Congratulations to all our Year 3 students who made their First Reconciliation on Saturday evening. We thank their parents and families for their support and Mr Bob Fletcher and the Parish Sacramental Team-Cathy Ffrench and Ann Tracey and Fr Josh for their work preparing the children and ensuring this event was special for them. Thank you also to Ms Shaye Cooper, REC for her assistance.

On Friday May 24, we held our annual Athletics Carnival. The children from Kinder to Year 6 had a fantastic day participating in a range of events including novelty and a preschooler’s race. It was wonderful to have so many of our parents and grandparents at the carnival supporting the students, assisting as officials, cooking the barbecue and walking children to and from the recreation ground. We thank Mrs Katie Tooth for all her work planning and organising the carnival. We are so blessed to be part of such a wonderful community!

Last week, Ms Mary Fetterplace finished working at St Bede’s. The arrangements for Year 4 are Monday - Wednesday Ms Amy Doszpot and Thursday and Friday, Mrs Jennie Marsh. Amy and Jennie are excited to take on the role of Year 4 class teachers and they look forward to meeting the parents of the Year 4 students at the parent teacher meetings.

During week 9, commencing Monday June 24 through to Thursday, June 27, we will be conducting parent teacher interviews. On Wednesday June 26, we will be offering times from 2pm to 6pm. These interviews will be 15-minute interviews without the students present. During the meeting, the progress of each student as evidenced in their end of Semester reports, will be discussed. We encourage you to take this opportunity to meet with your child’s teacher to discuss their academic performance and attitude to learning. Bookings are now open on the Compass Parent Portal. Please CLICK HERE for instructions on how to make your booking. 

We have an open-door policy at St Bede’s and you don’t have to wait until parent interviews to meet with teachers. At any time, if you have concerns about your child or just want to see how they are progressing, we encourage you to contact the class teacher and arrange an appointment.

Recently, we were informed that we were successful in obtaining a grant of $2000 for a sensory garden for the front of our school. This grant is being provided by Braidwood Rural Mitre 10. We are extremely grateful to them and Sarah Hickey and Clare Young for their time and many hours of work preparing and submitting the grant. We look forward to seeing this garden evolve at our term four working bee.

Last Friday, the Community Council Winter Raffle was drawn. We are pleased to announce that the winners were as follows:

• First prize - Thompson Bespoke Jeweller necklace valued at $1295 - Blaine in Year 2,
• Second prize - Mona Farm Overnight stay valued at $650 - Coral Rowe
• Third prize - Echo Day Spa voucher, valued at $100 - Rachel Farley.

Thank you to everyone who sold and purchased tickets and helped raise a total of $1500. A big thank you to Thompson Bespoke Jeweller, Mona Farm and Suddenly Echo for their generous donation of our prizes. Also huge thank you to Kristi Morrison and Rachel Farley for all their hard work and organisation.

Braidwood Writer’s Festival is fast approaching. Parents, please ensure you have returned the entry forms for your children by Friday June 21. We look forward to seeing the published stories from each class.

Some reminders: 

• Lost property is overflowing. If your child has lost an item of clothing, please check the lost property bucket near the hall. Please ensure your child’s clothing is clearly labelled. If your child is wearing clothing from someone who has left or from the clothing pool, please ensure it is labelled with the new owner’s name. We have had issues with children accidentally taking home items of clothing which don’t belong to them and their owners would welcome their return. Parents, please check your child's clothing to ensure they have their items. 
• Please ensure your child is in the correct uniform each day. Coloured jackets, beanies and scarves are not our uniform. If unsure of our correct uniform, please check the St Bede’s website for our Uniform Policy which has been endorsed by the Community Council.
• Next week is Sabbath week. This is a wonderful opportunity for all parents to spend time as a family playing board games or enjoying the outdoors as it is a Homework free week. It is also time for teachers to take care of their wellbeing as it is also a meeting free week.

Have a lovely weekend!
God bless