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From the APRE desk

Hello SSPS Community!

This term, the Year 6 students formed a Service-Learning group where they have been focussing on giving their time and attention to the residents of Brodribb Nursing home. In between their monthly visits where they celebrate Mass together, the students have been thinking hard of many ways they can connect with their new friends and form strong link with the elderly in our community. Last visit we shared a video of the students performing an African Blessing. It was very well received. Below is a picture of Alistair, Lacey, Ciarah and Annabelle with Gloria Collins. Gloria is a past SSPS student and recollects her time at our Primary school when the Church bell was installed. Fr Michael kindly put her words with his reflection which he shared with me.

With eyes wide open, a young 10 year old student gazes at the biggest bell she has seen in her life. With all the students of St Saviour's Primary School, Gloria was ushered over to the grounds of St Patrick's Cathedral to witness the blessing of the newly appointed bell.

Months before amongs the noise and steam of the Matthew O'Byrne foundry in Dublin city, a bell was forged. Over the next 90 years this creation has heralded the Angelus, weddings, funerals, Masses, even the passing of Bishops over time.

Taking almost 3 months by ship to arrive, this bell was named "Patrick" and was placed to adorn the Cathedral and herald the new Diocese of Toowoomba. It was put in place and blessed, originally on the eastern side of the Catheral on 17th June, 1934.

"I was there in my St Saviour's navy uniform with it's white collar and green band around my hat to witness the blessing by Bishop Byrn", recalls Gloria Collins, now aged 101 years! Gloria, who is currently a resident at Brodribb Home went on to say, "He was a good man Bishop Byrne, all the school kids loved him."

"Patrick" was a gift from the local Hibernian Society to the requirements of Bishop James Byrne DD. The cost was 600 pounds and it weigh 1.5 tonnes. We especially rang the bell this St Patrick's Day in celebration of these years and all who have worshipped in this place over time.

Today the sound of "Patrick" is heard before each weekend Mass and most weddings and baptisms, a sound that has resonated throughout these 90 years to hearld the presence of an eternal and living God.

Thanks to Mini Vinnies and Mrs Cooper for their time and commitment in compiling the "Blessing bags" for a women's shelter in Toowoomba. Manna House is a St Vincent De Paul crisis centre here in Toowoomba. It is one of the largest, if not the largest in QLD and families come from all over Australia. These were presented to Rachelle from St Vincent De Paul at our end of term assembly. We know that our blessing bags will be put to good use. A HUGE "Thank you!" to you, our school community for supporting the most vulnerable and those most in need in Toowoomba. This act of Service is what being at SSPS is all about!

Week 3 next term, we will take the time to celebrate our school community which is based on a Catholic faith education. This is a state wide celebration with a number of events across the week including our school Mass on Monday 24 July, Andrew Chinn will be joining us for Music and singing (see concert details below) and the students will have a Student free day on July 29 when staff from the Toowoomba Diocese gather for the Bishop's Inservice Day.

Where do you see signs/images/examples of "HOPE, LOVE & FAITH" in our community? Share them with your child's classroom teacher or a member of our Leadership team. We'd love to hear from you!

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On Tuesday 25th July, Australian religious songwriter and singer, Andrew Chinn, will be visiting our school to share his songs with our children. Andrew’s songs, such as “These Hands”, “Rainbow”, “An African Blessing” and “Rise Up!” are used in
classrooms and liturgies around Australia, New Zealand, USA and Canada. The concert will take place in the Mercy Centre, at 1.40pm - 2.45pm. We look forward to seeing you there.

At a recent PEN meeting, a new and contemporary way to connect with our community has been discussed to meet the needs of Pastoral care at SSPS - Know of someone in need of our care and support? Perhaps they're going through a challenging time and need a helping hand? Keep an eye out and let us know via the link tab on the Sentral App which will be live early Term 3. This will be a convenient, confidential and anonymous way to let us know of someone who needs our help. It may be yourself who needs support during a challenging time and you're not sure how to go about asking for help. Please let us know! Our Parent Engagement Network and school community are here to help. It's about living the Mission and Vision of SSPS.

Congratulations to these awardees! They received their well deserved Cornerstone Value award at our final assembly for the term. Be proud of yourselves and who you are! You are all examples of how special it is to be parrt of our SSPS community!

National NAIDOC

NAIDOC Week 2023 will be held between Sunday, 2 July and Sunday, 9 July and is an opportunity for all Austraians to come together to celebrate the rich history, diverse cultures and achievements of First Nations Peoples as the oldest continuing cultures on the planet.This year’s NAIDOC Week theme, For Our Elders, celebrates the central role of First Nations Elders in guiding generations of advocacy and activism. First Nations Peoples draw strength from the knowledge and experience of Elders, in everything from land management and cultural knowledge to justice and human rights, with their influence evident in the Uluru Statement from the Heart.

We will acknowledge NAIDOC Week at our assembly in Week 2, Term 3.

Have a restful and relaxing break. Stay safe and we'll see you all in Term 3!

Thanks for reading,

Ann-Maree