This week’s Gospel:  Mark 13: 33-37

Take ye heed, watch and pray. For ye know not when the time is. Even as a man who going into a far country, left his house; and gave authority to his servants over every work, and commanded the porter to watch. Watch ye therefore, (for you know not when the lord of the house cometh: at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning,) Lest coming on a sudden, he find you sleeping. And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch.

2024 Classes and Staffing:

It always saddens us when staff depart St Jude’s. Sometimes it is for family reasons, whilst other times it is to pursue other opportunities. Each of these have left a positive in print on the students and families in their care. We will take the opportunity to farewell the following staff:

Mandy Cowley – moving to St John Vianney’s

Deb Reed – 12 months leave

Natalie Hancock – 12 months leave

Lachlan Eveston – Will be working with CE for 3 days and St Jude’s 2 days in 2024.

We would like to welcome the following staff to St Jude’s:

Classroom teachers:

Tara Loui – coming from Qld – 3 days per week

Kaitlyn Reedy – from St Benedict’s Narrabundah – 2 days per week

Jason French – from Sacred Heart, Pearce – full time

Emma Donoghue – From St Benedict’s Narrabundah – full time

Front Office:

Katrina Howden – coming from Canteen Manager.

We are hoping to have many of these staff available for 1 up day on Wednesday December 13.

School Fees

Thank you to all of our families who have been patient and understanding during the CE finance transition. School fees fund most of the learning experiences which occur at St Jude’s as such, it is important that we receive all monies in a timely manner. Please ensure that you have/are meeting your financial commitment to your child’s education. Please reach out if you need to.

We are very conscious of the current cost of living pressures and have worked hard to keep fees to a minimum. However, we are not immune from rising costs and unfortunately need to pass on some of these costs in the form of increases in school fees.

School fees for 2024 are shown in the table attached. The school fee in 2024 will include the tuition fee and all school-based levies. We have also reviewed and updated the arrangements for family discounts, which are included in the school fee for 2024.

Your school fees are used to support the delivery of high-quality education and maintain and improve facilities, including the funding of all staff and the maintenance and improvement of facilities at the school. Voluntary contributions to the Canberra Catholic Schools Build Fund (CCSBF) will be $210 per term for those families that opt-in to make a contribution to the CCSBF.

Our students continue to benefit from a high-quality educational experience and a wide range of learning and co-curricular opportunities. We continue to see improvement in academic achievement of students, particularly in literacy and numeracy. This commitment to learning combined with knowing each child continues to nurture the growth and development of every child.

We are very mindful of the impact that any fee increase can have on families. We have carefully considered these impacts in setting 2024 school fees and have attempted to keep the increases to a minimum. If you have any concern that fees in 2024 may cause hardship for you and your family I encourage you to contact me for a confidential discussion on the assistance available to support your child.

We value your partnership and we sincerely thank you for your continued support of our school. If you have any questions about school fees or require assistance on any other matter, please do not hesitate to contact the school.

Please note: The cost for the Year 5/6 Camp has not been included in your child’s annual fees – this will be invoiced separately.

Save the dates

• MacKillop Orientation Day – December 4 & 5
• School and Parish Xmas Carols and BBQ – December 8, 5.30pm
• Year 2 and 4 Kids Pantry – December 11
• Year 6 Graduation – December 12, 6.00pm
• K – 5 One Up Day – December 13, 9.15am
• Year 5 and 6 Aqua Park – December 13
• Last Day for students – Thursday, December 14
• Thanks giving Mass and Candle ceremony – Thursday, December 14, 12.00pm

As always, thank you for your ongoing support.

Cameron

Illuminate

Last Friday our Year 6 Youth Ministry team attended Illuminate, a formation experience where students entered fully into a day of prayer, song, music, and activities. The atmosphere was great and the students had a wonderful time. We hope they are ready for continuing service in High School.

