It is hard to believe that in a few days we will be farewelling our class of 2018. They have been at the College for the past six years and are ready to now sit their exams and then begin a new transition into life after school. We will have opportunity to wish them well next week, but I would like to acknowledge the positive contributions they have made to the College over those years and wish them every success in their future.

We have a world champion in our midst! Mr Scott Ashcroft recently competed in the International Triathlon Union World Championship held on the Gold Coast. I am delighted to share with you that he won his division to become the World Champion in the 40 to 44 year group. This is an outstanding achievement which comes out of hard work and perseverance. Scott is a humble person who draws no attention to himself but is clearly a very driven and talented athlete. Congratulations to him for this wonderful achievement. Photos are attached to this article. In addition to this, we are the NSW All Schools Oz Tag State Champions, more details are further in this edition, congratulations to all the girls.

The College will be engaging in some further building works over the next few years. We are working to refurbish Westview so that it reflects a more modern and vibrant learning space for the girls. We will begin next term with the creation of new Food Tech spaces, which will be finished by mid term 1 2019. After that, we will refurbish the wood and IT areas and then, following shortly after that, will focus on the middle section of Westview which will have a design centre created. This is a very exciting time for the College as we upgrade the older areas to provide more spacious and engaging spaces for the girls. I am appreciative of the Board who has recognised the need for this upgrade and been committed to improving the learning for the girls.

You will notice, that from next term, we have a new section in the Inside Out called The Faith Feed. This will pass on to you any information about our faith and the faith of others. It will enlighten you on the current church seasons and some of the rituals that we have at the College. I thank Mrs Foran who will be contributing to this addition each fortnight. I hope you find it informative. Please give us some feedback so it continues to be a resource to you.

As you would be acutely aware, all of our state is currently in drought. With the hot dry wind blowing as I write this editorial, I am struck by the suffering and hardship many families who live on the land are experiencing at the moment and the relentlessness of its ongoing impact.   There doesn’t seem to be any reprieve. I am sure many of you know of families who are doing it tough and the pressure many communities are under to try and keep their people safe. I will leave you with a prayer recently written in the parish newsletter about the drought. Let us keep all affected in our prayers that they will endure until the rain finally comes to rejuvenate the land and the people.

Finally, as I will be going on leave from the start of next term, if you have any concerns please direct them to Mrs Karen Wright who will be the Acting Principal for term 4.

Blessings

Sue Lennox - Principal 

Prayer for those Affected by Drought
God of all creation hear our prayer;
bring us rain to renew the ground,
to replenish our dams to activate seeds,
to bring the possibility of some reward
to those who have worked so hard.

We turn to you in faith and hope.
We pray for families, rural communities and
all affected by drought in our Great South Land.

We pray for all those who live under the shadow of
drought.
We pray for those who work with the land,
for farmers and their families,
for those who rely upon the land for their life
and relationships.
We pray for contractors, merchants and the truck drivers,
for rural counsellors and support workers, for all in our 
rural communities.

May the revitalising power of your Spirit be present
in miraculous and truly human ways
and be with all of us as we move 
forward in the days ahead.
We pray too, for justice; for fair prices for our stock, our wool
and our grain.
We pray for governments, banks and corporations.
May they be driven by wisdom, generosity, justice and compassion.
We pray for each other, keep us aware of the needs
of those around us; for those who are struggling,
and those carrying heavy burdens.

Restore those who are far from you
with the knowledge that they are loved and valued.
Give them not just a sense of renewal,
but a sense of hope and purpose for lives
that are finding the journey hard.

Bring us rain to renew us, Lord.
We make this prayer through Christ Our Lord. Amen

In children, reading has been shown to help with identity formation, setting them up for success in the future. In adults, reading has been shown to reduce stress by 68% more than listening to music, going for a walk or having a cup of tea…and it’s always good to combine reading with a nice cup of tea for additional stress relief! Remember, if at any time you need assistance choosing your next page-turner, your friendly library staff are here for suggestions.

The College Library

The Book Club has been revived this term and currently has four members. The book currently being discussed is “Tomorrow, When the War Began" by John Marsden, which the club is finding to be a very interesting read and has resulted in some very eager discussions.

If you are interested in joining in the fun, Book Club runs in the Library every Monday at lunchtime.

We hope to see you there!

