We are now in the last week of the school year and there is much activity to finish off all the jobs and see that things are in place for the new year 2023.

At our assembly this week, girls spoke so eloquently and fondly of the staff who are leaving and how they made an impact on their lives in the time they were here at the College. Likewise, those staff responded by expressing the pleasure it has been for them to be part of the St Patrick’s community and that as they leave to retire or teach closer to home, they will always take with them very fond memories of the girls and community.

Sadly, we recently learnt that Ms Louise Glase who has been a valued member of the College community for the past twenty years will be finishing at the end of the year. During this time, she been an integral member of the CAPA department, being largely responsible for the wonderful work across the Visual Arts classes. She has involved herself in many co-curricular aspects of College life during this time including camps, retreats as well as the College Musicals where she gave her time and energy to set design. In her most recent role as a Year Coordinator, she has guided and supported the girls in her care and has been a wonderful member of the pastoral team. She leaves behind a legacy and we wish her well in her new position.

Ms Sarah Hilder will be finishing her time at the College this year. She will be starting the next chapter of her life in Canada with her husband, who is Canadian. Sarah has been a wonderful asset to St Patrick’s. She has involved herself across many areas of College life, including always putting her hand up for camps and retreats, as well as working with the student leaders. She has been a valued member of the English department where she has inspired a love of English in her students. She will be missed by both her colleagues and her students and we wish her well on this next exciting chapter of her life.

Ms Tabitha Brown will also be finishing at the end of the year. Ms Brown has been at the College for this year and has been very active teaching the RE program and has been a wonderful support to the History debaters who will face the grand final next year. We wish her well at her new school. We also wish Mrs Denford the very best as she leaves the College. Mrs Denford has been a familiar face of the library and has led the Makerspace and the Movie Clubs over the years. We thank her for the joy she brought to the College and the girls and wish her well in the future. Many temporary staff have assisted and supported us over this year. They have been great teachers and supporters of the girls. We thank them for their hard work and hope that we will be able to call on them again in the coming years to fill blocks when staff are away or on leave.

Parent involvement and connection to the College continues to be our focus and this is particularly so for 2023. Given the success of the Year 8 parent workshop this term, we will be running parent workshops for parents of girls in Years 7,8 and 9 next year. The workshop will be held at the College at 9am and will go for approximately 1hr 30mins. They will be included in the Parent Calendar that will be issued in the coming weeks.

The purple on the Jacaranda tree this time of the year is the sign for us that we have entered the season of Advent. We are now preparing for the birth of our Lord and saviour and rejoice in his coming into our lives and our world.

All of us at the College wish you and your family a safe and beautiful Christmas season this year. Thank you for the support and partnership over the year which has enabled your daughter to grow and develop towards the young person she has the potential to become. I look forward to seeing many of you at the Mass and Awards ceremony on Monday, where we will celebrate the end of the year and the achievements of many of our girls.

I will leave you with a painting by Janet McKenzie of ‘Mary with the Midwives’. Despite the silence of the gospels about the presence of midwives at the birth of Jesus, in the first century, Palestine midwives would have hurried to Mary to assist during her labour to ease her anxiety and minimise the risk in delivery. As Meister Eckhart wrote in the thirteenth century: We are all meant to be mothers of God. For God is always needing to be born.

Blessings

Sue Lennox - Principal