Each year the Parish holds a Christmas celebration. Last year it was at St John Vianney’s and this year it is our turn to host. As such we have decided to also hold our Christmas picnic at the same time. Parishioners have been asked to bring a shared plate and the parish will supply some BBQ foods and drinks, which you are welcome to join with. Otherwise, you can also bring your own food and drinks and join us. We will have tables set up in the hall, outdoor space around the outdoor classroom area as well as oval space. The picnic starts at 5:30pm and students who belong to our choirs will be singing some carols from 6pm, under the shelter shed. If you are able to join us for a picnic on the oval, and are bringing you own food and drinks, then we don’t require anything from you. If you want to bring a share plate and join the parish BBQ in the hall then we will need to know more details. Please RSVP on Compass by Monday 4 December. It would be great to gather with the Parish and celebrate the Christmas season.

Thanksgiving Mass

Next Thursday 14 December, we will celebrate our end of year Thanksgiving Mass. This is a wonderful chance to thank all those in the community for their time given this year and to say goodbye to our departing families. All parents are warmly invited. 

Thanksgiving Tree

Thank you for all your donations so far which will go towards Vinnies Christmas hampers. If you have any items to donate please bring them to our Christmas tree. 

Christmas Eve Mass - now 5pm (not 6pm) Nativity 

Each year, Fr Michael celebrates Christmas Eve Mass with a Nativity at the Gospel. Thank you to those who have already responded. There are still plenty of places left, if your child/children are interested in playing the role of Mary, Joseph, Wise Men, Shepherds or Angels, please contact Brigitta at the school, or Danielle at the Parish (Westoncreek@cg.org.au) to let us know. There will be a practise before the end of the term. 

ELC NEWS

Happy birthday Saphia

Mangos Have Arrived!

If you ordered mangoes through our fundraiser, please come to collect them as soon as possible. We have a few very ripe boxes still waiting to be collected.

Time to Return Library Books

All library books are now due back to the library so Mrs Comley can start her end of year processes. Please return all books as soon as possible.

Vinnies Christmas Appeal

Each year, with your help our Parish St Vincent de Paul Society Conference prepare food hampers for those in need in our local area. This year Vinnies have plenty of toys and clothes but are in desperate need of pantry items.  The ELC have been asked to donate non-perishable breakfast food items including cereal, UHT milk, teabags, milo, instant coffee, baked beans, spaghetti, tins of fruit, spreads etc. There is a collection basket in the ELC front office.

St Jude’s Uniform shop

The uniform shop is open on Friday 1 December from 8:30am - 9:30am. Thank you to the wonderful volunteers who run Mulleyduds uniform shop.

Last Day of Term – Thursday 14 December

The last day of term is Thursday 14 December. Friday 15December is a pupil free day and no fees will be applied for this day.  If your child will not be attending on the last day/s of school you will not be entitled to CCS on those days and full fees will be charged.  Please let the ELC office know as soon as possible if your child will not be attending on their last day/s.

ELC Fees

This week’s fee statement included fees for Weeks 9 and 10 however, as CCS is processed after attendances, there may still be some small amounts outstanding for some families.  We will process another fee statement in Week 10 and again in January if necessary to finalise accounts.

Christmas Eve Mass at 6pm - Nativity 

Each year, Fr Michael celebrates Christmas Eve Mass with a Nativity at the Gospel. Thank you to those who have already responded. There are still plenty of places left so if your child is interested in playing the role of Mary, Joseph, Wise Men, Shepherds or Angels, please contact Brigitta at the school, or Danielle at the parish at Westoncreek@cg.org.au. There will be a practise before the end of the term. 

Online Triple P - Positive Parenting Program

Parents and carers are offered access to free online parenting courses developed in Australia by the Triple P – Positive Parenting Program, thanks to Australian Government funding. The Triple P program offers a guide to specific programs and online resources, assisting with the everyday challenges parents and carers face raising calm, resilient and happy children. Information is available at https://www.triplep-parenting.net.au/au/triple-p/

Term 4 Week 8

Library books are coming back steadily. Stingrays have had the best returns so far so well done to them! Could parents please help their children find their books, especially if you have different households. Thank you!

