Dear members of MLMC community

It is well and truly autumn and who would have thought that there would be predictions of a 35 degree-plus day at the same time as we are experiencing the AFL playing the first round of its winter season. Both these things are of interest as both the weather and the AFL are seasonal and although the cycle may be the same, no two seasons are ever really the same. Similar perhaps, but each has its nuance. To me such concepts provide opportunity for reflection on change and the cycle of life.

Among the many things that I browse I came across a beautiful story about The Pear Tree and the Seasons of Life — the author of which is unknown.

The Pear Tree and the Seasons of Life

There was once a man who had four young sons.

Wanting to teach them about the dangers of judging things too rapidly, he decided to send each of them on a journey, one after the other, to a distant pear tree.

Each son went in a different season, the first in winter, the second in spring, and so on.

At the end of the year, he brought his children together and asked them what they’d seen.

The son who’d travelled in winter described a gnarled, twisted, and barren tree that stood stark and ugly against the land.

The son who went in spring disagreed. No, he said, the tree seemed full of hope and promise, with green buds along its branches.

The third son, who’d travelled in summer, disagreed once more. The pear tree he’d seen was covered in beautiful blossom that looked and smelled divine.

Finally, the last son, who’d made the journey in autumn, disagreed again, describing a tree laden with sweet and delicious pears that tasted better than any he’d eaten before.

When each son had spoken, the father said they were all correct, because they’d only seen but one season of the pear tree’s life.

He explained to his sons that it’s foolish and impossible to judge something in this manner.

The essence of something, whether it’s a tree or their fellow man, can only be measured as a whole, at the end of the year, having seen it in its fullness. To make your judgment in winter is to miss the promise of spring, the beauty of summer, and the fruit in autumn.

I think this is a great story and one from which we can all learn about ourselves, others and the process of change.

Firstly, it reminds us not to judge ourselves or others based on a single mistake or a particularly challenging time. Each of us has incidents whereby, for whatever reason, we do not perform at our best. At these times we need to understand why, look to improve but to understand ourselves, by forgiving ourselves without being judgemental.

Secondly, we need to apply this same concept and understanding to others. We never know what is happening in other people’s lives, and we have no idea of the potential that is yet to come. It is easy to be judgemental and call for retribution and punishment, rather than seeking to understand and finding forgiveness within our hearts without being judgemental.

Many of our students remind me of this each day. Watching our Year 12 students each week serve the community in Lilydale by staffing Catherine’s Cafe. They provide food and drink to those who seek it, but more importantly they listen to stories and share of themselves with those who choose to seek their company. This is a gift and is offered in a non-judgemental way. Our students simply offer the gift of time and attention and what a gift it is.

At Mount Lilydale Mercy College, we cherish the concept of commentary involvement and community voice within our College. We actively seek it and listen to it, but in so doing we must consider the whole cycle like that of the pear tree.

Community Forum Group

Next Wednesday at 7.30pm we will host the first of our Community Forum Groups (CFG) for 2023. This is a process set up last year to ensure that community members have a voice in College protocols and policy. It is also a group in which possible change is discussed. Two topics under consideration will be:

• vaping (how do we keep our students safe)
• College policy about hairstyles — the College Captains and the SRC will be presenting.

Again, it is through consultation and discussion that we grow, so if you are interested in joining this group as a regular attendee or for this one-off meeting, please email me at principal@mlmc.vic.edu.au. If there are other things you want discussed, email the topic as well and we will see if it can be added at this meeting or in the future. Once I have attendees I will formally set an agenda and inform you of the venue to ensure we cater for numbers. Please consider this opportunity to support the College in our change processes.

Athletics Carnival

Last week the College held its House Athletics Carnival and we were blessed with a great day. We further blessed by the support of staff and student leadership to ensure the carnival atmosphere of the day was a highlight. I am thankful to the Parents and Friends’ Association, particularly the parents who volunteered their time to provide food and drink to our students. These simple acts support us building community, but also ensure a successful day.

