‘The Bridge’ 

There are times in life, 

When we are called to be bridges. 

Not a great monument spanning a distance, 

And carrying loads of heavy traffic. 

But a simple bridge to help one person from here to there. 

Over some difficulty 

Such as pain, grief, fear or loneliness. 

A bridge which opens the way 

For ongoing journey. 

We are halfway through a busy term. I wonder how we can be present to others as a ‘bridge’. We need a professional, vibrant and caring contribution towards the many issues confronting society today. The Christian journey is not an easy one, but it is a journey filled with much promise. As bridge builders of the future, the challenge is clearly there for us. 

Confirmation this weekend 

Our best wishes and God’s blessings to those students making their Confirmation this weekend. This public profession to follow in the footsteps of Jesus is an important stepping stone in an individual’s faith journey. In a rapidly changing world these steps take courage and on behalf of the entire St. Joseph’s community, I would like to congratulate each of them in making this decision. 

Welcome Lydia Haris 

Miss Lydia Harris is completing a professional experience placement at St. Joseph’s as part of her studies. Lydia is studying a Bachelor of Special and Inclusive Education – Primary through the University of New England. We don’t often get these placements away from bigger towns and cities so we are very excited to have Lydia join us. She will be primarily based in the Prep classroom and has already made a strong connection with students. 

Welcome Lynette Clark 

Lynette has joined our staff in a part-time capacity. She had been volunteering in the tuckshop for a couple of weeks after moving to Weipa from Victoria. Your child may have mentioned meeting her at the tuckshop. She will be assisting in the tuckshop on a Tuesday and Thursday morning and then spend the rest of those days being a School Officer – a role she has previously undertaken in Victoria. We are grateful to have Lynette’s experience add to our already wonderful team. 

Farewell and Thanks 

At the end of the week, I farewell Weipa after a most enjoyable time as Acting Principal. St. Joseph’s is a lovely school and it has been a pleasure to be involved, even for a short time. In the last three months, I have been privileged to have spent time on Crete, in Athens, in Rome, in Puglia and Tuscany as well as a cruise in the Black Sea. Weipa certainly holds its own as a great place to visit and the sunset I experienced on the sunset cruise was as beautiful a sight as I’ve seen in all those travels. The incoming Acting Principal, Mr. Brendon Napier, is an experienced school leader and I know you will enjoy him being here. Best wishes to each and every student and family for the future. 

Dear Parents and Guardians,    

 Welcome to Week 5 and what an amazing fortnight it has been it has been. There have been many exciting events already this term - Catholic Education Week and the School Dance and still to come Book Week and Father’s Day celebrations. 

Visitors  

This week we had the pleasure of Lorraine Carroll - Speech Language Pathologist from Cairns Catholic Education visiting for a few days and supporting teachers and students.  

In Week 7 we welcome back Ms Heather Alison - our School Counsellor who is visiting us again in Weipa. Heather will be providing her service to St. Joseph's School from Monday 21st August to Friday the 25th of August, 2023. 

Later during the Term, Lillian Miller - Consultant First Nations Education from Cairns Catholic Education to our School. Lillian will continue to provide her service to St. Joseph's School during Term 3. 

 SEL Wellbeing Survey   

The children at St, Joesph’s Parish School Weipa have been invited to take part in a survey about student wellbeing and mental health from the between 31/07/2023 and Friday 18/08/2023. 

The survey will be completed online during school hours and contains between 25-57 questions (depending on the age of your child) and will take 10- 15 minutes to complete.  

 This annual survey is being issued to all students in the Diocese of Cairns by the Student Wellbeing and Diversity directorate of Catholic Education Services. The survey aims to gather student opinions about aspects of the school that relate to supporting student wellbeing and mental health.   

 What is the purpose of the survey? The survey will provide schools with student opinions on what the school is doing well and what they can improve to better promote and support student wellbeing and mental health. Long term this survey may be used to track student wellbeing and mental health over a period of time.  

Kind regards, 

Melanie Turner. 

Congratulations to this weeks award winners!!

Today we say farewell to Mr. Nigel Bird who has been Acting Principal for 5 weeks. During his time here he has been warmly welcomed by the students, staff and parents. The Year 2 students said farewell to Mr. Bird at their assembly this morning and all students spoke about what they have enjoyed about having him here. I think they summed him up pretty well 

• He listens to us and visits our classroom 
• He has a big voice which he uses in a kind way 
• He loves seeing our work and asks us questions 
• He greets us every morning and afternoon on the gate 
• He taught us about different countries and shared stories about his travels.  
• He made people smile and laugh 
• He gave out Northern Pride shirts
• He is awesome! 

On behalf of the staff, I would like to thank Mr Bird for his time at St Joseph’s. He is a great model of servant leadership and has had a positive influence on the students in his short time here. We wish him all the best for the future.