Term 3, Week 2 2025 - 22nd July 2025
APRE's Reflection
Catholic Education Week at St Mary’s
Next week, St Mary’s will join Catholic schools across Queensland in celebrating Catholic Education Week. This year’s theme is “Communities of Faith, Hope & Love”, which reflects the core values of Catholic education—kindness, compassion, community, and service.
To mark this special week, a number of events have been planned:
- Saturday evening: We begin our celebrations with Youth Mass at St Mary’s Parish, starting at 5:00pm.
- Wednesday: The whole school will come together at 9am for a liturgy led by our Year 2 students.
- Friday morning: Students will take part in NAIDOC-themed activity rotations, honouring and celebrating First Nation culture and history.
- Friday evening: We close the week with a fun-filled school disco:
- Prep to Year 2: 4:00pm – 5:00pm
- Year 3 to Year 6: 5:00pm – 6:00pm
Catholic Education Week is a time to strengthen connections with our broader community. We are pleased to welcome special guests to help lead our NAIDOC activities and St Patrick’s College students to help run our disco and and we warmly invite all members of our school community to attend both Youth Mass and our Catholic Education Week Liturgy.
We look forward to a wonderful week celebrating everything that makes Catholic education special.
Belinda van Lint
Assistant Principal - Religious Education
From the Principal
In Our Prayers
We were informed last week that Fr Matthias’ (our Parish Priest) mother passed away suddenly in Nigeria. On behalf of the school community, I extend out heartfelt condolences to Fr Matthias and his family at this sad time.
School News
- Thank you to the parents who assisted with the P&F pizza day last Friday. A record 54 pizzas were ordered, and our students thoroughly enjoyed this treat.
- All parents received an email today regarding the 2026 school fees. I ask all families to familiarise themselves with this information and note the increase in fees, which is a result of reduced government funding for our school.
- Well done to our Rugby League and Netball teams, who attended the Challenge Cup carnival last week. All our students had a great carnival. I sincerely thank Mr Clancy, Mr Townsend, Mrs van Lint and Mrs Sorbello for coaching and managing our teams.
- All the best to the following students who are attending the MDSS Athletics Carnival this Thu/Fri: Hunter Mapp, Malachi Nyenuh, Levi Otto, Flynn Pearce, Isla Aldred, Ava Corrigan, Charlotte Hesselberg, Indie Kerr, Nina Lucas, Lexie Martin, Alanna Oliver, Mackenzie Pratt, Jessie Ricciardi, Isabella Villon and Sienna Ware.
- All the best to the Year 6 students who will attend the Maths Primary Schools Maths Competition at St Joseph’s. Mr Townsend will accompany our students. The teams are as follows:
Team 1 - Flynn Pearce, Sam Christie, Elly Wang, Kevin Ye, Oaklan Marwood
Team 2 - Mitchell Curran, Kolby Ferriday, Woodley Gould, Rohan Tennant, Nate Prentice We invite all students to wear their house shirt to school this Friday.
P&F Meeting
A reminder that our P&F meeting will be held tonight (22/7) from 6pm in the staffroom. All parents are most welcome to attend.
NAIDOC Mass
Today, 14 of our students attended the regional NAIDOC Mass at St Joseph’s Church. I thank these students and families for attending. Bishop Michael presided over this Mass.
Centennial Sacred Garden – Blessing & Opening
I warmly invite all families to attend the official blessing and opening of our Sacred Garden on Tue 12th August from 8:45am. Bishop Michael McCarthy and Fr Matthias will preside at this service, with morning tea provided afterwards. If you are able to attend this event, please RSVP here.
Wedding Congratulations
Congratulations to Sam Bauer (instrumental music teacher) and Ashleigh Lowe, who were married over the holidays. On behalf of the school community, I wish Sam and Ashleigh as well as their children Charlie (yr4) and Harper (yr1) all the best for the future!
Quote of the Week
“Gratitude helps you to see what is there, instead of what isn't.”
- Annette Bridges
School Fees
Dear Parents
Please note that school fees were issued on the 21st July 2025 and are due for payment on Monday 4th August 2025.
