Welcome to the final newsletter of Term 1. For most of last year, like most Australian individuals and workplaces we operated under great uncertainty. From the start of this year notwithstanding the three day “circuit breaker” lockdown early this term and the fears that it revived, it has been fantastic to have things almost “business as usual”. This term has been a really productive one and the return to interschool and community music, sport and cultural events, the reintroduction of excursions and larger gatherings, including open days, has been a real positive.

I had the pleasure of attending our Term 1 music concert last week. The music was of high quality and the engagement and enjoyment shown by our musicians was wonderful to see. As a non-musician, I marvel at how wonderful it must be to have a skill that brings so much pleasure to oneself and others! We wish our ACC Swimming Team well as they prepare for the ACC Carnival on Wednesday night. A good result would be a fitting finish to the term which has seen our Athletics Team finish second and the First XI Cricket Team undefeated until the last ball of the semi-final.

There is a strong and optimistic sense throughout the College that great things will be achieved in 2021. Throughout the year levels, boys respect for each other is pleasing as is their approach to their learning. The Year 7 boys completed their camps this week and all reports suggest they were a very positive experience. Our VCAL students have returned from a week at Corryong assisting in bushfire recovery. I want to acknowledge the leadership of our Year 12 students who appear highly motivated, and most of whom are working diligently and setting high standards and a great example to younger boys.

We were saddened this week by the death of long-serving College volunteer Len Alford. For over 20 years Len assisted our Football and Cricket teams in a variety of roles and, while very ill, was still operating the scoreboard at cricket matches until a couple of weeks ago. A remarkably generous and humble man who gave us so much and asked for nothing in return, he will be sadly missed.

Eternal rest grant unto him O Lord

May perpetual light shine upon him

May he rest in peace

Amen

The end of term will see some staff changes. We recently welcomed Zara Szakiel, Shannen Holmes and Virginia Schubert to roles in administration and Leah Kelson as Laboratory Technician. We farewell and thank Doug Byrt for his service to the College and wish him well in retirement. We also farewell Cassie Gleeson and Susan Dickinson as they commence parental leave along with Jane Emrick, Gemma Gray and Vin Brown who will be taking periods of leave from the start of Term 2.

We are now deep into the season of Lent with Easter imminent. In his Lenten letter of 2021, Pope Francis writes the following:

“may we be increasingly concerned with speaking words of comfort, strength, consolation and encouragement, and not words that demean, sadden, anger or show scorn. In order to give hope to others, it is sometimes enough simply to be kind, to be willing to set everything else aside in order to show interest, to give the gift of a smile, to speak a word of encouragement, to listen amid general indifference”.

Easter is a time of reflection and an opportunity to recognise the presence of the risen Christ in the world. We believe that each of us is created in the image and likeness of God and I hope you see and experience this in your son, friends and family this Easter. Best wishes to you and your family a very happy Easter.

Stay well and God bless

Watch this video presented by our student leaders which tells you more about Edmund Rice and how you can get involved in Edmund Rice Day 2021.

To find out more or to donate to Edmund Rice Day - follow the link below

Donate & find out more about Edmund Rice Day 2021

Respectful Relationships

Presenter Tom Robb has spoken to all Mt Sion students in the past two weeks addressing issues surrounding toxic masculinity and encouraging our students to MAN DOWN rather than MAN UP and be open up to their own and other people’s feelings. Tom is a local man who is doing great a great job working with young people and breaking down stereotypes. We are blessed to have him committed to working within our community and I encourage parents and carers to explore his website. https://www.lifeistheway.com.au/

We have also historically had a Year 11 day devoted to RESPECTFUL RELATIONSHIPS and the effects of mainstream pornography. We are currently in discussions with Ritchie Hardcore who is keen to return from New Zealand to speak with our students on the issues of masculinity, gender roles, consent, respect and the harmful effects of mainstream pornography. Our Year 12s missed his presentation last year due to COVID-19 restrictions so we plan to include the Year 12s as well.

