Newsletter - 30 October 2025

From our Principal

Dear Parents,

The following story provides food for thought as we  approach the month of November – the month devoted to all the faithfully departed.  During this special month, let us take time to remember our loved ones who are no longer on earth with us, but who will always remain deep in our hearts for the rest of our lives.

An Old Pair of Shoes

I woke up with a stiff and sore back this morning.  This was not unusual since my back has given me problems for years now, but today no amount of stretching or moving would loosen it up.

Still I had five dogs waiting patiently by the door to go out for their morning walk, so I slowly bent down, put on their leashes and started to pull my shoes on.  When I did, though, I saw that my shoes like my body were showing signs of wear.  A split along the seam of a sole let me know that it wouldn’t be too long before I would have to replace this pair.  I only wished I could replace my back along with them.

Later after walking the dogs, watching the sunrise, eating breakfast and talking with God I was feeling a lot better on the inside.  My back pain had faded too and my smile had returned.

It was then that I remembered a letter a friend had sent me recently. Inside of it she had pasted a delightful picture of an old, worn-out pair of work boots sitting on the ground by a porch.  Their leather was cracked, their soles were split and their laces were worn, but they still looked great because inside of them someone had planted a beautiful bunch of Impatiens.

The flowers had grown tall and strong in spite of their curious container.  This picture reminded me again that while my body may feel like a worn out pair of shoes at times, inside of it was a heart that continued to grow every day in love, joy, peace, happiness, goodness and closeness with God.

At some point in your life you need to decide who you really are.  Are you the body that grows older every day, or are you the soul within it that remains forever young?  One day the loving spirit with you will have to step out of its worn out pair of shoes and walk on without them.  May it walk lightly along the path of love until it reaches home – and may it bless everyone it meets along the way.

This Saturday we celebrate All Saints Day – the Communion of Saints which means that all Christians, living and dead are united as the one family of God. On this feast of All Saints, let us pray together as a family of love. O God, help us on earth by the prayers of the saints in heaven so that one day we will be united in your glorious kingdom with Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Wishing you every blessing for the coming week,

Geraldine Rostirolla

Principal  

FAMILIES LEAVING

At this time of the year, plans are being made for 2026 and the key factor upon which planning is based is enrolment facts and figures. Whether it’s class composition, number of classes, number of staff members or budget planning, it is essential to be as accurate as possible in predicting the number of students at Emmanuel come January next year. Can I ask then that you keep us informed about potential moves between now and the beginning of the year? Thank you for helping us to be well-prepared for the year ahead.

TERM FOUR SCHOOL FEE STATEMENTS

Term 4 Parent Accounts were emailed to all families on 13 October. Payments are now overdue as of Monday 27 October.

As we are nearing the end of the year, those families who have a Direct Debit Authority in place and would like to review arrangements for 2026, are asked to contact our finance team, enm_finance@rok.atholic.edu.au.

If you are making fee payments by Internet Banking, please ensure you use the six-digit Parent Code that appears on the top right hand corner of your Statement as your reference. Please contact the Finance Office if you have not received your statement, or if you wish to discuss making payments via a regular Direct Debit Authority.

Do you hold a current ‘means tested’ Government Health Care or Pensioner Concession Card? Parents/Carers with an eligible means tested Australian Government Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card can receive a 40% discount on the All-inclusive Education fee of all eligible students from the family (after any family discount has been applied).

2026 SCHEDULE OF FEES

The 2026 Fee schedule is now available in the link below:

ARE YOU RED RED READY FOR DAY FOR DANIEL?

Tomorrow, Friday 31 October, we will join with the rest of Australia in acknowledging ‘Day for Daniel’. It is a child safety and protection initiative that aims to help empower our children to RECOGNISE, REACT and REPORT if they feel something is not right. ‘Wear Red and Educate’ is the theme of ‘Day for Daniel’.

All students are invited to wear something red (t-shirt, socks, shoelaces, ribbons) with their school uniform on this day. It is not a free dress day.  Donations are welcome, but not required for participation. 

