Newman News Term 3 Week 6: From the Principal
Happy Fathers Day
Fathers Day recognises and celebrates our Dads and the wonderful contribution that they make in our lives. In our College community we celebrated Fathers Day through a number of events and liturgies, with Lavalla Campus events to be held on Monday. The joy and fervour of the events this week highlighted the love we collectively have for our fathers, grandfathers and those special men in our lives.
On a personal note, this Sunday will hold particular significance for me. Late last week I rushed back to my parents’ home in Sydney as my own father, Peter, had taken ill and had been placed in palliative care. Over the next five days, my mother and six siblings nursed him in his final hours, until he died peacefully on Monday. Such a time enabled us as a family to come together to reflect on the stories and our shared experiences with Dad. As the youngest of the seven children, Dad, to me, was larger than life itself. He was filled with joy and laughter and that attitude set the climate of our home. His presence was constant and his love unconditional. To me this was exemplified by his active role in my life including but not limited to coaching sporting teams, supporting my co-curricular pursuits and always being a source of advice and mentoring to this day.
Perhaps his greatest legacy was his unconditional faith in God and that commitment to serving others. In the last ten years Dad devoted his life to being a Chaplain in a dialysis unit at a local public hospital. He walked with so many people often in their last days. His message was always about love, forgiveness and hope. He carried a scripture verse in his pocket that he gave to people he walked with; it was this same verse we read to him over and over again in his dying days.
Heavenly Father,
When I am weak, You are my Strength
When I am Frightened, You are my Comforter.
When I am lost, You are my Saviour.
You are my Hope, the Joy, the Love of My life
Joshua 1: P 9 NIV
So simple yet so powerful!
Vale Dad and thank you for the support and love you gave us all.
Happy Fathers’ Day to all our families in our community. May your lives be enriched by the same love and hope that I was blessed to be given.
Hon Sue Ellery MLC, Minister for Education and Training – Visit to Newman College
On Wednesday, the Hon Sue Ellery, Minster for Education and Training WA, visited our school to discuss our mobile phone policy. Students, teachers and parents from Lavalla and Marcellin Campuses were in attendance. The purpose of the meeting was to seek feedback on what we do at Newman College and how the voice of our community will be used as part of a wider consultation to develop a policy for schools across WA.
In our local context, put simply, phones are out of sight unless they are used for explicit learning. The Minister unpacked this with our students who were excellent in their presentation and discussion. The confidence and reflection on display exemplified the intent of our school to animate our students to have a voice and to be critical thinkers. The wider issues of social media and student interaction were also discussed as was our approach to the education of students and families.