Open Day

The College Open Day is fast approaching, on Monday 27 March from 4.00pm, and we look forward to showcasing and celebrating our whole College. Obviously, this event is aimed at future enrolment and specifically Year 7 2025, but let us also enjoy the celebration of our community.

In the Spirit of Catherine, 
God bless

Philip A Morison
Principal

Saint Patrick (5th century) is the best-known patron saint of Ireland and one of the most successful Christian missionaries in history. He is credited with expanding literacy in Ireland through the monastic orders he established, revising and codifying the Brehon Laws, and converting the country to Christianity. The 17 March celebration started in 1631 when the Church established a Feast Day honouring St Patrick.

An Old Irish Blessing for St Patrick’s Day

May your days be many and your troubles be few.
May all God’s blessings descend upon you.
May peace be within you, may your heart be strong.
May you find what you’re seeking wherever you roam.
May the strength of God pilot us, may the wisdom of God instruct us.
May the hand of God protect us, may the word of God direct us.
May thy Salvation, O Lord, be always ours this day and for evermore.
Amen.

Dates

• Monday 20 March — EISM Swimming Carnival
• Monday 27 March — Open Day (4.30pm-7.00pm)
• Wednesday 29 March — Old Collegians' Association Business Breakfast (from 7.00am)
• Monday 3 April — Student Progress Interviews online (student free day)
• Tuesday 4 April — Student Progress Interviews onsite (from 4.00pm)
• Tuesday 4 April — Easter Mass (whole school)
• Thursday 6 April — End of Term 1 (2.30pm finish)
• Friday 7 April — Good Friday (College closed)
• Sunday 9 April — Easter Sunday
• Monday 10 April — Easter Monday (College closed)
• Friday 14 April — College Office closes 4.00pm
• Monday 24 April — Start of Term 2 (College Office opens 8.00am)
• Tuesday 25 April — Anzac Day public holiday (College Office closed)

Student Representative Council fundraiser

A short note to inform you that the College Student Representative Council (SRC) has been hard at work planning a fundraiser in support of Project Compassion. As you will know, Project Compassion is a charity organisation that works to help those in need around the world, and we are proud to be supporting them through our upcoming fundraiser.

Although the SRC is newly established for 2023, they have wasted no time in getting into action to help this worthy cause. During the last week of term, the SRC will be selling delicious hot cross buns. We know that many of you will want to support this fundraiser, and we will be communicating more information on how to place your orders soon.

Please keep an eye out for further updates on this SRC initiative, and to get your orders in early to avoid disappointment. Not only will you be supporting a fantastic cause, but you will also be able to enjoy some tasty treats at the same time.

We are proud of our students for their dedication to make a real difference in the lives of those in need.

Kiss and drop area

Just a reminder that occasionally there may be days with heavy traffic at the College, particularly when parents drop off or pick up students from camp or other after-school activities. To ensure the safety and convenience of all who use the driveway, we kindly request that you follow the directions of staff and signs.

We appreciate your cooperation in this matter, as it helps us to maintain a safe and orderly flow of traffic. Thank you for your understanding and assistance in making our campus a safe and enjoyable environment for everyone.

Australia's Best Teachers

News Corp has launched its Australia’s Best Teachers campaign and Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS) is a major partner.

Australia’s Best Teachers aims to recognise the wonderful work of those in the profession by celebrating our most inspirational and innovative educators.

The campaign calls on Australians to nominate the great teachers who have, and have had, an incredible impact on our students and all of our lives. A panel of expert judges will then select and announce the top 50 teachers on Saturday 6 May 2023.

We have some great teachers at Mount Lilydale Mercy College and we would like to encourage the entire school community to contribute nominations by clicking HERE.

Butterfly Foundation webinar

Mrs Tina Tasiopoulos
School Wellbeing Coordinator

I am sharing some important information from the Butterfly Foundation that might be helpful when you are communicating to your young person about positive body image. The foundation is holding a ‘Let's Talk Body Confident Children and Teens’ webinar on Tuesday 21 March via Zoom.