If you are on a payment plan, please use the fees invoice as a statement.
If you did not receive your fees via email, please don’t hesitate to contact me so that I can resend them to you.
If you have any questions in relation to school fees, please don't hesitate to contact me.
Kathy Parrish
Finance Officer
From our P&F
Youth Mass & Children's Liturgy
PLEASE JOIN US!
St Mary's School will join with St Patrick's College to celebrate our Youth Mass on Saturday 26th July, St Mary's Church at 5pm. Children's Liturgy will be also be held.
Mass will be followed by a pizza outside the church. Everyone is most welcome to attend.
We look forward to seeing you there.
Belinda van Lint
Assistant Principal: Religious Education
Catholic Education Week Events
School Counsellor News
Dear parents,
With parent-teacher interviews this week, some families may have questions about their child’s emotional or social wellbeing. While I’m currently unable to take on new student referrals due to a backlog, I’ve included a flyer below with a helpful resource offering coaching support for parents.
Please don’t hesitate to pop in if you’d like to chat or have any questions.
Deborah Quinn
School Counsellor
From our Library
Book Week Competition
Would you like to give St Mary's a chance of winning a $1000 book voucher to purchase books for our school library?
Students are invited to pick up an entry form from the school library and then hand it in to a staff member at QBD Books, Canelands (no purchase required). Only one voucher per student per day can be submitted. Please click on this link for more details. Competition closes 23rd August.
Lynne Camargo
Library Coordinator
Sport News
Whitsunday Voices
Last Thursday, our year 4, 5 and 6 students attended The Whitsunday Voices Youth Literature Festival, hosted by Whitsunday Anglican College.
The students were treated to sessions by popular authors Kristy Burne, Kate and Jol Temple and RA Spratt.
The festival is always a highlight for our students and this year certainly didn’t disappoint. Many students were instantly inspired to write and read just like their favourite authors. We thank Whitsunday Anglican College organisers for hosting this event each year and we look forward to another stellar line up in 2026.
Belinda Battaia
Assistant Principal - Curriculum
Challenge Cup Wrap Up
Netball
After a term of Thursday morning netball training and an amazing effort at the Netball Gala Day at the end of Term 2, the time came for our Challenge Cup team to travel to Yeppoon to compete in three days of Challenge Cup. The weather was on our side and the hard courts at the new venue, Barmaryee Sports Precinct, were very exciting.
Day One was a great success with three wins against Western Wave, St Joseph’s Biloela/St Therese’s Monto and St John’s Walkerston. On Day Two, the girls won against Sacred Heart Yeppoon and St Joseph’s Park Avenue but had two losses against St Anthony’s Rockhampton and St Patrick’s Bundaberg. On Day Three, finals day, we had come third in our pool and therefore went on to compete for the Plate. Our first game of Day Three was against St Francis Tannum Sands and the girls came out firing to get the win. They then played St Brigid’s Emerald in the Plate Final. This final game was the best the girls had played by far. It was wonderful to see them come together as a team and execute some amazing footwork, strong passing and defence and on-target shooting. Unfortunately, it was an 11-11 draw with St Brigid’s taking home the plate because they scored the first goal. Our team secured 10th place out of 32 teams. What a great effort from a wonderful team of girls, some new to netball!
The girls were excellent representatives of our school, displaying great sportsmanship, determination and positivity. Sienna, Gemma and Maisy were our super shooters while Nina, Lexie and Ashlyn were a super strong team in defence. Milla, Makenna, Aliyah, Paulina and Isla worked hard to find space on the court and drive the ball down through the centre third. It was great to see the way all of the girls worked together as a team, encouraged each other and supported our Challenge Cup rugby league team when they had the opportunity.
Special thanks to our wonderful support crew of parents and grandparents who encouraged from the sidelines and assisted with scoring. A big thank you also to Mrs Sibley for assisting with training sessions during Term 3.