The College Library

To start accessing e-books and audiobooks:

1 Download the “ePlatform” app through the app store on your mobile, iPad or Windows device.
2. Search for Saint Patrick’s College, Campbelltown
3. Sign in using your school ID and password. Then enjoy searching the wide range of e-books and audiobooks.

If you have any questions about borrowing e-books and audiobooks, please feel free to see the friendly library staff.

Happy Reading!

The College Library

Each day for seven days we posted a photo of library life in the St Pat's library. The conditions were: black and white photos, no explanations, no humans. Each day that we posted, we challenged a different library to get on board. 

The College Library

When we reached Amity College we were introduced to many of the Year 10 students and given the opportunity to talk to them and get to know them. We learnt what the day consisted of and found out that four other schools were attending the day’s celebrations as well. We learnt a lot about their school and lifestyle through our conversations, especially about how their opposite all boys school was right next door, with only a canteen connecting them.

After morning tea, we began with a group discussion session where all the attendants from every school split into different groups in order to give us a chance to meet girls from other schools. In our session, we discussed what many of our personal values are and which values we shared as a group that makes us who we are. Each group was then given a quote from a famous person or politician that was presented recently. These quotes were quite shocking and distressing to read as they were very negative and offensive to many. We, as a group, had to share our thoughts on the comment, how we would respond to the comment and what we can do as teenage girls to change these negative ways of thinking within our community. 

We then played a few games to get to know each other better. This was very exciting and enjoyable, it was one of my favourite parts of the day. It gave us a chance to be silly and interact with others in a simple environment.

After this was the most anticipated lunch! Each class of Amity College was assigned a country to investigate and learn about. They then had to set up stalls in their playground which included many items from the country they studied. This also included many of the traditional foods of each country. Many girls had dressed up in traditional costumes and it was amazing! It felt like walking into a festival! We all filled ourselves with different delicious foods and enjoyed our lunch very well. It was wonderful to see so many students push themselves to try things that they had never eaten or tried before; it was a great experience.

After lunch was an assembly, where many of the girls and school teachers shared their experience of different cultures and many of the students performed as well. This was the conclusion of our day at Amity College.

Overall the experience was very amazing and interesting. I personally loved trying many traditional foods and having the chance to talk to many other girls who were my same age and going through much of the same experiences as me, such as subject selections for Years 11 and 12. We are also very grateful to Mrs Reader for taking us to the excursion, which was a very inspiring day. It would be amazing if we could also hold something like this in our own College!

Elina B – Year 10 Student

The Taiko Drumming session was a big success. Run by the performance group YuNiOn each student had the opportunity to play Taiko drums and participate in the group percussion activities.

The second activity was Sumo Wrestling using large padded suits. Sumo is one of Japan’s oldest and traditional Japanese sports. Students learnt about the culture and language of Sumo and were able to safely wrestle each other following the rules of Sumo.

The Japanese food, Yakitori and Makizushi, was prepared by students in another of the activities. Yakitori is grilled chicken that has been marinated in sweet soy sauce. The chicken was Halal and cooked on the College BBQ. Makizushi are sushi rolls and the students made them with ingredients including sweet vinegared white rice, carrots, cucumber and dried nori seaweed.

The last activity was origami and calligraphy. Students have learnt about the story of Sadako and a Thousand Paper Cranes. Led by two past St Patrick’s College students who are currently studying Japanese at university, the students made origami cranes for a display to be used at the end of the year. Students also did calligraphy, writing the Kanji (Chinese characters) and learnt the importance of correct stroke order and pose when it comes to this art form.

The day was an important learning experience for the students and a great success.

Julian Nash - LOTE Coordinator

This year’s judges included the Hon David Elliott, Minister for Veterans Affairs, Ms Eleni Petinos, Member for Miranda, Mr Steve Kamper, Member for Rockdale, Mr Nathan Rees, Former Premier of NSW, and Colonel Don Tait (Retired).

Mackenzie wrote a 1000-word essay on the question: Why is the Centenary of Anzac important for Modern Australia? In this she wrote about her great great uncle, William Lyttle King, who served in World War I. King was born in the Campbelltown area and in 1916, aged 22, William enlisted and joined the Australian Flying Corps whilst studying Commerce  at the University of Sydney. After training in England, he was sent to France where he suffered significant injuries in Savy and hospitalised. His squadron went on to fight against the Red Baron’s Flying Circus, taking down five enemy planes in one engagement. After the war, William completed studies in Law and married Annette Cook, daughter of Sir Joseph Cook, the Prime Minister. Unfortunately, while King survived the war, he experienced what we now call post traumatic stress disorder and his life ended in 1925.