When we secure dates we also plan to host a parent/carer information evening that would see an open invitation for SJC and the wider Geelong community to hear from Ritchie about ways in which parents and carers can be empowered in this space. In the meantime, the following link provides parents and carers with some insight into approaching these topics with their children.

https://schooltv.me/wellbeing_news/special-report-conversation-consent

Bus Behaviour

Whilst we have been very impressed with the attitude and respect our students are showing at school, we have been somewhat disappointed in some of the behaviours that have been reported to us about bus behaviour. Approximately 80% of the SJC student population catch a bus and the behaviour is a shared responsibility between school and families. Whilst we deal thoroughly with individuals and families when issues arise I felt the need to share some of our expectations that we would like reiterated at home.

St Joseph’s students should

• Use respectful language to the bus driver, SJC students and students from other schools.
• Share a seat with other SJC students and don’t sit one to a seat so that others don’t get a seat.
• Ensure all other passengers can easily access a seat.
• Use respectful language and don’t make others feel uncomfortable.
• Minimise unnecessary noise/rowdiness that may impact other members of the community.
• Stay in seats and do not move around the bus.
• Do not touch another student’s property.
• No rude gestures to people passing by.
• Dispose of rubbish appropriately.

We would hope that the respectful culture we experience at school is the culture that extends to bus travel. We are urging our senior students to call out any inappropriate behaviours and report them to us. We welcome student who witnesses or experiences poor behaviour to speak with their Homeroom teacher, Year Level Coordinator and/or Head of School. It is important to know that failure to comply with these standards would be a breach of the Code of Conduct as set out by the Department of Transport and can result in a bus suspension. Thank you for your support.

Wellbeing Moments

If you are a parent of one of our Year 8 students, you will no doubt have heard some talk about ‘The Resilience Project’ that we have introduced into our Waterford Campus this year.

The focus of the program is to share with each other the benefits of being grateful, every day, for the small things that go well for us, of being aware of how others are feeling around us and offering a kind word or helping hand where we can. And finally, practising ‘mindfulness,’ a really difficult challenge when you are a young teenager in a crowded room. But the boys have learnt that mindfulness does not necessarily have to mean staying still and feeling deep breaths. We had the opportunity to try out origami – an activity that does require you to be entirely focused on folding squares of coloured paper, and slows down the thoughts that take you elsewhere. A moment to be in the moment. Isn’t that what we all want a little bit of sometimes?

Our Year 7 cohort will be commencing The Resilience Project next term, and we look forward to them engaging in the same really positive focus that ‘GEM’ – Gratitude, Empathy and Mindfulness – has provided for our Year 8 students.

If you feel inclined to see how The Resilience Project might change a moment in your day, they have provided the following exercise for you to perhaps engage in next time you are together:

In Week 8 of this term the Senior Students were involved in a House Car Wash Challenge. In excellent car washing conditions, a grand total of 68 cars (staff, parent and student cars) were washed in the quadrangle in the afternoon.

The $500 raised was donated to Caritas Australia. There were many laughs, smiles and good times had by all. Thank you to Mrs Irving, Service Learning Coordinator, Travis and Fitzy from Maintenance who assisted on the day. Thank you to Year 12 Student Alex Diamond who helped plan the logistics of this event as well as all the House Captains and Senior Students.

2021 Car Wash Statistics

46 Cars washed in total

Brophy House: 5 cars washed

Jordan House: 12 cars washed

Foley House: 13 cars washed

& the winning House…Butler House with 16 cars washed!

Student Reflections

The Carwash for Caritas was an amazing event that raised money for an important cause. It was great to see so many boys getting around washing the cars, and giving up their time to help out others.

Campbell Burns, Brophy House Captain

The Caritas car wash which was held recently was a great experience for all involved. While we all had lots of fun washing the cars, the amount of money we managed to raise for Caritas as a year level was amazing.