It can be hard for children and teens to be accepting of and confident in their bodies. It can also be hard for parents/carers to know what to say or how best to support them. Hear from the experts at the Butterfly Foundation on how to help your child towards a positive body image.

The webinar is for parents and carers of primary and secondary school-aged children and it will cover body image influences, the importance of positive body image, positive role modelling, reducing toxic body talk, responding to appearance bullying, what to do if concerned and resources and supports available.

It will be held from 7.00pm to 8.15pm and costs $15 each. Please register HERE.

Please note this session is not designed for children to attend or for those caring for someone with an eating disorder.

Ash Wednesday

This year the liturgical season of Lent began with Ash Wednesday on Wednesday 22 February. The Year 10 Ministry students led our College liturgies for each year level that included the distribution of ashes. Homeroom representatives collected their Project Compassion box and a candle was lit as a sign of their commitment to support this cause throughout Lent.

“I led two of the liturgies and I found this very reflective.”
— Grace Carlile (Year 10 Gold)

“I got to read a lovely reading and for the first time I got to give out the ashes. I was able to reflect on what God has done for us.”
— Isabella Ciantar (Year 10 Purple)

Year 7 — Sacred Spaces excursion

During Week 5, Year 7 students went on an excursion into the CBD and visited three sacred spaces to the Catholic tradition in Fitzroy, all within a 10-minute walk from each other. They were:

• the Ursula Frayne Chapel at one of our sister Mercy schools, Academy of Mary Immaculate
• the Mary MacKillop Heritage Centre, to find out more about Australia’s first Catholic saint
• St Patrick’s Cathedral, to explore the side garden and inside the building itself.

This experience helped students make connections between their classroom learning about our Mercy tradition in Australia, Catholic places of worship and their own faith.

“All the churches were beautiful. It was a great experience with amazing culture and sights to see.”
— Nathan Millington (Year 7 Blue)

“I really enjoyed going and learning lots about Mary MacKillop.”
— Noah Stephens (Year 7 Blue)

Year 8 — NGV and Mass excursion

During Weeks 4 and 5, Year 8 students travelled to the CBD to visit the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) and also attend Mass in the city. This experience helped students make connections between their classroom learning on the life of Jesus through art and real-life experiences by viewing religious artwork of the Medieval period and the Renaissance. Celebrating Mass with the general public in the CBD also broadened their faith horizons.

“It was interesting seeing St Patrick’s Cathedral and it amazed me that it was built more than 150 years ago. It was cool to see the artwork at the NGV and see how people interpreted things and expressed themselves back then.”
— Olivia Mollo (Year 8 Orange)

“I learnt so much, and getting to see the art about Jesus totally fascinated me. The Cathedral was amazing, and I loved the experience of the Mass and observing the details of the Cathedral.”
— Zeke Villani (Year 8 Blue)

We are thrilled to announce the arrival of students and staff from our sister school in Japan, Horyuji High School, to our community. For two weeks, we will have the pleasure of hosting students from Horyuji, who will join us in our classes and exchange cultural experiences.

We want to express our deepest gratitude to the families who have opened their homes and welcomed our guests. Your kindness and generosity will make this exchange possible and enriching for everyone involved.

The relationship with our sister school is a wonderful opportunity for our students to broaden their horizons and learn about a different culture. By hosting and interacting with our guests, we will gain a greater understanding and appreciation of Japanese traditions, customs, and values.

Likewise, our Japanese counterparts will have the chance to immerse themselves in our Australian way of life and learn about our culture, history, and education system. We are richer for this experience, and it will help us build lifelong connections with the international community.

As part of our welcome to Australia, Darren Wandin, a Wurundjeri man, led a traditional Welcome to Country ceremony on Tuesday 14 March. This ceremony acknowledges the traditional custodians of the land, the Wurundjeri people, and their continuing connection to the land, waters, sky and community. This was an essential part of our sister school's introduction to our country, and we hope it gave them a greater appreciation of Australia's First Nations culture. A welcome assembly was also held in Centennial Hall (pictured).

On Wednesday and Thursday, our visitors joined our students in Year 7 and Year 8 classes and also shared classes with their Australian brother or sister. In Thursday's class with Year 8 Silver, the students made inkan — engraving names in rubber to make a stamp (pictured).