Belinda van Lint (coach) and Lisa Sorbello (manager)
Rugby League
Last week, a combined team of Year 5 and 6 students from St Mary’s, joined by six enthusiastic players from St Anne’s Sarina, travelled to Yeppoon for the much-anticipated Challenge Cup.
Over three days, our team played a total of seven games, proudly showcasing the true St Mary’s spirit through impressive football skills and outstanding sportsmanship. Despite facing tough competition, we came away with two wins and one draw, a fantastic achievement in such a competitive environment.
Every player contributed to a memorable experience, both on and off the field. There were many standout performances, especially from our forwards Cohen, Archie, and Sidney who made powerful runs and broke through the defensive line with confidence. Hudson impressed with his strong carries and hard-hitting tackles, setting the tone for our defence.
Our middles and backs also played a crucial role, with Cooper, Nate M, Nate P, and the quick footed Finn and Santiago creating opportunities and maintaining momentum. Ewan showed great composure under pressure, particularly when catching high balls.
A special thank you goes to Mack, Rylan, Jed, Chris, Chad, Brooklyn, and the injured Ben, along with Mrs Shona Gibson from St Anne’s, for stepping in and helping complete our team. Thanks also to Mrs Battaia for all the communication and behind-the-scenes work that made everything seamless and effortless, it is truly appreciated!
Both Mr Clancy and I were incredibly proud of the effort, teamwork, and spirit shown by all players. We’d also like to extend our thanks to the parents for their commitment in ensuring players made it to training and the trip to Yeppoon.
Rob Townsend
Student of the Week
Week 1, Term 3 Student Award Winners
| PC | Matthew | For being a reading superstar! You read fluently with great expression and confidence, and you tackle tricky comprehension questions with ease. Well done Matthew! |
| PC | Chloe | For confidently applying our new vocabulary words in your Giraffes Can't Dance writing. Your sentences were fantastic, and your teacher is so proud of you! |
| PR | Angus | For working hard in literacy sessions. Angus you are reading fluently and writing super sentences. You are a reading and writing super Star! |
| PR | Inayat | For working hard in maths sessions. You showed confidence when partitioning numbers this week. Keep up the great work. |
| 1B | Carter | For the positivity you bring to every part of your schooling. You walked in on the first day glad to be back, and find joy in every part of your learning. You set a wonderful example for your classmates. |
| 1B | Ezra | For the amazing start you have made to the term. You are organised, engaged and trying your best in all tasks. Keep up the superstar effort Ezra! |
| 1C | Hudson | For a great start to term 3! Your teacher loves the way you have been making good choices in class. You have been listening to instructions and working hard to follow them. Keep up the amazing effort Hudson! |
| 1C | Skylar | For your awesome start to term 3! You have been focused and on task, demonstrating that you are ready to learn. Your teacher loves the way you respectfully participate in all activities and work thoughtfully with your peers! Keep up the super effort Skylar! |
| 2A | William | For the amazing start to Term 3! This week, you have been reading like a pro, understanding the story and putting your hand up to participate in class discussions. Keep up the fabulous work William! |
| 2A | Aleyna | For the conscientious and enthusiastic student that you are Aleyna. You take on every task, you always put in 100% and you are a fabulous role model to your peers. Keep being you Aleyna! |
| 2L | Georgia | Georgia your teacher is impressed with your wonderful holiday recount, filled with vivid details and exciting moments. The expressive punctuation brought your story to life, showing just how much you enjoyed your adventures. Well done, Georgia — your writing sparkles! |
| 2L | Vivienne | Vivienne, you are always so attentive and thoughtful. Your teacher notices how carefully you listen and how kindly you treat others. Your beautiful smile lights up our classroom every single day and we’re so lucky to have you in our class! |
| 3M | Eddie | For your enthusiastic participation during our Charlotte's Web unit. It was so wonderful hearing you share your thoughts during our class discussions. |
| 3M | Emma | For consistently demonstrating our classroom goals. Emma is a wonderful role model for her peers as she is always ready to learn and is respectful to others. |
