STM Remembrance Day Liturgy

On Friday, 9 November our school remembered the men and women who have served our country in past and current wars and peace keeping operations.

Thank you very much to our parents and visitors who attended and particularly to Geoffrey Young (father of Cameron Year 4) who read the Prayer of Remembrance and Sergeant Dwayne Turvey, Quartermaster Sergeant of Australia’s Federation Guard who gave the Reflection.

Sergeant Turvey directed the Catafalque Party at our Anzac Day Liturgy this year. This same Catafalque Party went to France for the official Anzac Day Service there. Sergeant Turvey very generously offered to take our little wooden Commemorative Crosses that the children had written on special messages of tribute to the battlefields in France.

A great story is Darren Jaensch (father of Lachlan, Year 4) was also in France for the Anzac Day Services. Somebody gave him a Commemorative Cross to place on one of the war graves. He was very surprised to look at the cross and see St Thomas More’s Primary School with Bethany’s (Gibson, Year 6) name on it. He placed the cross on the grave on Private Richard Snell in the Cemetery at Pozières. The somebody who gave him the cross was Sergeant Turvey. Hopefully, this serendipitous series of occurences helps our children make a special connection with – what can sometimes seem an abstract concept – commemoration. Genuine thanks to Sergeant Turvey for taking our commemorative crosses to France and coming back and sharing the experience with us at our Remembrance Day Liturgy.

Thanks also to Jaki Kane, who led the St Thomas More’s School Choir in beautifully singing ‘We Will Remember’, a song written especially for the Anzac Centenary by Russell Tredinnick. Later in the morning they sang the song again at the ceremony at the Southern Cross Apartments. Ava Walsh (Year 6) read the Ode and William Ervin (Year 6) lowered and raised the Australian Flag for the occasion.

Anzac Bear and special guest Tiffany White

St Thomas More’s was gifted an Anzac Bear from a former parent of the school and Team Leader of the Invictus Games, Brigadier Phil Winter. The Anzac Bear is Trooper Jones who is a First World War uniformed bear of the 5 Light Horse Regiment. We also received an Invictus Games T-Shirt.

Phil Winter organised for a competitor of the recent Invictus Games, Tiffany White, to visit us. Tiffany was a gold and silver medalist in the indoor rowing and power lifting events. She spoke to the 3/4 classes about her experience and answered many interesting questions posed to her by the children. Her special message to the children was it was more about having a go, being part of the team and looking out for others than winning the medals.

Thank you very much to Phil and Tiffany for your time with us.

Families Posting Out

For families posting out, I will be working with your children in the upcoming weeks preparing a farewell booklet and stepping through some positive thinking about moving to a new school.

If your child already has a School Posting Passport, could you please send it in to be stamped. Otherwise, I can arrange for a new passport to be issued.

Defence Community Organisation (DCO) provide some helpful resources:

• To view what is available see Products, programs and resources for kids
  http://www.defence.gov.au/DCO/Family/Kids/Programs-products.asp

• Moving with kids
  http://www.defence.gov.au/DCO/Family/Kids/Moving.asp

The DCO contact number is 1800 624 608.

VVCS is now Open Arms - Veterans & Families Counselling

The Veterans and Veterans Families Counselling Service (VVCS) changed its name to Open Arms - Veterans and Families Counselling in October 2018.

Open Arms provides counselling and support services to Australia's military community. If you have served one day of continuous full-time service in the ADF you can call for support. Families, reservists and some peacekeepers are also supported. Open Arms continues to provide the same professional, confidential service, with 24/7 support available to all current and ex-serving ADF members and their families. To learn more about Open Arms, call 1800 011 046 or visit https://www.openarms.gov.au/ .

Feel welcome to visit or contact me on 6249 8869 or send an email to sonja.mingay@cg.catholic.edu.au .

Sonja Mingay DSTA
Work hours: Mon-Wed 9am-3pm, Thu 9-11am