 Newsletter No 03 26 February 2020 |
Hello Everyone, Hello Everyone, Ash Wednesday comes from the ancient Jewish tradition of penance and fasting. The practice includes the wearing of ashes on the head. The ashes symbolize the dust from which God made us. Last Friday we had our first school Mass. Thanks to those who joined us for this. We were also able to welcome our new students and families during the Mass. We also had a chance to meet our new priest Father Prakash Somu. Next Thursday is our GALA DAY. Prayers please that we get a beautiful fine evening. Our Gala Day is a really awesome community night, so I encourage you all to come: invite everyone you possibly can. The Gala starts at 4.00pm and finishes at 7.00pm. Thanks to all those families who have contributed so far to our Gala. Please see our Gala Countdown requirements later in this newsletter. Of course we will accept other things up until Gala Day. All gala contributions to be taken to your child’s class box in the hall foyer as each item received wins 1 point towards their class; the class that receives the most points (pro-rata on number of children per class) wins a surprise lunch!!! The class that brings in the most cakes also wins a special prize. The Vodafone Warriors visit our school tomorrow (Thursday). This will be a great occasion for our students. Here is some information regarding our swimming sports: MONDAY 9TH MARCH We have a student who has recently come to us from overseas and does not yet have a bike. He would like to compete in the RATS duathlon. Could anyone please loan a bike to this student (Year 5). See Mr Macmillan or Leanne the sports co-ordinator. Enjoy the busy week ahead, and again, prayers for a fine day for the Gala Day. We look forward to seeing everyone at our school gala 4pm – 7pm on Thursday 1st March. Have an awesome week. David Macmillan, Principal. SCHOOL APP - Some people are currently experiencing an issue when notifying an absence via the app. We suggest you try updating the app, or deleting it and reinstalling. If you are still having issues after doing this could you please email [schooloffice@stmarysrotorua.school.nz] and provide details of the issue, any error message showing and let us know what device ( make and model) you are using - so we can follow up and try and get this issue resolved. Please note you can also notify absences via the quick links tab on our website. Sports Teams: Sports coaches have contact details for one parent. If you need both parents to be kept up to date with information for a particular sports team could you please provide the coach of the team with contact details for both parents. DAILY COUNTDOWN TO GALA DAY 5 MARCH : THURSDAY 27 FEBRUARY: Bottle Day - please bring a bottle or jar of something e.g. shampoo, sauce, perfume, jam, oil etc. Please note NO alcohol is allowed to be brought to school by children. FRIDAY 28 FEBRUARY : Nacho Day - Corn Chips, tinned tomatoes, chilli or kidney beans, onions, nacho mince recipe sachets. MONDAY 2 MARCH: Grocery Day - packet/boxes day - bring a packet or box of something e.g. biscuits, cereal, flour, crackers, chips, cereals. TUESDAY 3 MARCH : White Elephant Day - books, toys and baby elephant - board games, children's sporting equipment, CDs DVDs. WEDNESDAY 4 MARCH : Mystery Jar Day THURSDAY 5 MARCH: GALA DAY! Homemade cakes, biscuits, sweets, fresh fruit and vegetables. GALA SPONSORS NEEDED - if you are able to help us out with sponsorship this would be greatly appreciated Please contact Heidi on 021 911305. Thank you. FIRE WOOD RAFFLE: GALA FUNDRAISER - On sale now at the school office - $ 5 PER ENTRY - CASH ONLY Is a mix of Eucalyptus and pine and donated by a St Mary's family. Prize includes delivery within 30 minutes of Rotorua. Limited to 100 tickets only, so the odds of winning are high! FROM OUR DIRECTOR OF RELIGIOUS STUDIES:We had our Ash Wednesday Service for the school today. Father Prakash was our priest for this. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent. Ash Wednesday is important because it marks the start of the Lenten period leading up to Easter, when Christians believe Jesus was resurrected. During this period, Christians show repentance and mourning for their sins, because they believe that Christ died for them. Lent is a season of reflection and preparation before the celebrations of Easter. By observing the 40 days of Lent, Christians replicate Jesus Christ's sacrifice and withdrawal into the desert for 40 days. Lent is marked by fasting, both from food and festivities. The Lenten Season  Bernie Hall-DRS Invitation to participate in St Mary's Parish Alpha Course - March 2020 This year St Mary's Parish is running a Day-Time Alpha Course beginning on the 3rd March, and an Evening-Time Alpha beginning on the 3rd September. What is Alpha? Alpha is a good introduction to Jesus, Prayer, the Scriptures and Community. You may register on the Parish website www.catholicrotorua.org.nz CATHOLICS RETURNING HOME: Sports NewsWE NEED OUR SPORTS UNIFORMS No uniform will be issued to children if they haven't got a bond in place or have uniform not returned. We will be enforcing our Sports Uniform Policy from this term. This can be found on our school website under Our Sports Please ensure you have our school app and have set up to receive notifications for the sports your tamariki/children are playing. Instructions on how to do this can be found here. RATS Duathlon Please note: You will need to drop off your child and their bike at the event by 9am and pick up from the event no later than 12pm.** When: Tuesday 10th March 2020 If you have any queries please contact Whaea Leanne, Sports Coordinator at sports@stmarysrotorua.school.nz or 027 285 7579 or 07 348 1701 ext 1701. ROTORUA TENNIS CLUB JUNIORS Rotorua United is working collaboratively with Ngongotahā AFC and Eastlake JSC to provide opportunities for girls to play in WaiBOP U13s (those born 07/08/09) and U15s (born 04/05) Saturday all girl competitions. The aim of establishing of meaningful pathways is to keep young women engaged in football and developing football skills and confidence. Our coaches leading this are taking their C Licence this month and have a solid background in football. As a club we are committed to revitalising the female space and are delighted to once again, and as part of our MOU with Ngongotaha AFC, be fielding senior women’s teams in both the W League and Bay 1 Women’s (which are open to players aged 16 and over)   SPECIAL MENTIONOn Sunday 23rd Annie participated in the Generation Homes Women's Triathlon at Mount Maunganui. It's a 400m swim, 10km bike ride and a 4km run. It was windy and the water was choppy, something seasoned athletes may balk at but she swam well. The bike ride was fueled by some soft jellies and resilience. The run was then reasonably smooth sailing and she beat her mum down the finishing chute with a smile from ear to ear to receive her medal with pride and hugs from her sisters. |
