Newsletter 6 June 2025
Principal's Message
Amazing Eisteddfod results!!!!
Rugby 7's 3rd in NSW!!!!
Friday 6 June 2025 - Term 2 Week 6
Dear Parents and Carers,
It has been another busy and rewarding time at our school, filled with outstanding achievements and meaningful reflections.
We are incredibly proud of our students' recent success in the Music Eisteddfod. Our dedicated teachers, Mrs Wendy O’Sullivan, Mrs Maria Woods, and Mrs Tracey Backhouse, prepared our Years 3-6 choir students, and their hard work truly paid off. Each choir placed in their respective divisions, which is a fantastic accomplishment. Notably, our Year 4 choir achieved 1st place (by one point!), ahead of our commendable Year 3 choir in the same division, and our combined Year 5/6 choir also secured 1st place. Mrs O’Sullivan commented that these results were exceptional, particularly for such large choirs, and that the students exceeded all expectations. We are immensely proud of their performances and dedication.
In the sporting arena, we are looking forward to next week's Years 3-6 Athletics Carnival and anticipate a great day of competition and sportsmanship. We also extend our congratulations to our Rugby 7s team who achieved an impressive 3rd place overall at the Rugby 7’s State Finals in Sydney last week – a fantastic effort! Furthermore, our students who participated in both the Zone and Diocesan Cross Country events have also performed very well, and we commend their training and perseverance.
Last week, our school community took time to reflect on National Sorry Day and Reconciliation Week. We connected these important national events to our St Augustine's KEY, which guides the principles and behaviours we strive for as a school. This week, we continued to use the KEY as a framework for our learning around World Environment Day, encouraging our students to think about their role in caring for our planet.
Our Crazy Sock Day was a fabulous success! We raised over $700, which will be used to support and empower women in Zambia. This money will provide them with opportunities to work at a maize mill and develop vital entrepreneurial skills. These initiatives are designed to create long-term, positive change, not only improving the lives of these women but also ensuring that their children and future generations have access to the education and resources they need to thrive. It was an inspiring initiative that reminded us all of the real-world global impact our community can have.
Finally, have you purchased your Firefly tickets? We are excitedly preparing for this fantastic school community event. Everyone is invited, and we encourage you to bring along friends and extended family to the night (think Vivid but better!). Family tickets are $20. Single tickets are $10. Here is the link
Kind regards,
Naomi Loader
Acting Principal
Faith and Mission News
First Eucharist
Passover Evening
In preparation for receiving the Eucharist for the first time on 21 or 22 June, our candidates and their parents participated in an evening of learning and prayer where a re-enactment of the Passover helped everyone to make connections to the Mass. It was a wonderful time to stop and reflect on what happens during the Mass and how special it is to receive Jesus in Holy Communion.
Our First Eucharist candidates will join with candidates from St Francis Xavier on Friday 20 June for more learning and preparation.
Confirmation
The Confirmation Liturgies will be held at 5:30pm on Wednesday 30 and Thursday 31 July. If you have not yet selected the liturgy your family will be attending, please complete the Google Form on Compass notification that was sent home to the families of candidates.
Please complete any outstanding WHITE CARD and the “Pray For Me’ cards and return them at your earliest convenience.
Pentecost Sunday/Multicultural Mass
Pentecost Sunday falls on 8 June this year and our school, in conjunction with the St Augustine's parish, will celebrate this day with a Multicultural Mass. At this Mass, families will celebrate all their different cultural backgrounds through hymns and prayers in different languages and processions featuring the flags of our cultural heritage. After the Mass, in the school grounds, there will be sharing of traditional foods, songs and dances. All are welcome to join us on this joyful day. If you have a song or dance that you would like to share at the gathering after Mass, please contact Maria Woods if you need any clarification. Wearing traditional dress or typical clothing from your culture is encouraged.
Any children who attend this Mass can join in the Entrance procession with other children and Fr Joe.
GLOW
On Wednesday 28 May, our Year 6 students joined other Year 6 students from the region to participate in a ‘Glow’ gathering. With a focus on the scripture ‘God is light: in Him there is no darkness at all’, the students had the opportunity develop their faith through music, testimonies, games and prayer.
