PASTORAL CARE 2025

Once again, I would like to congratulate our Pastoral Care Team for their quality work. They are an impressive team led by Mrs Lowe, Mr Badolato and Mrs Troianos, and they consistently aim to support young people in their wellbeing needs, thereby enabling students to be supported in the very conditions that enable learning.

Change is constant in life, and this is undoubtedly true with the staffing of a large K-12 college.

I acknowledge the fine work of Mr Stavros Arzapitian, who has been a Year Coordinator across multiple schools in the Diocese of Wollongong for over 10 years. Mr Arzapitian has led the Year 12 2024 cohort finely - but he has decided to step down from his Year Coordinator role from 2025 onwards. Instead, he will lead the Mathematics faculty in an Assistant capacity.

Equally, I thank Mrs Jasmina Rooke (Nee Cox), who has been working very well and closely with the Year 7 Cohort - many students whom she had previously helped when they were in Stage 3. Mrs Rooke has also decided to step down from her Year Coordinator role from 2025 onwards. Instead, she will lead Middle Years Learning in an Assistant capacity.

I also thank Mrs Angela Troianos, who has stepped up into the role of Years K-4 Pastoral Care Leader since the departure of Kristina Vella. Mrs Troianos has been dedicated and very proactive in her efforts. She will return to the K-4 Literacy Instructional Coach next year.

I will welcome all new staff in the final newsletter for 2025, but for now, I welcome three new staff in the Pastoral Care sphere:

• Mr Luke Baddock is currently Stage Leader at St Michael’s Primary School, Blacktown. He comes to us with a broad range of experiences.
• Ms Natalie Collins is currently LaSallian Coordinator at De La Salle College, Revesby. She joins us with a passion for supporting young people holistically
• Mr Kevin Reutens is currently Year 8 Coordinator at Mary MacKillop Catholic College Wakeley. He is a passionate musician and cares deeply about students’ pastoral care and wellbeing needs.

All three staff will be joining our Pastoral Care Team in 2025, which I am delighted to announce includes the following staff:

JUMP ROPE FOR HEART - SFCC Success!

Thank you so much for your generosity in supporting this excellent initiative.

For those who don’t know, established in 1983, Jump Rope for Heart is a skipping and fundraising program run in Australian primary schools. It encourages kids to have a positive attitude towards exercise, healthy eating and heart health while raising vital funds to fight heart disease.

Our SFCC ‘Heart Heroes’ have been working hard over the past month, honing their skipping skills (skipping for literally hundreds and hundreds of hours) while raising funds for this fantastic cause. Thanks to their efforts, SFCC was ranked first in Australia in their fundraising efforts - raising over $32,000. What an incredibly wonderful effort. Well done, students, staff and families.

A special thank you to Miss Lauren Meli for introducing this initiative and then to Miss Catherine Laskaris for her phenomenal work coordinating this program throughout the term. 

What an outstanding success for a great cause.

Year 12 2025 Student Leaders Retreat with the Bishop

I would very much like to commend and thank our new College Captains and Vice Captains who last week represented SFCC at a 3-day / 2-night retreat at The Hermitage, Mittagong. Bishop Brian Macord hosted School Captains and Vice Captains from all secondary diocesan schools to allow them to reflect on their leadership,  the schools they lead and what they might achieve next year.

The program ran in accordance with the Bishop’s intention of running Catholic formation experiences in alignment with his diocesan message of Catholic communities being ‘bearers of Christ’s love’. I thank Mr Matthew Watson for being there and supporting the students throughout. 

Each school leadership group presented to the larger group on the final day, and not surprisingly; our student leaders did brilliantly as they reflected on the magnitude of their role, their hopes, aspirations and the very nature of St Francis Catholic College. Thank you Thalia S, Jamie S, Ella L and Tuli V; our College is in safe hands!

A Prayer for the Final Weeks of the School Year

Loving God,
As we approach the final weeks of this school year,
we pause to give thanks for Your abundant blessings upon our College community.
Guided by the spirit of Blessed Edmund Rice,
we are grateful for the opportunities to serve, learn, and grow in faith and compassion.

We thank You for the students, teachers, and families who embody Edmund’s call
to nurture education, justice, and care for one another.
For the resilience of students striving to complete their work,
for the dedication of staff who inspire and support,
and for the families who walk this journey of hope and love – we give thanks.

