To our Sacred Heart Community
National Reconciliation Week – #InThisTogether
Under ‘normal’ circumstances our Reconciliation Week Assemblies would have been one of the highlights of not just the week, but the term.
In recent years, Sacred Heart students and staff have respectfully gathered, to not just recognise our First Nation Peoples as significant members of our Community, but the related educational programs outline aspects of European settlement for which we are truly sorry!
To mark the start of Reconciliation Week, both campuses participated in Liturgies during extended homeroom. Champagnat Campus students also viewed the recent documentary ‘In My Blood It Runs’ and Marcellin Campus students completed an online foundation course in Cultural Awareness.
On Thursday, our Indigenous Youth Leadership Program students joined other young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students from around Australia online, sharing breakfast, networking and listening to guest speakers.
This year’s theme of ‘In This Together’ reminds us that as members of a common humanity, we are in everything together, never more than when times are tough or another person needs a helping hand.
Music at Sacred Heart
This term, we have welcomed back our music ensembles and choirs across the College. Students were keen to return after the extended break and are already working on new repertoire. Student led groups and duos have also returned and it’s great to hear music in the hallways again.
Some thoughts from our students:
“If I didn’t have music I would feel lost, music guides me and allows me to have something that only I experience or can experience with others.”
“Music is important to me because it is the only place that I’m comfortable to be myself. It’s where I can escape everything going on in the world around me and where I can calm myself down.”
“Music helps me connect with friends and entertain others, as well as keep me happy and mentally healthy.”
“Music is the only thing that I know I can’t fail. I have never come across something so amazing, I want to dedicate my whole life to it.”
“Music has played and still is playing a vital role in my mental health and self confidence. It’s something I’m willing to invest myself in to the best of my abilities no matter what the outcome.”
“It feels like nothing else I do – I feel like no one is on the earth anymore and it is just me and my music.“
“Music is a way that people can express themselves, it is a platform where you can create whatever you want.”
Whilst things are being done a little differently at the moment, music continues to be an integral part of the College with online music performances featuring during Homeroom liturgies.
The focus for the end of term, will be a virtual concert including music from our ensembles, choirs and bands across the College. We look forward to sharing this with the wider Hearts Community!
We are proud that the students have shown continued resilience, compassion and a sense of Marist community during this difficult phase. By re-forming, coming together and sharing their love of music our ensembles emulate the school’s vision “Virtus ubique vincit” – Under all circumstances courage triumphs.
Beating as one Heart
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Hardship Fund
Many thanks to those who have been able to contribute to the Sacred Heart College Hardship Fund. A reminder that the fund will remain open until June 30, 2020 (EOFY). Details on how to donate can be found here.
‘MSol’ @ Champagnat
The Champagnat student group which focuses on social justice and solidarity with our Marist ‘cousins’ in developing nations is called ‘Marist Solidarity’ or ‘MSol’ for short! Recently they organised an ‘Earth Hour’ across the College as we turned off the lights for an hour and minimised our energy use footprint. Another fantastic Earth Week initiative was the Sunflower Workshop!
Staffing Changes
Another of impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been an increased number of staffing changes since the mid-Term 1. With various programs such as Music and Sport being cancelled the relevant staff needed to be redeployed to teaching loads as opposed to coordination roles.
As these programs resume, these staff need to return to their coordination roles which means changes in class teachers. Admittedly, this is not ideal but a consequence of the times we live in! We are very much hoping that we do not need to do this next semester!
Our Spiritual Health
Last Sunday, Shana Bennett (Deputy Principal) and I joined with the Iqbal family for a small celebration of the Eid Festival which marks the conclusion of Ramadan, a month of fasting and prayer for Muslims.
It reminded me of how different our celebration of Easter was and this Sunday’s Feast of Pentecost will be and Reconciliation Week has been. All have been significantly altered as a result of the pandemic. Are we continuing to nurture our spiritual selves?
On Monday, Archbishop Patrick O’Regan DD was installed as the ninth Archbishop of Adelaide and we welcome our long awaited new Archbishop. Details of the celebration can be found here.
An excerpt from his homily:
“Yesterday afternoon I decided to go for a walk to clear my mind. I noticed a new piece of concrete in the footpath and someone in that inimitable Australian style had simply written into the fresh concrete the words ‘we can do this’.”
Seems to me a good place to start!
Steve Byrne
Principal