‘Pilgrims of Hope’
Many classes have begun their ‘pilgrimage’, working through the activities on the poster below. This pilgrimage will take almost all year to complete and we look forward to sharing some of the experiences that bring us closer to God.
With the Heart of a Shepherd
Family life is a journey filled with changing seasons, unexpected turns, and moments of both deep joy and quiet struggle. As parents, we are called not only to love our children unconditionally but also to shepherd our families—watching carefully, walking gently, and noticing when someone begins to drift….
Naomi Loader - Assistant Principal Mission
Maria Woods - Leader of School Evangelisation
Pastoral Care
K-2 Parent Storytelling 2025
Mini Vinnies
After Pete's Place employee Opal Harvey recently visited Year 6, our Mini Vinnies have decided to support our local community by running a drive to help them out with personal hygiene items.
Below is a list of items that we are asking our cohorts to be responsible for donating over the next 4 weeks. Please bring them to your classroom before Friday 20th June. Donations of all sizes will be gratefully received.
Kindergarten - Shampoo
Year 1 - Conditioner
Year 2 - Deodorant (roll on only)
Year 3 - Body wash and soap
Year 4 - Toothbrushes and Toothpaste
Year 5 - Combs and brushes
Year 6 - Shaving cream
Thank you in advance, from the Mini Vinnies team.
Year 2 Aquarium visit
FIREFLY Arts Festival - Wed June 25
TICKETS ON SALE via STICKY TICKETS
Click on the link below to purchase your tickets:
https://www.stickytickets.com.
PRE-PAY TODAY for FASTER ENTRY on the night!
News from the LARC
Visiting Authors
This week we have been fortunate enough to have three amazing Australian Authors visit.
Jaclyn Moriarty kept Year 6 enthralled with stories of her childhood, her journey to becoming an author, and her life with her fabulous, and funny, son Charlie, and how he inspired many of her books. Two lucky year six students managed to follow Jaclyn’s clues and crack the code, each winning one of Jaclyn’s fabulous books.
Solli Raphael kept Year 5 entertained with his poetry and encouraged students to start journaling. The classrooms were abuzz with excited students reciting their Solli-inspired poems. Soli’s fresh, young voice inspired our students to tell their stories their way.
The prolific and very funny writer R A ( Rachel) Spratt entertained Years 3 and 4. Rachel’s Nanny Piggins and Friday Barnes series are VERY popular with students of all year levels, and she has mixed it up with some short stories and other titles that will be released soon. We can’t wait for these new books to arrive in our LARC.
We are so fortunate to have these talented writers visit our school, inspire our students, and sign our Author Wall.
World Environment Day
We celebrate World Environment Day every year on June 5th.
It’s a day when people all around the world come together to think about how we can help protect our planet.
The Earth is our home. It gives us everything we need — clean air, water, food, and a place to live.
However our planet is facing big problems. There is too much pollution, too many trees are being cut down, and animals are losing their homes.
But the good news is — we can help!
We can do small things that make a big difference. For example
Turn off the lights when we leave a room.
Don’t waste water when brushing our teeth.
Recycle paper, plastic, and cans.
Walk or ride a bike instead of using the car when we can.
Plant a tree or even a small plant!
When we take care of nature, nature takes care of us. And if we all work together — children, parents, teachers, and leaders — we can make the Earth a cleaner, greener, and happier place.
The boys and girls pictured below have had one of the best plastic-free lunchboxes in their year! Their commitment to sustainability is an example for us all, in protecting our planet.
Eisteddfod Success
On Tuesday 27 May our three St Augustine’s Choirs gave flawless performances at the Coffs Harbour and District Eisteddfod. The Year 5&6 Choir came first place in a large section with their beautiful rendition of ‘Just Pray’ and energetic performance of an African song, ‘Banaha’. The Year 3 and Year 4 choirs were both outstanding, taking out 1st and 2nd places in their section with extremely high marks. In a very close competition the Year 3 choir took out the section by 1 mark! Both the choirs performed with amazing energy and focus. Year 3 sang ‘Truly Scrumptious’ from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and a two part song called ‘Gecko’ while Year 4 performed ‘Hushabye Mountain’ and a lively folk song called ‘The Papaya Song’. Congratulations to all our hard working and dedicated students and to our amazing staff led by Mrs Wendy O’Sullivan.