Oliver LaBonte, Jordan House Captain

The most memorable and enjoyable service learning I’ve ever done at Joey's.

Rhys Devlin, Jordan House Captain

Great student lead initiative that contributes to such a wonderful cause. I would highly recommended the boys next year to get involved.

Alexander Dunn, Foley House Captain

The Carwash was a big success driven by student leadership and a great initiative to raise money for Caritas. Hopefully this becomes an annual event in the future.

Angus Codd, Butler House Captain

Year 11 VCAL students have done it again. A little over one year after the inaugural Bush Fire Relief Camp, 24 SJC students, staff and volunteers have spent four days camping in ‘Man from Snowy River Country’, Corryong.

On Monday 15 March, the Year 11 VCAL students and their teachers left SJC to embark on a day-long journey to North-East Victoria. It has been over a year since the 2019/20 Summer Bush Fires devastated Corryong and its surroundings, notably the small town of Cudgewa, where 14 homes were lost. A whole lot of water has passed under the bridge since then for this community, as it has for many farming and rural communities, with COVID-19 and all of the hidden complications of trying to recover from catastrophic bushfires.

The Year 11 VCAL students, working within the Work-Related Skills Strand of the VCAL curriculum have spent most of Term 1 planning to continue to support communities impacted by the 2019/20 Summer Bush Fires. They decided the best way to support this fire-affected community was to visit them again, spend money there and put feet on the ground to help farmers continue to fix hundreds of kilometers of burnt fencing.

We arrived at the Colac Colac (Clack Clack) Caravan Park on the Monday afternoon, pitched tents, and then made haste to the Upper Murray Pizza and Cinema Café where we met with the Uniting Church Emergency Fencing Team and the farmers we had promised to help. The pizzas just kept rolling out, and they were delicious. Instantly we felt welcomed and at ease with this amazingly resilient community.

Tuesday and Wednesday were spent working with three different farmers from the area, all of whom had been significantly impacted by the fires. This gave us the opportunity to see first-hand the damage that was done and hear the farmers’ stories. The sight driving through the rolling hills of Cudgewa was of lush, green Australian countryside, quite starkly different to what was experienced this time last year.

Students spent most of their time working on fencing, either removing and winding wire from burnt fences or building new fences. This was hard work, but extremely rewarding. It was estimated that each of the teams achieved approximately 500 man-hours of work in the two days. For the solo farmers, that’s over two month’s worth of fencing completed in just two days.

To spend money in the Community, a team of students was tasked with shopping at the local IGA and bakery for breakfast and lunch supplies. After breakfast each day, the boys made and packed lunches for themselves, the volunteers and their host farmers. Chicken Parmigiana from Jack’s Bistro was a huge hit on the Wednesday night, our last evening spent sharing dinner with the farmers, their families and the volunteers. This was a highlight for me and many of the boys. It was a great opportunity for the families that we had met and worked with the wider Corryong community to chat with the boys and catch up with each other. We had the privilege of hearing their stories and sharing in some of their recovery experiences.

There is still a need for help in areas like Cudgewa and Towong Gap. I highly recommend including some volunteering in your next holiday. It’s an extremely rewarding experience, one that makes me very proud to be part of the St Joey’s community. Thank you to all of the SJC staff involved at the camp, Leonie Hart, Shane Dawson and Tom Elliot. A big thank you to our SJC community volunteers, Monika and Rob Ercoli for giving up their time and providing expertise.

Thank you to all of our Josephines and their friends who attended our Autumn Dinner last night at Truffleduck.

Everyone was eager to catch up after 12 months, so we were excited to see 140 guests at this sold out event. Thank you to special guests Lisa and Zane Jones for sharing your smiles and your stories.

Together our Josephines raised over $2,000 for our Education Support program at St Joseph's. We look forward to catching up with all of our past mums again at our Spring Luncheon in October!

The 2021 SJC Mega Raffle has been drawn!