Students in all classes will also participate in AUSTRALIA’S BIGGEST CHILD SAFETY LESSON tomorrow. This year’s lessons (P-2 and Year 3-6) will focus on Contextual Prevention, creating safer environments for children in online and offline spaces.

For more information, click on the tabs below:

RE Matters

ONE FOR OUR TEACHERS – A PRAYER

MONTH OF THE ROSARY                                                            

“The Rosary is a magnificent and universal prayer for the needs of the Church, the nations and the entire world.” (Pope John XXlll)                  

It has been wonderful to see so many students and staff gathering in the chapel to pray The Rosary at lunchtimes this October. We have prayed for peace in our families, our school and in our world.

As the Month of The Rosary draws to a close, I encourage families to continue to share this beautiful prayer and to reflect on the mysteries of our faith which it memorialises. 

“Confidently take up The Rosary once again. Rediscover The Rosary in the light of the Scripture, in harmony with the Liturgy, and in the context of your daily lives.” 

(Pope St John Paul ll)

To find out more about The Rosary and how to pray it, go to Catholic Online:

http://www.catholic.org/prayers/rosary.php

ROSARY ART

Throughout the month lots of students have submitted entries in our Rosary Art competition. Students have coloured images of Mary, created their own images of Mary and illustrated Mysteries of The Rosary. Some of these fabulous entries will be displayed in the library next week and the winners will be announced at Assembly tomorrow.  A big THANK YOU to everyone who participated and CONGRATULATIONS on producing such beautiful images of Mary.  They are fantastic!

SOCCERTOBER

Our World Mission Month activities are coming to an end.  We have learnt about the work of Catholic Mission and this year’s focus country Zambia. We have raised funds and awareness, prayed and walked in solidarity with children around the world who are not as lucky as we are.

Tomorrow we will announce our 2025 MISSION CHAMPIONS and students in 4S, 4W, 6M and 6WD will play in the finals of our exciting WALKING SOCCER competition. A big THANK YOU to our staff who have coached their classes, refereed games and encouraged fair play and teamwork.

Our Prep, Year One and Year Two classes have also been preparing to celebrate the end of our SOCCERTOBER activities.  Each class has made a ‘soccer ball’ out of recycled items – they are all different sizes, made from various things and no two look the same.  It will be exciting to see which class has made the ‘best’ ball when they participate in their exciting goal kicking competition using them. The class that kicks the most goals in the allocated time will win a ‘soccer’ themed prize.

Tomorrow will be the last chance for students to buy SOCCERTOBER raffle tickets and ‘EVEN MORE SOCCER STUFF’ from our MISSION MARKETS. All will be available from the library at lunchtime. A big THANK YOU to Mrs Woodall, Mrs Johns and all staff who have been selling tickets and running our Mission Markets this October. Together we are making a difference in the lives of children and communities around the world.

Has your family had a chance to try FREERICE trivia this October? https://freerice.com/home

How many grains/cups of rice have you collected? How many people have helped to feed?

Lots of classes have been having fun answering questions and winning rice, building their skills and feeding those who are hungry at the same time.  Well done everyone!

NOVEMBER - MONTH OF THE HOLY SOULS

In November we celebrate All Saints Day and All Souls Day.  We remember those who have gone before us, those who have answered God’s call and those who have taken up the challenge and become the very best version of themselves.

It is our challenge too! We ask God to help us to live the life that He has called us to live.

Father, may the inspiration and example of the saints help and challenge us as we go about our lives now and always. Amen.

We trust in God’s mercifulness and ask Him to welcome our loved ones home.

Merciful God hear our prayer and console us. Strengthen our hope that all our departed brothers and sisters will share in Christ’s resurrection and attain the joy of eternal happiness in your kingdom. Amen.

Parish Masses and Celebrations:

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

Last term our Year Four classes attended a parish Anointing Mass and participated in the ministries. They read, they sang, they brought forward the gifts, they sat with and accompanied those being anointed. At the conclusion of Mass, they helped serve morning tea and had a chat with parishioners who attended. It was a wonderful experience and a great introduction to the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick. 

The Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick is one of the seven sacraments of the Catholic Church and is intended to bring God’s grace, comfort, and healing to those who are seriously ill or facing a significant health challenge.  It is also available to elderly Catholics and those preparing for surgery. This sacrament is not only for physical healing but also for spiritual strength and peace. It unites the recipient with Christ’s suffering and provides the grace to endure their challenges with faith and hope.

This term these same students have been learning about the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick in class and at their year level Mass this morning, Fr Andrew anointed some of their grandparents and members of our Emmanuel community. He was also available after Mass to answer questions and talk about the sacrament, its rituals and symbols, when and how it is celebrated and Jesus’ mission and ministry of healing.   

A big THANK YOU to Fr Andrew who continues to support the teaching and learning of Religious Education and the Religious Life of our School. Your time and expertise are very much appreciated by our students and staff. Thank you also to those who joined us for this celebration, especially those who were anointed. We will keep you all in our prayers.

CHRISTMAS RAFFLE

Our annual parish Christmas Raffle is back in 2025!  With $15 000 in Cash Prizes, tickets are great value at $5.00 each. The raffle will be drawn on Friday 19 December, just in time for Christmas. You’ve got to be in it to win it!

Tickets are available online, before and after weekend Masses and from St Joseph's Parish Office

(Monday - Friday 9am to 12:00pm - phone 49574855).

For weekly Gospel readings, reflections and meditations go to http://www.prayasyoucan.com.au/

Download this week’s parish bulletin @  https://rok.catholic.net.au/parish/mackay-st-josephs/#

For Parish News go to the Catholic Parish of North Mackay and Farleigh Facebook page.

VIRTUE OF THE FORTNIGHT – GRATITUDE

Gratitude is the quality of being thankful and showing appreciation. It is a mindful acknowledgement of our blessings and all that we have been given. When we focus on the abundance in our lives, we discover a greater capacity for generosity, cheerfulness and contentment. It is saying ‘thank you’ to God and to others.  Gratitude helps us to recognise how much we are loved and cared for.

Gratitude in Scripture - The Bible teaches us the importance of gratitude.

The Ten Lepers (Luke 17:11–19)
Jesus healed ten men with leprosy, but only one came back to say "thank you." Jesus was pleased with the one who showed gratitude. This story reminds us to always thank God and others when we receive help or blessings.

Psalm 118:1
Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever."
This verse teaches us to thank God for His everlasting love and goodness.

The Feeding of the 5,000 (John 6:1–15)
Before feeding the crowd with five loaves and two fish, Jesus gave thanks to God. This shows us that we should always thank God for what we have, even when it seems like it’s not enough.

A prayer for gratitude from one of our students…..

Dear God,

Thank You for the many blessings You give us each day.

Help us always to have grateful hearts and to share Your love with others.

May we care for Your creation and show kindness to everyone we meet.

Amen.

Noeleen Kliese

Assistant Principal Religious Education

Curriculum Corner

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT DAY - FIRDAY 21 NOVEMBER

We’re excited to share that Emmanuel Catholic Primary School will be hosting a Community Engagement Day on Friday, 21st November, and we would love to invite you to be part of it. The purpose of this day is to connect our students with the diverse and vibrant community groups that form our Emmanuel Community. We’re looking to bring in professionals and organisations from outside the school to share in a day of culture, art and movement!  If you would be interested in collaborating with us on the day, we’d be delighted to hear from you. Please note that this would be a paid engagement, in recognition of your time and contribution.
If interested, please email Brooke_Tomkinson@rok.catholic.edu.au 

Brooke Tomkinson

Assistant Principal Curriculum (Acting)

APA News

PREP to YEAR 2 SWIMMING LESSONS – Commencing in Week 7

Prep to Grade 2 Swim and Survive lessons begin shortly at Marlins Swim Centre. A letter outlining details was distributed to students. These lessons are designed to ensure our children possess the basic water skills to operate safely around the pool.  Please see the schedule below:

