Principal, Mr Graham Leddie
Growth and Reflection
Three weeks ago, I underwent back surgery which included a hemilaminectomy between my L4/L5 vertebra, which is the removal of one of the laminae to relieve excess pressure on the spinal nerve. I also had a discectomy on my left L4, which is the removal of abnormal disc material that presses on a nerve root. The piece the surgeon took out was 1.5cm in diameter.
One certainly reflects on how one got one’s self into this position. Perhaps it was the lifting and stacking up of pallets in my supermarket nightfill days, or twenty years of rowing and coaching in a tinnie, or perhaps it was the free gardener and landscaper my mother had in her youngest son, or perhaps a late night lift up of one of my children without bending properly, or sitting at my work desk incorrectly with bad posture. Either way, the recent lesson learnt has been a painful one, and one I will encourage our students not to follow.
Physical health is one of the five dimensions we focus on in our Wellbeing programs at the College. The others are the emotional, social, cognitive and spiritual dimensions. With the holidays approaching and particularly in post-COVID times (he says optimistically), ensuring your children embrace their physical health is the perfect opportunity during the winter break. The foundations for lifelong good health habits should be developed strongly during their time at the College, even if they state they are not ‘sporty’, there are plenty of options to encourage the inclusion of physical movement into their life and program including: Yoga, Table Tennis, Judo, Duke of Edinburgh, Cadets, Mountain Biking, Cross Country, Hip Hop (JS), Sailing, Touch Football, Duke of Edinburgh, Diving, Swimming, Tennis, Futsal, Cricket, Volleyball, Waterpolo, AFL, Rugby, Football, Volleyball, Basketball, Cricket, Track & Field, Fitness Group, Weights and Fitness, and Surf Lifesaving.
City2Surf
Congratulations and good luck to the over 80 Waverley community members who have registered to join the Waverley team to do the City2Surf. So far they have raised over $5,000 for local charity ‘Running for Premature Babies.’ There is still time to join the group, and please see details further in the newsletter.
Piano Competition Winners
Congratulations to the 33 students who competed in this year’s piano competition, judged by accomplished guest adjudicator, Mr Evan Streater. Well done to our four division winners. >>> Click here to view further news about the entertaining piano competition.
- Division 1 – Ryan Loughrey (Year 5)
- Division 2 – Maxim Service (Year 5)
- Division 3 – Lieme Chan (Year 9)
- Division 4 – Evan Service (Year 7)
Beanie for Brain Cancer
The College will again be supporting this year the Mark Hughes Foundation and the Beanie for Brain Cancer Initiative. The brand new 2022 designs have been released, and will be available for purchase both at the Junior School (Reception) and Senior School (Wellbeing Centre) over the final week of Term 2. These will be $25 each.
Key Milestones
As we approach the end of term, we keep in our thoughts and prayers our Year 12s, who have the added pressure in their school program of preparing for their upcoming trial examinations early next term. They will receive a study program from the Teaching & Learning team next week, which I would encourage them to follow closely, so as to find a balance between studying, exercising and maintaining a good diet and sleep patterns.
The College Library will be open during the holidays for those students who like to vary their study locations or organise some small group study sessions. HSC tutorials will also be operating, across respective subject areas.
I also wish our Year 8s and 10s who have their Subject Selection Evenings scheduled for the next week, all the very best in their discernment around subject choices and study pathways. For more information, click the links below:
>>> Click here to view Ms Porter’s Stage 6 subject selection newsletter article.
>>> Click here to view Mr Soden’s Stage 5 subject selection newsletter article.
The Plenary Council
Our Australian Catholic Church has spent much of the last few years discussing its place in the nation and its pilgrim journey as a community of faith. Australia has had four previous Plenary Councils in 1885, 1895, 1905, and 1937, prior to the fifth Plenary Council of 2022. A Plenary Council is a formal meeting of the bishops and other representatives of all the dioceses and eparchies of the Catholic Church in Australia. Its purpose is to discern what God is asking of us in Australia at this present time.
While the church should be asking that question continually, a Plenary Council is a particularly graced instrument for seeking the Holy Spirit’s guidance. It will present opportunities to address the challenges that the Church currently is facing, and ways for being a better Church in the decades ahead. The four-year journey of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia will reach the second and final assembly in July 2022. In the plenary council’s first phase, known as ‘Listening and Dialogue’, more than 222,000 people took part, making 17,457 submissions. I attended a session along with Mark Tannock, the principal of St Aloysius’ College, some time ago.
This formal process of a Plenary Council, has led to 30 motions being put to 277 members of Australia’s historic Fifth Plenary Council at next month’s second assembly. The motions include an apology to the survivors of Church abuse and their families, a greater role for women including new opportunities in ministries, and closer engagement with Indigenous Australians in the life of the Church.
The submission to the Plenary Council acknowledges that the Catholic Church in Australia has been caught up in this history of dispossession, Stolen Generations, the undermining of language and culture, and racism. The 30 motions for the Plenary Council can be found below.
>>> Click here to view A Framework for Motions.
COVID-19 Update
| 17/06/2022 | COVID-19 | Close Contacts |
| Year 5 | 1 | 0 |
| Year 6 | 0 | 0 |
| Year 7 | 0 | 3 |
| Year 8 | 2 | 4 |
| Year 9 | 0 | 0 |
| Year 10 | 1 | 1 |
| Year 11 | 0 | 0 |
| Year 12 | 0 | 1 |
| Staff | 0 | 2 |
| Total | 4 | 11 |