And the winners are......
1st PRIZE WINNER
Caroline Duggan
Ticket Number: #225

2nd PRIZE WINNER
Kate Dew
Ticket Number: #1604

3rd PRIZE WINNER
Tamara Gleeson
Ticket Number: #1707

4th PRIZE WINNER
Kate Parke
Ticket Number: #1251

5th PRIZE WINNER
Melissa Horpinitch Musyt
Ticket Number: #1361

Thank you to every member of our community who supported our raffle this year, you will be supporting our Bursary Program which allows disadvantaged students to attend St Joseph's College and experience being a part of this fabulous community! 😍😀🖤💛❤️

Donate Today

Fill out the form below to make your donation towards Edmund Rice Day 2021.

This year the College celebrates the feast day of our founder Edmund Rice on Friday 30 April. The day has a dual focus on celebrating our identity and giving practical expression to our commitment to those less fortunate. 

This year the student leaders have set a goal of raising $50,000 on Edmund Rice Day. In order to achieve this, they are asking that each student contribute $30 or families with more than one student contribute $50.  

Funds raised this year will be directed internationally, in Uganda and Timor Leste. In Uganda we hope to continue to help provide food and education for students at St Joseph’s Secondary Vocational School in Kensekka and help finance the completion of a much-needed second classroom block. 

This is an area where ”70% of all households survive on less than three dollars (US) per week. Many children live alone, many orphaned as a result of HIV /AIDS. These children are left to fend for basic needs like food shelter and clothing and education”. Education can break the poverty cycle and we have the power to achieve this.

In Timor we plan to support the community of Viqueque. Locally we hope to provide support for Edmund Rice camps which provide holiday camps for children from poor and refugee families, and Lifeboat which provides support for survivors of sexual abuse.

I ask all who have the capacity to help to do so because supporting those most in need is part of our history, our culture and our obligation. 

Tony Paatsch, College Principal 

Oscar Morrison – College Captain
William Baum – Deputy College Captain
& Matueny (Benji) Mangar – Deputy College Captain

OFFICE CLOSURE

Please note the Office at Westcourt and Edmund Rice Campus is closed for the second week of the school holidays.

CANTEEN

From Term 2 onwards the Canteen will be offering over the counter service again. We would still prefer that students order online however the boys can now use their student ID card (if funds are loaded onto them) or cash to purchase.

Year 11 & 12 students will be returning to their original canteen in the PAC. Year 7 & 8 the large canteen and Westcourt Canteen remains unchanged. Westcourt students CANNOT use their cards to purchase from the Westcourt canteen so please don’t load any funds onto their accounts.

Please call Danni or Karen in the Canteen if you need assistance, 5223 1138.

A bright and sunny day on Friday 19 March saw lots of action at the Kardinia Park Pool for the 2021 Swimming Carnival! Congratulations to Jonathon Leong who broke the U/13 Breastroke record, swimming a 38.41! 

The competition was fierce all day and the first-ever 'boogie board relay' was a hit. The Foley Falcons were victorious taking home the Swimming Shield with 1053 points, just beating Jordan at 1036 points. Thank you to all students who participated, a full list of results are included with this article and a photo gallery is available on the College facebook page!

Congratulations to Alec O’Brien, Year 8 who has been selected in the Melbourne Collegians Water Polo U/14 National Team and will head to Brisbane in April to compete at the Australia Youth Water Polo Championships. What an exciting opportunity! We look forward to hearing all about Alec's experience and wish him the best of luck. 

Our Parents & Friends are getting ready for some great events in 2021! 

Save the date for: 

Trivia Night 2021 - Friday 14 May 

P&F Fashion Dinner at Mt Duneed Estate - Friday 20 August

Both of these events are a great night out and can include your family and friends, so keep an eye out and make sure you book your tickets for some fun! 

The St Joseph College offices will be closed for the second week of the school holidays from the 12 to 16 April inclusive.