We look forward to the next two weeks and hope that our Sister School students will have a memorable experience in Australia. We encourage everyone to participate in the cultural exchange, make new friends, and learn about our global community.

Thank you once again to the families who have opened their doors to our guests, and we look forward to sharing this journey with you all.

Point scores were at an all time high, meaning participation was also at an all time high down at Quarry Road for the College Athletics Carnival on Monday 6 March. 

It was another win for Frayne House and Prefect Olivia Gardeniers as the sea of red took over events from sprints to jumps to throws as well as the tug of war.

The EISM Athletics Carnival is coming up in Term 2, with competition to be held on Tuesday 9 May.

The Aths Carnival was amazing this year, especially because Frayne won! It was perfect weather for everyone to be down at Quarry Road for some aths. It was so amazing to see all the Year 12s dressed up in their costumes and giving all the events a go. I loved how I, as Frayne Prefect could help inspire and motivate the younger kids to have a go. I worked hard all day trying to get all the kids to have a go and get some points, which paid off. I’m so grateful for everyone that participated and made the day so fun!
— Olivia Gardeniers (Frayne House Prefect)

Year 8 Design and Technology students were invited to a First Nations sustainability day on Tuesday 14 March. Each Year 8 class had a lesson in the outdoor classroom with a small activity.

The students learnt about sustainability as implemented by the Wurundjeri culture. Understanding sustainability as an entire system was the focus. Darren Wandin, traditional owner Wurundjeri Country, joined me, a Nukunu man, in discussing sustainability.

Students also decorated timber leaves in First Nations symbols (pictured). Students used the leaves to connect their personal stories with the concepts of First Nations concepts of sustainability being about a system as a whole. This was introduced to them through the dual totem system.

At MLMC we encourage students to maximise their learning opportunities by accessing support through a number of avenues, namely their subject teacher, Years 7-9 Homework Club, Years 9-12 academic support teachers, as well as online resources such as the MLMC Library, Edrolo for VCE students and Studiosity for students in Years 9-12.

More and more students are using the MLMC Studiosity service this term, for homework and independent study after hours.

In this way, we are supporting your child to get instant feedback and guidance from a professional whenever they get stuck.

We encourage parents and guardians to please ensure your child has set up their free MLMC Studiosity account at https://simon.mlmc.vic.edu.au/

If you have any questions, please check the Studiosity FAQ or get in touch with the McAuley and Barak Campus Learning Advisors, Mr Neal Haining and Ms Krystle Samios.

(1) Student Achievements

Basketball

Congratulations to Brylee Anderson (Year 9 Jade) who was this week selected in the girls’ Under 16 Victorian Country team. We look forward to hearing about your continuing success.

If you have any other student achievements, please email them to me at dwebb@mlmc.vic.edu.au

(2) Swimming

Kilsyth Pool remains closed so our final Wednesday morning swimming training session for Term 1 will be held on Wednesday 22 March at Croydon Memorial Pool. The session runs from 7.00am to 8.00am with all abilities welcome. Commendations and House points are also up for grabs. It’s free to take part and students will be bussed back to school from pool with breakfast provided. Students should see/email me in the Doyle Centre for more details.

The EISM Division 2/3 Swimming Carnival will be held on Monday 20 March at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre. The Champions Carnival is to be held on Monday 27 March.

(3) EISM reminders

With the summer seasons of Year 8, 9 and Senior EISM sport underway, the following points are important to remember:

• students should check the sport plans which are on the Doyle Centre window and Google Classroom pages at the beginning of every week
• if a student is unable to play in their team in a particular week, they need to let their coach know as early as possible
• students should be on time to the Doyle Centre on their sport day. All EISM teams need to leave at the start of lunch (occasionally earlier) to get to venues to play
• uniforms need to be 100% correct to ensure no forfeited games — hockey, soccer and football players must wear long navy socks (available at the Doyle Centre to purchase for $10) and mouthguards must be worn for hockey. NO CORRECT UNIFORM, NO GAME.