Keep those books coming in please! Due by the end of the week…

Emails will be sent next week for outstanding books. Please contact me if there is a problem eg packed books, moving house, Grinch stole our books etc

Happy reading! Verna Comley

Sushi available to order – Wednesday Week 9

Sushi will be available to order for lunch on Wednesday 6 December.

A Sushi Roll and a Juice can be ordered for $6.00, with additional rolls $4.00.

Sushi Roll Options:

• Cooked Tuna Roll (GF)
• Crispy Chicken Roll
• Avocado Roll (GF & Veg)

Orders are being supplied by Mr Sushi and need to be placed via Qkr! by the above cut off date. No late orders will be accepted. 

End of Year Meal Deal – Thursday 14 December

The meal deal consists of a Hot Dog, Juice and Quelch Stick for $7.50. Vegetarian and additional hot dogs are available.

Orders need to be placed via Qkr!  - order cut off 9am Monday 11 December. No late orders will be accepted.

If paying by cash please use the order form and return to the front office.

Please email katrina.howden@cg.catholic.edu.au if a Gluten Free Option is required.

Canteen Volunteers – Week 9

Wednesday 6 December – E. Dimanoski & Annette

Thursday 7 December – R. Buckley, S. Auhl, J. Long & Annette  

Friday 8 December – S. Monges, G. Cabot, B & F Roberts & one more volunteer please

Uniform shop open:  

Friday 1 Dec 8:30am - 9:30am

***THE UNIFORM SHOP TABS ARE UPDATED - CHECK THEM OUT ON QKR!***

For any and all uniform needs, orders can be placed via the Uniform Shop tab on Qkr!, or via email to: uniform.stjudes@gmail.com for any second hand items. **Please do not make payment for secondhand items, until we reply to your request confirming stock is available. 

If there is ever an issue with an order, please email the uniform shop and we will endeavour to fix this as soon as possible. Similarly if items are missing from Qkr! or marked 'stock not available', please let us know and we can order stock with relatively quick turnaround times. 

Community Council Meeting – 28 November

Thank you to all that attended the last meeting for the year. It has been a busy year, in what was effectively the first full year back after covid. Thank you to everyone that has assisted with Community Council events during the year. The success of these fundraising and social events could not have happened without our wonderful volunteers.

Minutes will be uploaded in the near future, and will be found here: https://stjudesps.act.edu.au/cc-meetings. 

Thank You – Sara Cooper

The Community Council wanted to make a special mention of Sara Cooper. Sara is one of our most active volunteers and has been a contributor to the Community Council for a number of years, previously holding the role of secretary. Sara, along with other wonderful volunteers, was also instrumental in managing the uniform shop, especially keeping the shop viable during challenging times in covid when supply chains were so unpredictable. And who could forget the nacho stand at this year’s fete! Sara and her family will be leaving St Jude’s next year, although we hope to see her again when they return to Canberra. Thank you Sara and we wish you and your family the best on your new adventure.

Important Dates

Many thanks,

Gemma Cabot

Stjudes.scc@gmail.com

Save the date:   Saturday 16 March 2024

Our fete committee are gaining momentum as we approach the end of the year in preparation for our Family & Community Fete for 2024. 

If you are interested in helping out in any capacity (big or small) the committee would love to hear from you!

WANTED:           

Our Plant Stall Coordinators are seeking donations of:

• potting mix,
• spare 14cm pots,
• cuttings. 

Trash & Treasure are hoping to seek donations of:

• Excess plastic painters drop sheets for storing our lovely donations ahead of the fete

Stall Coordinators 

Fete Site Coordinator 

If you have anything to donate there are now two permanent drop off points setup at the front office of the Primary School and the ELC. (black milk crate with sign) 

If you are able to help out with any of the above, please reach out to our Fete Coordinator Sarah Tonna 041453311