Any families who would like to submit a Year 7 Enrolment application for 2022 are reminded that enrolments close on 7 May 2021.

This enrolment cut off also includes families who already have a sibling attending St Joseph's College. Applications for any new Year 7 student who wishes to attend St Joseph's need to be submitted by the cut off date to avoid disappointment.

Late submissions will be placed on a waiting list.

Places are awarded using the College Enrolment Guidelines. Parents will be notified of enrolment acceptance by mid-June for Year 7.

Information regarding the Online Application process can be found on the College website.

Enrolments

Click the link below to read the minutes from the recent Foundation AGM. 

Geelong Dragons

Coaches Required

The Geelong Dragons FIDA Football Club invite expressions of interest for coaching positions for the 2021 season.

About the Geelong Dragons and F.I.D.A

The Victorian FIDA (Football Integration Development Association) Football League exists to provide Victorians with an intellectual disability the opportunity to participate in Australian Rules football, at a competitive level.

The Geelong Dragons were established in 2018 with 1 team playing in the Western Country Conference but due to an increased demand, the Geelong Dragons will have 2 teams competing in Metro based divisions in 2021.

The voluntary role will include but not limited to:

• Planning and Coordinating Training
• Attendance at games and associated events
• Travelling with team on the bus
• Liaising with the Team Manager and Assistant Coaches
• Upholding the Geelong Dragons Code of Conduct

Desirable Requirements

• AFL Level 1 Coaching Accreditation (the club will assist successful applicant to obtain this training if required)
• Previous experience working with people living with an intellectual disability
• Previous experience in football coaching

For further information or questions please contact:

Tim Downes on (03) 5224 9936 or [email protected]

Hazy Tales - Pottery Studio

School Holidays Kids Pottery & Craft Sessions

Wednesday 7 April, 10.00am - Ceramic animal

Wednesday 7 April 1.30pm - Ceramic Easter Bunny

Wednesday 14 April 10.00am, Ceramic animal

$45 per person for 2 hours. Includes clay, colours, glazes and 2 kiln firings. 

Adults Social Ceramics

Friday 23 April 5:30pm - Rustic clay vase/urn

$85 per person for approx 3 hours. Includes drink, clay, colours, glazes and 2 kiln firings. These can also be booked as a private group, minimum 4 people. 

16 Mayall Way, Drysdale, Bellarine

www.hazytales.com

St Joseph's remembers: 

Timothy Parry (44 Years) Son of Gerard (staff member) and Janine Parry. Loved brother and brother in law of Eleanore, Matthew, Andrew, Bruna. Devoted father of Alysha, Patrick and James.

Len Alford (85 Years) We were saddened to hear of the death of long serving College volunteer Len Alford. For over 20 years Len assisted our Football and Cricket teams in a variety of roles and, while very ill, was still operating the scoreboard at cricket matches until a couple of weeks ago. A remarkably generous and humble man who gave us so much and asked for nothing in return, he will be sadly missed.

Richard Schmeiszl (SJOC 1961) The College was saddened to hear about the passing of Old Collegian Richard Schmeiszl at Moorabbin hospital after a long battle with Cancer.

Richard was a boarder at St Joseph’s from 1960-61, is a St Joseph’s College Foundation and McNeil Society member. On the advice of several teachers, Richard pursued a career in Journalism, one which lead to 46 years working around the world and included many notable interviews, a highlight being an interview with Mother Teresa.

Richard won 21 journalism awards including the coveted Walkley and Quill. Not bad for a student who was warned about his future by Br Rahill.

Richard always attended the College for reunions, visiting 3 – 4 times a year when in Geelong. He was always happy to share the colourful stories of his time here at St Joseph’s and we will miss hearing them.

Beloved Husband of Jane, Loving father of Kate and William. Our thoughts are with his family at this sad time.

Eternal rest grant unto him O Lord
May perpetual light shine upon him
May he rest in peace
Amen