - a little knoll rounded like a bare skull outside the gates of Jerusalem (Golgotha means ‘skull’). There Jesus was crucified.

‘Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” Having said this, he breathed his last. When the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God and said, “Certainly this man was innocent.”’ (Luke: 23:46,47)

I asked Jesus… “How much do you love me, Lord?” He stretched out his arms and said… “This much.” And then he died.

Jesus died and was buried that same day. He arose to new life three days later, on Easter Sunday…'So it is written that the Christ would suffer and on the third day rise from the dead' (Luke 24:46).

Christians believe that the events of Holy week were all a part of God’s plan to save humanity. Jesus lived, suffered, died and rose again to forgive the sins of humanity and show us the way to eternal life. God so loved us, that He sent His only begotten Son to die for us and bring us closer to him. Let us reflect during Holy Week on the significance of Jesus’ last days on earth.

Project Compassion

Many thanks to all who contributed to our Project Compassion appeal. St Mary’s has raised over $300.00 which is some much-needed funds for the poor and suffering of our world. 

Support for Ukraine

Half of these funds raised will be sent to support the refugees fleeing from Ukraine as well as those still suffering in the war zone.

A Prayer for Ukraine

God of peace and justice,
we pray for the people of Ukraine today.
We pray for peace and the laying down of weapons.
We pray for all those who fear for tomorrow,
that your Spirit of comfort would draw near to them.
We pray for those with power over war or peace,
for wisdom, discernment and compassion to guide their decisions.

Above all, we pray for all your precious children, at risk and in fear,
that you would hold and protect them.
May they never yield to discouragement and despair,

but become heralds of new hope to one another in this challenging time.

May you continue to inspire all of us to oneness of heart and mind, to work generously for the common good, to respect the dignity of every person and the fundamental rights which have their origin in the image and likeness of God impressed upon every human being.
Grant eternal rest to the dead and quick recovery to the wounded,

We pray in the name of Jesus, the Prince of Peace.
Amen.

-CONGRATULATIONS-

Mackillop Swimming

A successful swim by Harry Price on Monday at SOPAC. St Mary's students eagerly watched and cheered the livestream link. The representative opportunity and experience is one we know Harry and his family will remember and cherish for a long time.

Who knows......maybe Harry will meet up with his competitors again some day AND maybe we might see Harry swimming at a competitive event on our TV's one day!

A link to part of his race is available below.

https://www.youtube.com/clip/UgkxA-CxlpzK98MaVn-UaNd5hWcPnfQGWmxp

Rugby League

Congratulations to Saxon Greenwood who has gained selection in the Open Boys Canberra/Goulburn Rugby League team. He will compete again at the Mackillop trials in Canberra on the 6th May.

Canberra/Goulburn Rep Sport Trials  

School Athletics Carnival

The new date for the Athletics Carnival is Friday 13 May. The carnival will be held at Todkill Park from 9am-3pm. All students from Kindergarten to Year 6 will take part in both track, field and modified events over the course of the day.

We will be asking for volunteers who may be able to assist with the following roles:
• Time keeping
• Age group team manager- 8,9,10,11,12
• Assisting with the Infant activities

If you would like to be involved, please email me before the end of the term at, rachael.croker@cg.catholic.edu.au

Library Books to be Returned

Please ensure all library books are returned to school by this Friday 8 April.

SORA Ebooks

For holiday reading the children can borrow Ebooks and Audio Books through the SORA App.

Magazines and Graphic Novels  are also available.

Below are the steps to install on your device.

The Year 2 fundraiser for this year is running the BBQ and canteen at the Northern Region Cross Country next term. If you are able to volunteer, please contact Reané Strode on 0439 785 746.

Crookwell Community Fun Run

2022 Sacramental Dates

Sacramental Program dates

Parish Office

For Parish and Sacramental matters please forward your enquiries to Goulburn Parish Secretary, Sharon Cashman, via email or call into the Parish Office at the Old Convent Building. Sharon is available in Crookwell on the 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month from 11.30am-3.30pm

Parish Associate: Sr Rosemary Hart

Email: Crookwell@cg.org.au

Website: http://cg.org.au/crookwell/Home.aspx 

Phone: 48321 633 

Address: 55 Wade Street (the Old Convent Building)

Rotary Flood Relief Fundraising- Trivia Night

Crookwell Library School Holiday Program

Think Tank

Crookwell Heated Pool Campaign

We ask you to consider signing the petition to have our new pool enclosed and heated at https://chng.it/CWJtK7hjRq

Our goal is to reach 1000 signatures and we need more support. 

Contributed - Councillor Jo Marshall

Drawing and Pottery Classes

Vacation Care

Holidays Workshop

Easter in the Shire