Lord, we lift our needs to You.
Grant students the strength to persevere and finish well,
help teachers bring their work to completion with joy and wisdom,
and inspire us all to be a presence of Your light, especially to those who may struggle.

In the spirit of Blessed Edmund, may we remain ever attentive to those in need,
supporting and encouraging one another with hearts of compassion.
While two weeks of learning remain this academic year, we ask for rest and renewal as the holidays draw near.
Let these days be a time of connection, reflection, and peace,
grounded in the Gospel values Edmund championed.

Loving God,
Help us to finish this year with gratitude and grace,
holding fast to the example of Blessed Edmund Rice,
as we continue to seek justice, faith, and love in all we do.

We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ, our teacher and guide.

–Amen.

Sacrament of First Holy Communion 

Over the past 5 weeks, over 40 students from our college have been preparing to make the sacrament of their First Holy Communion. Congratulations to all of the candidates, who last Saturday, the 23rd of November, made this sacrament at our parish church, Mary, Mother of the Church at Macquarie Fields. Deepest thanks to Miss Meli, Mrs Brites and Mrs Ghignone who gave up their time and shared their faith and understanding to these students to help them prepare for this very special day. Another big thank you to Miss Bulfon and Mrs Vella for joining us at these special masses. 

Mrs Amanda Khoury 

I am so excited to announce that SFCC was victorious as the Year 7 and Year 8 MISA Debating Champions for 2024, showcasing exceptional talent and teamwork throughout the competition! Our Year 7 teams demonstrated their incredible skills, with both teams advancing to the grand final and competing against each other on the topic "We should all be vegetarian." This ultimately resulted in SFCC coming 1st and 2nd place in the entire competition - a remarkable achievement!

Our Year 8 team competed against John Therry in a debate on "That animals should be kept in zoos." It was an amazing debate to watch and both teams need to be commended on their exceptional delivery, with only an hour to prepare.

The competition, hosted at SFCC, was a memorable event filled with enthusiasm and support. Students enjoyed pizza during the day, fueling their energy for the debates. A special thank you to the parents who attended and showed their support - it was wonderful to have you there to celebrate these outstanding achievements!

Congratulations to our Year 7 and Year 8 debating teams for their incredible success and for making SFCC proud as the Year 7 and 8 2024 MISA Debating Champions!

This year, we were thrilled to launch our very first Christmas Story Writing Competition for our Junior Years students and the response was truly magical! The creativity and enthusiasm from our young writers was incredible, with students submitting a wonderful variety of festive stories that were filled with holiday cheer, heartwarming traditions and imaginative adventures.

This competition has been a fantastic opportunity to not only celebrate the festive season but also to encourage our young learners to explore their writing skills in a fun and creative way. We’ve seen how writing can spark imagination, build confidence and create a real sense of achievement.

It was a difficult task to select our most engaging stories. We congratulate the following winners of our Christmas Story Writing Competition! These students have shown exceptional creativity, originality and passion for writing, and we are so proud to celebrate their hard work.

Congratulations to our winners:

1. Aliyah H (Kindergarten)
2. Reyhan M (Kindergarten)
3. Gabriella G (Year 1)
4. Tessa J (Year 1)
5. Dipshan K (Year 2)
6. Ria A (Year 2)
7. Caitlyn L (Year 3)
8. Audrey E (Year 3)
9. Noah P (Year 4)
10. Alexis F (Year 4)

Each of these students received a special prize and their stories will be displayed in our library for the remainder of the year. A huge thank you to everyone who participated. Your stories truly made this Christmas extra special! We can’t wait to see where your writing journey takes you next.

Happy Holidays, and keep writing!

Warm regards,
Lauren Meli
Acting Literacy Coordinator K-4

On Friday 15th November, Kindergarten students excitedly made their way to the bus to travel to Calmsley Hill City Farm for their first excursion. Students had a fabulous time at the farm and were engaged in a whole range of activities, including milking a cow, going on a tractor ride, watching a sheep shearing show and petting baby animals. Some lucky students also had the opportunity to crack a whip. All students represented the College to a high standard and are to be commended for their behaviour.