Crazy Sock Day - thank you!
We were delighted to welcome Mrs Wallace to speak with our Year 5 and 6 students about Crazy Sock Day and the important cause behind our fundraising efforts. Mrs Wallace, representing Mission Australia, shared with us how the funds we raise will support women in Zambia, Africa. The money will help empower Zambian women by providing opportunities to work at a maize mill and develop entrepreneurial skills. These initiatives aim to create long-term change - not only improving the lives of these women but also ensuring that their children, and future generations, have access to education and the resources they need to thrive. It was an inspiring session that reminded us all of the real-world global impact of our Crazy Sock Day donations.
Thank you to all our families for supporting this fundraiser!!
Happy Families
Sport News
Week 7 | |||
Wed 11 Jun | NSW CPS Cross Country | Sydney | |
Thu 12 Jun | Diocesan Rugby Union Trials | Alstonville | |
Fri 13 Jun | St Augustine’s Years 3-6 Athletics Carnival | Coffs Harbour | |
Week 8 | |||
Tue 17 - Thu 19 Jun | NSW PSSA Rugby League (12 Years) | ||
Wed 18 Jun | Rugby Union Gala Day | ||
Week 10 | |||
Mon 30 Jun | Polding Rugby Union | Forbes | |
Tue 1 Jul | AFL Paul Kelly Cup Regional Final | Coffs Harbour | |
Wed 2 Jul | Clarence Zone Athletics | Coffs Harbour | |
Thu 3 Jul | Polding Touch Football | Port Macquarie | |
Diocesan Cross Country
Last Thursday our Cross Country runners returned to Woolgoolga for the Lismore Diocesan Cross Country Championships. On a familiar course our runners were out to break their PB’s!
A huge congratulations to the following students finishing in a top 8 position!
2nd - Angus Morgan (12 Year Boys)
5th - Emma Sandes (11 Year Girls)
6th - Isabella Guthrie (8/9 Year Girls)
6th - Frankie Zuevla (10 Year Girls)
We wish Angus Morgan, Hugh Morgan and Emma Sandes all the best when they run at the Polding Cross Country Championships on Wednesday next week.
Coffs Coast Futsal Titles
Last Wednesday our Senior Boys Futsal team attended the Coffs Coast Futsal Titles. The boys had been training in the lead up to the tournament with guidance from Darryn Brian and Vanessa Wall. The boys had a fantastic time playing against various other schools from the region. Congratulations boys and thank you Vanessa and Darryn.
State Rugby 7’s
Last Thursday our Senior Boys Rugby 7’s side travelled to Sydney to compete in the State Rugby 7’s Final. Our boys were off to a brilliant start, winning all 3 games to top their pool. They then went on to play in the Cup Semi Final, unfortunately going down to a well-oiled Scone Grammar team, who would eventually win the Cup. This placed our boys 3rd out of 16 teams at the championships. What an incredible result! A huge thank you to coach Paul Butcher for once again looking after our St Augustine’s Rugby side.
Years 3-6 Elective Sports
Elective Sports preferences have now been allocated and Compass Events have been sent home. We are very excited to start this program in Term 3. Please accept and pay for the event before the due date to secure a place for your child’s sport.
Years 3-6 Athletics Carnival
Next Friday our Year 3-6 students will spend the day at the C.Ex Stadium for our 3-6 Athletics Carnival. All finalists for Long Jump and Shot Put are on student notices. Please ensure you have gone onto Compass to give your child permission to attend this compulsory event.
CANTEEN NEWS
Canteen Roster
Week beginning 9 June
- Monday - C Williams
- Tuesday - M & M Black, K Hunn
- Wednesday - C Jones
- Thursday - J Murphy, D Kelly
- Friday - W McLean, L Horne, H Webber, Dinah
Week beginning 16 June
- Monday - C Skewes
- Tuesday - M & M Black
- Wednesday - C Jones
- Thursday - L Hardaker
- Friday - W McLean, L Lawler, C Williams, B McClurg
Notices
