Dear Parents and Caregivers,

When I was a child, my family had a picture of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, like the one pictured, hanging in our dining room. As a child I did my homework at the dining table each afternoon and often caught myself looking at the picture of the warm, friendly Jesus pointing to His exposed heart.

The longer I looked at the picture, the more I felt that Jesus was inviting me to look even closer into His heart. Despite the image of the cross, the crown of thorns and the visible wounds on His hands, whenever I looked at that picture, I felt somehow embraced, loved and cared for — as if Jesus was inviting me to step into the peace reflected on His face.

That picture remains hanging in the same spot in my parent’s home today and I have caught my own children and now my grandchildren looking at it in a similar way that I did when I was a child. 

The month of June is traditionally dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the highest human expression of divine love. The Sacred Heart of Jesus – a heart wounded and surrounded with a crown of thorns, with flames showing his suffering love for humanity – has been honoured since the twelfth century.  

In the Christian Scriptures Jesus is presented as a wholehearted person, open to the full range of human emotions. As his life and ministry unfolded, he demonstrated compassion personified and left every person he met better from the experience of his contact. The Sacred Heart serves to remind us all about just what the human heart is capable of. A heart which teaches us that, through grace, we too can be capable of loving God, ourselves, others and creation to a degree which we may have thought impossible. We are reminded that love is not something soft, occasional, and sentimental, but strong, enduring and sacrificial. It was the human heart of Christ which loved to its fullest extent, and it is the Sacred Heart that challenges us to move outside ourselves by radiating love. St Ignatius pointed out two essential criteria about love. The first: that love is expressed more clearly in actions than in words. The second: that there is greater love in giving than in receiving. Like the Sacred Heart, love radiates outward, not inward. 

The late Marie Debusch, the second Principal at Mary Immaculate (1993-1996) was a faith filled leader who had a strong personal connection with the Sacred Heart of Jesus. She would often include the words “Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place my trust in you” when engaging in prayer with both staff and students.

During her tenure as Principal, Marie introduced the inaugural Sacred Heart Award in 1995. This wonderful legacy continues to the present day and on Friday one of our students will be presented with this very prestigious school award. The criteria staff must consider when nominating a student include the ways that the student has displayed values and attitudes that reflect the Gospel and specifically our school values in their daily interactions, acts of service to others and the resulting impact of consistently demonstrating the qualities of love in action. This is made visible through the patience, empathy, initiative, and acts of selflessness made within our community. The student who receives the Sacred Heart Award on Friday will join a long list of fellow Mary Immaculate students who have consistently brought to life our school motto by making Christ Their Way and Life in their everyday words, actions and interactions. We wait in anticipation for this announcement and will take great pride in congratulating the 2023 recipient of this important school award on Friday at the Sacred Heart Mass.

Tina Murray

Principal

BUILDING UPDATE

The first stage of building project is rapidly concluding, and we hope students will have the chance to move their belongings into the new spaces on the last day of Term 2. Furniture items will be moved during the holiday period in readiness for the start of learning for Term 3 in the new classrooms.

Information regarding updated procedures for arrival and dismissal will be communicated as soon as possible.

Please take the opportunity If you are driving past in the evening to take a look as the buildings as they look quite spectacular at night.

Unfortunately, due to staff shortages this area has not been consistently supervised recently. It is important all parents and carers making use of the Kiss and Drop zone adhere to the following processes designed to maintain the safety of all. 

• The Kiss and Ride Zone is marked by solid white lines from the crossing to the Church car park gate.
• Cars proceed into the Kiss and Ride Zone and move as far as possible towards the crossing on Emerald Drive.
• All cars must move into and exit this zone in an orderly and safe way.
• Cars cannot park in the Kiss and Ride Zone.
• Adults need to always remain in the car. This means that children will need to have their school bags with them in the car, so that they are able to leave the car quickly from the left-hand side, directly onto the footpath and enter the school via the gates.
• Please watch for cars that are ahead and behind when leaving the Kiss and Ride Zone.
• If the Kiss and Ride Zone is full or you wish to get out of the car, please park in an area away from the Kiss and Ride Zone.
• Do not park or drop off in the Bus Zone located after the crossing.
• Do not double park.
• Do not make U-turns - they are illegal, dangerous, and put everyone at risk.
• Police undertake frequent patrols of this area, especially at peak times.
• All parents and students should cross the road at the monitored crossing, not through traffic or between cars.   

Just a reminder that Prime and other carbonated soft drinks are not appropriate for consumption at school.

Students should bring water to school in a refillable drink bottle. These can be easily refilled at the refill stations around the school during the day.

Sacred Heart Award

For many years now, we have been celebrating a very special award in our school - The Sacred Heart Award.

Any student in our school may be nominated by a teacher for displaying the school values and living out our vision of:

• Faith (Walking with Christ)
• Respect
• Service
• Lifelong learning

The teachers then vote and ONE child in our entire school is chosen and  presented with this prestigious award. 

This year, we will be holding this liturgy on:

Date: Friday 23 June 2023

Time: 10:00 a.m.

Place: Mary Immaculate Church

All members of our school and parish community are warmly invited to attend and share this celebration with us. 

Mrs Kirsty Simpson

REC

Mary Immaculate Parish Primary School

Day of Photography

24/07/2023

1. Please wear your full school uniform

2. Please place your order online before the day of photography

- Go to www.advancedlife.com.au and enter this code:

737 5JZ 8ZH

3. Payment can be made using Visa, Mastercard or PayPal

If you have any queries concerning school photographs and ordering, please contact advancedlife directly:

www.advancedlife.com.au/contact

Tallyn De Silva is one of our past students and his sister currently attend our school,

We would like to congratulate him on making his first grade debut for Tigers on the weekend.

Well played!