Dear Parents and Carers,
It is hard to believe that the 2019 school year is coming to an end! I would like to say thank you to everyone for a wonderful school year.

I want to thank the students this year for their imagination, creativity and dedication to their school work and the community. Our students work hard and strive to meet the challenges placed before them. At the same time they show great commitment to the school and their fellow students through their incidental and formal leadership roles. The way they continue to embrace our 5 Ways of Being has been inspiring and we look forward to continuing our work in developing critical, creative and caring thinkers in 2020.

Thank you also to the parents, grandparents and carers of our students. You support the students to be rested, on time and ready for school. You listen to them read, help them with homework, visit their performances, listen to their school woes and celebrate their successes. It’s a big job being a parent and we look forward to developing new ways to support you next year in that role. Thank you to those parents who have been an integral part of the school through assistance in the classroom, canteen and school events. Without you we could not offer the opportunities we do. Thank you to the Parents & Friends Committee and the School Board for their continued support in growing our community. Thank you also to our friends in the St Benedict’s Parish; particularly Fathers Dan and Rembert, whose friendly and thoughtful contributions nourish us in our faith. Farewell to those families leaving us to go forward on the next part of their journey. We wish you every blessing into the future.

Lastly, thank you to our wonderful staff. Their teamwork and collaboration has been a source of strength and their commitment and care for each other has enabled them to ‘be the best they can be’ for their students. I thank them for a successful year and their commitment to the future development of St Benedict’s as a supportive, nurturing and enriching community for all.

Congratulations
Today we begin our celebrations for our Year 6 Graduation, beginning with Mass this morning, dinner tonight and the Year 6 Revue tomorrow. Graduation day is always such a wonderful reminder of all that we hold dear about St Benedict’s. We farewell our graduating class with hope for their wonderful future ahead. As they grow into young ladies and men, we trust that the skills, values and attitudes they have learnt and developed at St Benedict’s School will stand them in good stead for a bright, happy and successful future. I would like to thank the Year Six parents for the support and encouragement they have provided over the past seven years. Thank you for entrusting us with the care of your children. Thank you for the many things you have done for the school, the hours and the many activities that you have been part of or lead. Your contributions and support have always been valued.

Farewell
Change happens every year. Sometimes change is minor, sometimes it’s large. This year we farewell a number of staff who will be leaving us.

We farewell Hayley Gould, who joined us this year as Year 3/4 Gold classroom teacher.

Her friendly and supportive manner and positive nature will be missed by the community.

Josh Mackenzie has been a welcome part of the staff this year. I thank him for working with all our students with such a caring and calm manner.

Camille Ellison has been an integral member of the teaching staff for the past seven years. She is passionate about teaching and her students have been the largest beneficiaries of this drive and enthusiasm. Camille has challenged her students to ‘be the best they can be’ and they have responded positively.

We thank these staff for their contributions to the St Benedict’s story over recent years; a story over 60 years old, with many staff members having been a part of it. We wish them the very best for their future in education and look forward to them spreading something of St Benedict’s to the communities they will go to.

And a final word to our wonderful students……
During the Christmas holidays, your teachers would like you to:

Spend time with the people that you care about

• Do the things you enjoy
• Eat food that you love
• Watch your favourite programme or film
• Make somebody laugh or smile
• Do something nice for somebody else
• Visit your favourite place
• Play with your toys

And finally……

Come back to school ready to learn!

Wishing all our families a safe and Merry Christmas and Happy and healthy New Year!

God bless.

Rachel Smith

Principal