| 3P | Halle | For being a responsible, respectful and helpful class member. You consistently demonstrate a positive attitude towards learning, ready to engage & give your best effort. Thank you for making our classroom a kinder and more positive place. Keep shining bright Halle! |
| 3P | Louis | Thank you for coming to school every day ready to learn, showing curiosity, focus, and a true love for learning. Your respectful and responsible attitude toward all learning tasks makes you a wonderful role model for your peers. Keep up the amazing work Louis! |
| 4G | Andre | For having a great start to the term, showing consistency in following class expectations, and doing well with converting fractions to decimals in Maths this week. Keep up the good work Andre! |
| 4G | Alice | Showing persistence with subtraction strategies and approaching Maths with a "you can do it" attitude. You’ve demonstrated resilience, kept trying when it was challenging, and shown a willingness to improve through practice. Keep it up Alice! |
| 4R | Olivia | For showing perseverance and a ‘You Can Do It’ attitude to your learning. Your willingness to always lend a helping hand in the classroom is truly appreciated. Keep up the fantastic work, you are a shining example to others! |
| 4R | Dominic | For your positive attitude to all class tasks. Your teacher is so impressed with your focus and commitment this week. What a wonderful start to the term Dominic, keep up the great work! |
| 5C | Henare | For you amazing start to term 3. Henare you have come back ready to learn and work hard. Keep up the great effort. |
| 5C | Elouise | For your fantastic start to term 3! Elouise I am super impressed with your focus and attention to detail in the first week of school. Keep up the great work. |
| 5F | Caleb | For your conscientious note-taking and summarising during Religion this week. Your commitment to understanding the content is inspiring and your dedication sets a wonderful standard—keep it up! |
| 5F | Ayden | For a great start to term 3. Your concentration and quiet, independent work habits have contributed to a focused and productive learning environment. Well done and thank you for setting such a strong example. |
| 5F | Abigail | For an impressive first day of term 3. Your focus, concentration and confident contributions to class discussions helped foster an engaged classroom atmosphere. Congratulations and thank you for setting such a positive tone for the term ahead. |
| 6C | Hunter | For your effort and persistence in Literacy rotations this week. The way you transitioned between groups allowed for a prompt start to maximise learning opportunities. Great work! |
| 6T | Hudson | For displaying resilience when completing the 2 digit multiplication puzzle. You took it one step at a time and gave it your best shot. Well done Hudson! |
| Sport | Hayden P | Hayden you attempt all tasks in PE lessons with a smile on your face and a “can do” attitude. Mrs Sibley loved the way you challenged yourself with some of the tricky skipping challenges this week. Keep up the hard work. |
| Sport | Emilie M | Emilie, Mrs Sibley loved your positive attitude and determination in PE this week. You showed grit and persistence when attempting the Pretzel and displayed great leadership skills when helping your peers learn the trick too. Keep up the hard work. |
| Drama | Luis C & Tyson M | For excellent focus, wonderful storytelling and creating a fun puppet play that brought smiles and joy to everyone watching. Your creativity and teamwork made the performance unforgettable - bravo! |
Community News
Did you know a by-election is being held in Mackay Regional Council?
If you’re on the electoral roll in Mackay Region – you’ll need to vote!
This is a full postal by-election, so all Mackay Regional residents on the electoral roll will receive their voting materials by mail.
When you receive your voting materials, you can vote straight away. Remember to always read the
instructions on your ballot paper and declaration envelope before you begin.
One councillor will be elected. You must mark at least one preference on your ballot paper for your vote to count.
One of the most important things to remember to do after you seal your ballot paper inside the declaration envelope is to sign it before a witness and make sure your witness signs it too.
Your ballot paper comes with a reply-paid envelope, so you just need to slide the sealed and signed
declaration envelope into the reply-paid envelope and drop it in a post box.
Residents of the Mackay Region need to vote by 6pm on election day, Saturday 30 August 2025. All postal votes must be received by the ECQ by 5pm on Tuesday 9 September 2025 to ensure they are counted.
Visit the ECQ’s website to learn more about the by-election including who is running and to stay up-to-date with the results after the polls close.