What to bring:

PLEASE BE SURE TO NAME ALL ITEMS CLEARLY

• Togs (different colour to the pool)
• Towel
• Thongs
• Shirt to wear over togs to/from the pool
• Sunshirt (optional)
• Swimming cap
• Goggles (these are highly recommended by the Marlins Swim staff due to the amount of time in the water)
• Packed lunch and water bottle
• Bag to hold everything

It would be beneficial to send a LARGE AMOUNT of morning tea (Tuckshop may be ordered at first break ONLY). There will be a lunch break at the pool, please provide a PACKED LUNCH and WATERBOTTLE.

STORM PROCEDURES

Thank you to all parents and guardians for your co-operation and patience in yesterday's weather event. In the event that a storm occurs between 2:30pm-3:00pm during the school day, teachers will keep students in their classrooms and storm procedures will be put in place. Parents will be advised of this via our normal means of communication.

Throughout the afternoon, we ask that you:

* Keep updated via our Facebook page, Parent Orbit Notices / Text Message

* Understand that students will not be permitted to leave school grounds. However, if you wish to collect your child, parents are welcome to walk to the classroom and do so.

* This means that if a 'storm procedure' is in place and parents wish to collect their children from classrooms, they do not need to sign out at the office for this period of time only

* Students will stay in the classroom until the storm passes and a notification will be sent to advise that students will be leaving the school grounds

* Yesterday we were advised that bus services were running as normal, however, these students remained in classrooms for their safety and wellbeing. In the event that students miss their bus connection due to extreme weather conditions we will contact parents of these students. Please be assured that students will be fully supervised until they are in the care of a parent/guardian.

Amanda McDonald

Assistant Principal Administration

Strategic Priorities 2025

SchoolTV

There are lots of amazing resources available on SCHOOLTV to support and empower parents to better deal with the challenges of raising happy, well and resilient young people. For short video clips, articles and fact sheets, from leading specialists and key wellbeing organisations, check out the ‘ALL TOPICS’ tab via the link below or on our school website.

Sporting News

SWIMMING CARNIVAL

Our annual swimming carnival was held last Thursday at the Pioneer Swim Centre. It was a wonderful venue and we were blessed with fantastic weather. All students participated with great sportsmanship, smiling faces and plenty of splashing. 

Our Year 2 students were invited to compete at their first swimming carnival, participating in a width race and novelty events, whilst our senior students were able to decide between swimming the competitive strokes in 25m or 50m races.

The results are as follows.

The Rasmussen Family Trophy awarded for House Spirit was won by Carroll House.

The Prime Rentals Trophy awarded for the most points accumulated for relays was won by Wallace House.

The Sister Joan McBride Champion House Trophy was presented to the House that accumulated the most points for spirit, participation, relays, width finals, length finals and the Open 100m Freestyle event. The final result for Champion House was as follows:

Castles House 470 points

Wallace House 442 points

McBride House 403 points

Carroll House 291 points

Congratulations to Castles House for winning Champion House!

Congratulations to the 2025 Swimming Age Champions who are listed below:

Girls 8 years - Alexa

Boys 8 years - Parker

Girls 9 years - Lucia

Boys 9 years - Jack N

Girls 10 years - Audrina

Boys 10 years - Jack M

Girls 11 years - Josie

Boys 11 years - Xander

Girls 12 years - Maggie

Boys 12 years - Max

At this year's swimming carnival we held an Open 100m Freestyle race which showcased the best of our swimming talent. We had 11 swimmers put their hand up to enter this race. Well done to Luka, Maggie, Lila, Josie, Will, Xander, Max, Boston, Yuhas, Thomas and Parker for participating in this event. The winners were awarded with a special trophy. Congratulations to the winners of this event.