We wish Mackenzie all the best for her upcoming trip and look forward to her sharing her journey at the St Patrick’s College Remembrance Day ceremony.

Fran Musico-Rullo - HSIE Teacher

Firstly, new eco bins have made their way into the Pastoral homerooms and the main classrooms around the College. These bins were purchased as part of the NSW Eco Schools Grant that we received at the start of the year and the Environment Council members helped construct these bins to get them ready. These bins are yellow, blue and red in colour and are:

✓Fully recyclable at the end of their life

✓ Made from a tough and lightweight corrugated plastic (with a lifetime guarantee!)
✓ Tear proof and waterproof
✓ Corrugated plastic is certified carbon neutral
✓ Flexibility of cardboard with the durability of plastic

So what do these bins mean?

So please familiarise yourself with these bins and what goes in them. Here is some more information on these bins: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TQcjP-X7Oo

Secondly, you may have noticed the ‘Return and Earn’ sign at the front of the College. We are now a partnering school with Nepean Distributors who have kindly provided us with four orange 60L bins where students and staff can place their cans, plastic bottles, juice poppers and small milk and drink cardboard cartons to help raise funds for sustainable purposes around the College. For every container collected, we receive 10c and, so far, we have raised over $100. These containers need to be not soiled or scrunched and fully emptied. It is very important that we place the correct items in these bins and NOT waste products or other plastic waste, so we can contribute to this scheme in the most effective way possible.

Finally, a quick reminder that we are still running the important ‘Keep Cup’ initiative at the Canteen. This idea was put forward and led by Haley M, our Environment Captain, and has encouraged students and staff to bring their own Keep Cup to reduce the terrible impact that styrofoam and regular coffee cups have on the environment. Did you know most coffee cups cannot be recycled as they contain a small plastic layer in the cup which helps it to be waterproof, thus not able to be recycled, and styrofoam stays in land fill for over 500 years!

There will be some more environment initiatives running next term so stay tuned!

Maria Boulatsakos - Environment Teacher

We were taken around the entire cemetery where we were shown the graves of important figures in our past and given information about each of their lives. With our College’s upcoming Armistice Centenary Ceremony in honour of those involved in World War I, it was an opportunity for us to get an insight into some of those people’s lives. The cemetery was first constructed in 1862, but the first recorded burial was in 1869 and has been added to since. The size of the cemetery is only a small 15 x 40 metres and is located right next door to our school.

Unfortunately, the graves have been graffitied on since 1980, but Campbelltown City Council continue to do all they can to fix them and prevent this from occurring. We learned that in 1977 a Science class from St Patrick’s took it upon themselves to clean up the cemetery and look after its surrounds.

The most recent burial was just under a hundred years since the first burial. Some key figures we learned about include James Bocking, Frank Nicol, Stephen Longhurst, James Roughly Longhurst and William Gee, all of whom had significance and played important roles in the history of Campbelltown. We were educated about their family history and learnt about the impact that they made on their community and how that affects us here in 2018.

Overall, the day was a great experience for the History Club members and we all definitely learned something new. Despite a little bit of rain, the day ran smoothly and we all walked back to school with a stronger knowledge of the place we call home.

By Layla E and Olivia L - Year 8 Students (History Club Members)

After progressing through the regional finals undefeated, St Patrick’s had two Oz Tag teams qualify to compete at the State Championships. The two teams were our Year 7/8 team and our Year 11/12 team.

The Year 7/8 team started the day with a win before going on to have a draw and two losses finishing in 5^th place overall. This placing then allowed the girls to progress into the quarter finals where they faced a strong St Mary’s team in a sudden death game. Unfortunately, St Mary’s were too strong for the girls and they bowed out of the competition, remaining in 5^th place overall. The girls gained a lot of experience from the event which should see them go from strength to strength in the future.

The Year 11/12 team started the day in a similar fashion to the juniors, with a strong win over arch rivals St Mary’s and from then on, the girls went from strength to strength dominating all games leading into the semi-final where they were ranked as the number one team. In the semi-final, the girls easily accounted for Mount View High School, which resulted in a grand final match against a strong Woolooware High School. The grand final was a closely contested game that went right down to the wire. The girls looked in control of the game with three outstanding individual tries to College Sports Captain Ana C, but unfortunately Woolooware hit back to level the scores at 4 all with only a minute remaining. With only seconds to go on the clock, an outstanding display of individual brilliance from Olivia F saw her slide through the defence to score the match winner, just as the siren sounded. This was a massive achievement for the girls who set themselves the goal of winning this tournament (and getting championship jumpers) 12 months ago after being narrowly defeated in the grand final last year and finishing as runners up.

