Kia ora e te Whānau

We are a week into the time in our church calendar called ‘lent’. Lent is a 40 day season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends at sundown on Holy Thursday.

The children are very familiar with prayer, and many have made ‘lenten promises’ but fasting (e.g. not eating in excess, not eating certain foods, etc) and almsgiving (donating money, resources or service) are concepts they are not necessarily as familiar with. We are called to practise self-discipline throughout this season as a way to prepare ourselves to celebrate Jesus’ Resurrection at Easter.

When visiting our seniors this morning the children were praying about their lenten promises - and for courage and strength for each other and themselves, which was lovely to hear.

CHILDREN’S MASS THIS SUNDAY

This Sunday we are joining in with the parish of Wellington South to celebrate children’s day at the regular Sunday Mass. It would be lovely to see many of our families at Mass with us at 10am on Sunday in our church. You do not need to be a catholic to attend Mass - all are welcome.

REMINDER: ACCESS DURING CONSTRUCTION WORK (NOW DUE TO START NEXT WEEK)

COMMUNICATIONS

Unfortunately our communications (school newsletter last week and text on Monday) about the teachers’ paid union meeting this afternoon were confusing for some families, so I would like to apologise for this. The first text message did not give the school name so it was confusing for some families. We’ve learned from this mistake!

We also discovered that not all parents received the text as only one primary caregiver from each family was set up to automatically receive texts (we pay per text sent). We will adjust our settings on Hero so that all primary caregivers will receive texts in future.

Thank you for your ongoing patience with our introduction of Hero. Once you have created your parent account/s, the communication will be much easier for you. While we encourage you to install the App also - this is optional. However, our future uses of Hero for regular learning updates will be easier for you if you are using the app.

One huge benefit so far with Hero is the ability for enrolments to be completed online by new families - this is much easier for us, and easier for families also.

The image below shows you where to look on our school website to complete an online enrolment application, and instructions to sign up for Hero.

After the amazing effort at the carols last year we know there are some amazing singers here at St Francis de Sales!! So if you are coming along to support the mass this Sunday please feel free to meet Jo C by the piano at the front of the Church to help accompany her amazing playing!!

Dont forget to come and show your support this sunday! There will be a cup of tea and a lollie scramble after!

THE SOUTH COAST ARTS TRAIL

The South Coast Arts Trail will take place on Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th April from 10am - 4pm each day. SFDS will have an exhibition in the hall and we are looking for volunteers to do shifts to welcome visitors and supervise the artwork. Please let the office or Megan know if you are available to help out.

More information on the arts trail can be found here: https://linktr.ee/SouthCoastArtsTrail

TEACHER ONLY DAYS

During 2023, we will be holding three Teacher Only Days:

1. Monday 24 April (for teachers to learn about the refreshed NZ Curriculum)

2. Friday 30 June (for staff to attend the Kāhui Ako Mid-Winter Hui)

3. The third day will be later in the year - and we will let you know the date once we hear from the Ministry of Education.

On these three days, SFDS will be closed, so you will need to make arrangements for childcare.

For information on how to get to KINDO Click here to view. From there you are able to pay your school donations, (there is an option to make part payments) uniform and any other school charges or sign ups for sports and extra actvities.

Miramar Night Market

Saturday, 11 March 2023

4pm - 9pm

Following the success of last year’s very first night market in Miramar, Foxtail Events will be back again to bring you an even bigger and better experience this March!

Not only will we be showcasing a multitude of local talent from the arts and craft scene of Wellington, but we will have food trucks, coffee carts and entertainment for all!

Located at the Miramar & Maupuia Community Centre, this lovely venue built in 1911, is full of character and has great indoor and outdoor spaces for stalls, with a brand new playground for the kids to enjoy.

We will also be fundraising at this event with some raffles to raise money for Cyclone Gabrielle.

Email: office@sfds.school.nz
Website: http://www.sfds.school.nz
Location: St Francis De Sales School 11 Mersey Street, Island Bay, Wellington, New Zealand
Phone: 04 939 7370