Open 100m Freestyle Boys Champion - Max

Open 100m Freestyle Girls Champion - Luka

A day like this does not happen without a team of people. Thank you to Mrs Kliese and Mrs McDonald who did a lot of work on the day and behind the scenes. Thank you to the office staff who prepared the paper work in the weeks leading up to the carnival. Thank you to the staff of Emmanuel who supported each other in their roles to make the day run smoothly. Thank you to the tuckshop staff who rearranged their day to make beautiful lunches for the staff. Thanks to Mr Bill, Mr Dempsey, Mr Charles and Mr Battaia who gave up their morning to assist with the set up for the day. A final thank you to all the parents that came along to cheer on the students. 

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RUN WITH CATHY FREEMAN

Last Friday evening, Emmanuel was represented at the Run With Cathy Freeman event at the Great Barrier Reef Arena by Neila, Josie, Hudson, Preston and Harrison. Hudson and Josie represented us in the 400m with Josie making it into the final. Preston, Harrison, Neila and Josie represented us in the 4 x 100m relay event. They made it into the final placing fourth out of 30 competing schools. Our students were lucky to hear Cathy Freeman speak and cheered on their fellow teammates with enthusiasm. Congratulations to our talented runners. Emmanuel are so very proud of your efforts!

OZTAG UPDATE

The draw for next Wednesday afternoon will remain the same as this week with games cancelled because of yesterday's storms. 
SUPER SUNDAY UPDATED INFORMATION!

• Save the date, November 16.
• Games will start at 8:30am and last game at this stage will commence at 3:10pm (this may change if teams forfeit etc). 
• Each team (unless they have a bye) will play 2 games on this day with a 1-2 game break between.
• Canteen will be operating with a sausage sizzle, hot chips, lollies, cold drinks etc
• Coffee van and ice cream van also coming on the day!
• Teams need to have a minimum of 5 players to take the field who are all registered to the team. If a team does not have at least 5 players, they must forfeit.
• Please let your parent delegate know by Wednesday November 5 if your child can or cannot make it on November 16 so this information can be passed on to Mackay Oztag.
• LASTLY….This Super Sunday will be a funky sock day so please encourage your child to get involved and wear their most funky socks! PRIZES TO BE WON!

SPORTING SCHOOLS

This term, our year 3 and 4 students will be taking part in a unit that will teach them how to play league tag during their PE lessons. These lessons will be delivered by qualified NRL staff over the next 5 weeks. The students thoroughly enjoyed their first lesson this week. Thank you to Carly, Tenzin and Lisa for visiting us to deliver these lessons.

Lisa Bottcher

HPE Teacher

Around the School

PREP AND YEAR 1 - BLUE WATER LAGOON VISIT - FRIDAY 28 NOVEMBER

Our Prep and Year One students will enjoy a visit to the Blue Water Lagoon on Friday 28 November. Information and permission forms have been sent home to the parents of these students. If your child did not receive a permission form, please contact your classroom teacher.

YEAR SIX CAMP

Our Year Six students had a great camp at Seaforth. All the details and photos will be shared in next week’s newsletter.

School Choir

PLEASE NOTE: No Choir practice next week, Wednesday 05 November.

Year Two students are welcome to attend School Choir in Term Four. We look forward to seeing you there!

Awards

Congratulations to the students pictured below who received an award in Week 3.

Tuckshop News

Please Note: It is imperative that volunteers DO NOT attend tuckshop if they are unwell or have anyone at home who is unwell.

Parent Orbit

The Parent Orbit app, which is connected to Parent Lounge, will improve our communication with each other as it offers a quick and easy way to receive notifications, view academic reports, book Parent/Teacher interviews, add and acknowledge Student Absences, view and pay School Fees, accept or decline excursions via the Events and Payments tile, update student details, email class teachers and much more.

Notices

NON STATE SCHOOLS TRANSPORT ASSISTANCE SCHEME

The Non State Schools Transport Assistance Scheme provides financial assistance for families transporting students to non-state schools in Queensland. To find out more about eligibility requirements click here: 

CASH ONLY - Please remember to bring small change when purchasing from the Uniform Shop.

Community News