Congratulations to all the girls on the way you played, supported each other and conducted yourselves throughout the day. Special congratulations to the girls who were selected in the NSW Merit Teams including Darcy E, Olivia F, Amy S, Lily M, Julia P and Sarah P. A big thank you must also go to our supporting parents and to Mr David for his work with the girls as coach.

The teams consisted of:

Year 7/8 Team: Amelia B, Tavara S, Stella B, Jessica A, Italia N, Amy Y, Tahlia M, Meg O, Darcy E, Lucy G and Eden G. Coach Mr David.

Year 11/12 Team: Julia P, Sarah P, Amy S, Olivia F, Natalie S, Ana C, Kiarra B, Lily M, Emily A, Andrea M, Tara B and Eden G. Coach Mr Ashcroft.

Scott Ashcroft - Sports and Activities Coordinator

Year 7 Netball

Krisa K, Amy Y, Meg O, Lucy G, Annalise D, Amelia M, Ilori P, Helen T, Emilie D, Grace G and Eden G. Coach Mrs Lawrence.

Year 8 Netball

Charlotte F, Olivia Z, Carrera K, Brianna H, Lucy O, Bianca R, Katarina S, Amala A, Jessica W and Grace K. Coach Mrs Arena.

Year 8/9 Oz Tag

Tavara S, Piper A, Lara M, Chelsea P, Phillipa M, Sarah P, Jessica A, Alysha G, Natasha B, Karina B and Olivia S. Coach Mr David.

Year 10-12 Soccer

Tara B, Elizabeth C, Annalie C, Ana C, Emma G, Andrea M, Julia P, Loretta T, Emily M, Amelia G, Abby H, Georgia M, Jermaine D, Cecilia T, Annie R, Reagan B and Emily M. Coach Mrs Baudana

Year 10-12 Volleyball

Emma L, Anita P, Natalie S, Lyliann V, Esther M, Dryandra M, Eva B, Alysha B, Priya S and Florence V. Ms Cornett

Scott Ashcroft - Sports and Activities Coordinator

What do our girls think about their fathers? And what are fathers struggling with when it comes to their relationship with their daughter? 

Award-winning journalist, author and commentator Madonna King has interviewed over 500 girls and many fathers, as well as leading psychologists, school principals, CEOs, police, guidance counsellors and neuroscientists, to get the answers all mothers, fathers and daughters need to know.

Exploring a father's role in his daughter's life from a daughter's perspective as well as the father's, Madonna examines the key issues that arise to help families navigate the sometimes very difficult moments: teen rebellion, discipline, sex education, the impact of broken families, how much influence a father can/should have and what you can do to repair a broken relationship.

Save the date: Tuesday 27 November from 6.30pm - Tickets are only $5 per person.

21 September - CCC Athletics
25 September - Year 12 Assembly, Year 12 Graduation Dinner
26 September - Year 12 Graduation Mass and Awards
27 September - Year 12 Formal
28 September - Staff and Students Finish for Term 3
15 October - Staff and Students Return for Term 4
15 October - Year 11 Ancient History Excursion
19 October - DIO AFL
22 October to 13 November - HSC Examinations
23 October - Year 12 (2019) Parent Information Evening, College Assembly
26 October - AIME Excursion Years 9 - 10
29 October - DIO Basketball
30 October - Year 9 Assembly, Bandemonium Charity
31 October - Year 7 -10 Parent, Teacher, Student Night
2 November - Year 9 Visual Arts Excursion
6 November - Middle School Assembly
9 November - Rememberance Day Commermotrative Assembly
12 November - Year 8 Group B HSIE/Aboriginal Studies Incursion
12 to 14 November - Year 8 Camp - Group 1
12 to 14 November - Year 10 Examinations
13 to 14 November - Year 11 Leaders Camp
14 to 16 November - Year 8 Camp - Group 2
15 November - Year 8 Group A HSIE/Aboriginal Studies Incursion
16 November - Year 9 Reflection Day, AIME Excursion Year 7 - 8