Senior EISM Grand Finals will be played on Wednesday 29 March.

(4) EISM results

Year 8 (7 March)

Senior (8 March)

Year 8 (14 March)

Senior (15 March)

As we welcome our Japanese sister school to the College this week, we take a look back to where this connection began, along with our connection to Italy — with both Japanese and Italian being taught at MLMC for many years.

In 1995, Principal Mr John Goodfellow employed Ms Jan Russell as the first Japanese language teacher at the College. She later wrote: “He gave me license to create a program in which learning a second language was a deeply meaningful experience for our students and developing a sister school program was the core of that ideal.”

Through a mediation organisation, the College was put in touch with Katagiri Senior High School in Nara, Japan. It later became Horyuji Kokusai High School and designated a UNESCO school. Reciprocal visits to each school by the Principals paved the way for them to become sister schools and for the students to travel overseas to visit each other’s institutions.

The success of the program led to a second sister school relationship being established with Instituti Superiore Giovanni Lanza in Casale Monferrato in northern Italy and a similar exchange opportunity for students grew. As Mrs Diane Scukovic, LOTE coordinator, wrote in Coolock 2000 “links with sister schools overseas give language students the opportunity to experience another language and culture”. LOTE French students have visited France and New Caledonia in the past.

Some of our students are pictured above with Mrs Russell and Sister Madeleine Fox in Japan, while photos from past student trips to Japan and Italy are shared below.

Syria and Turkey

Caritas Australia is working with Caritas agencies on the ground to respond to the devastation caused by the recent earthquake and are coordinating with local authorities, including AFAD, the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency, to gather information and organise the response.

Donations can help provide urgent aid and assistance to vulnerable communities affected by the earthquake. Our support can provide life-saving essentials, such as food rations, clean water and emergency shelter.

New Zealand

Catholic Caring Foundation Appeal for the Auckland Floods. Bishop Steve has launched an emergency flood relief appeal to provide vital funds for the flood recovery.

My Caring Foundation is accepting donations to help our partner agencies deliver vital help to so many. Our donations will be used for food, shelter, clothes and other essential supplies and support services. Already, many of the Foundation’s partner agencies are working around the clock to ensure that people are safe and able to get the help that they need quickly.

At the recent Athletics Carnival, a number of fundraising activities took place to help these causes. Many students got into the House spirit by having their hair sprayed or face painted with their House colour. Senior students made and sold brownies and truffles and the Ministry lounge donated profits from the week. We raised a total of $633 which will be split between these organisations.

Thank you to all who supported these fundraisers and for the generous donations from the community.

Mount Lilydale Mercy College is preparing to open its doors to offer families the interactive experience they are seeking in order to ascertain if MLMC is the place for their child to attend secondary school.

Open Day will be held on Monday 27 March from 4.30pm to 7.00pm.

Families are warmly invited to come along to our Open Day to experience a friendly and engaging evening of faculty displays, tours and activities that will allow them to discover all that the College has to offer.

Staff and students will be available to answer any questions from prospective students and families.

To attend this annual event, we ask that you please register your attendance by clicking HERE. 

We look forward to welcoming prospective families to the College once again. For further information regarding the College Open Day please contact us at 9735 4022.

Members of the MLMC community and businesses in the area are invited to attend the Old Collegians’ Association Business Breakfast to be held at the College on Wednesday 29 March.

It will begin at 7.00am and run until 8.30am with guest speakers Andrea McKellar (Class of 1984) and Dean McKellar, founders of Teacher Presence.

Teacher Presence empowers teachers and families to make a difference in the world by redirecting the money spent on the traditional end of year teacher present for a donation to a charity supported by Teacher Presence, so together we can help people whose voices are struggling to be heard.

Tickets are just $35 each and includes breakfast. To make a booking, please visit: https://www.trybooking.com/CCGJU

It is a wonderful opportunity to network and enjoy a lovely breakfast at the College.

For any queries regarding this event please email oc@mlmc.vic.edu.au

We look forward to seeing you there!