On Wednesday the 23rd of March the College was graced with the presence of one of our very own House Patrons - Uncle Ivan Wellington. Uncle Ivan is a well-known and well-loved Aboriginal elder. Uncle Ivan has devoted his life to educating the community, particularly to encourage and mentor young people, about local Aboriginal culture.

Uncle Ivan first visited the site which St Francis Catholic College now proudly stands back in 2017 (foundation year of the College) to perform a smoking ceremony ritual (a smoking ceremony is an ancient Aboriginal custom in Australia that involves burning various native plants to produce smoke, which has cleansing properties) and turning of the sod (a sod-turning ceremony, also known as a groundbreaking ceremony, marks the start of a new building project). See some photos below of this.

The smile could not be wiped from Uncle Ivan's face as Mr. Abernethy gave Uncle Ivan a tour of the College and its facilities. He was blown away by the development of the College since his first visit and equally by the students in which he interacted throughout his journey around the College grounds and through the buildings. The Junior Years students were particularly excited to see a living House Patron walk through the College grounds - it was as if they were meeting a celebrity, a Saint Francis Catholic College celebrity!

We look forward to welcoming Uncle Ivan back in Term Two to join us for our Blessed Edmund Rice Feast Day celebrations!