Dear members of the Mount Lilydale Mercy College community,
Welcome to summer and the last day of formal classes for 2019. I look forward to seeing many of you and celebrating with you at our Night of Excellence on Friday 13 December.
Graduation
The weeks since our last newsletter continue to be filled with celebrations marking the passing of the end of the 2019 academic year. In the last newsletter I said I was thinking of Graduation, which was celebrated on Saturday 23 November at a fantastic venue in the Melbourne Convention Centre. It was an honour and a pleasure to see the Graduation Class of 2019 dressed in their finery for a formal Graduation ceremony. After the long period of exams they depart to their many adventures.
This celebration is indeed important. We, as a College and a community, wish each and every one of them well and trust that many will stay in contact and remain connected through our Old Collegians' network. We will always be thrilled to see them and hear of their adventures. They will continue to be in our prayers as they await VCE results, ATAR scores, university, TAFE and job offers.
Student Awards
Meanwhile, the many other year levels have busied themselves with exams, award ceremonies and for some, Academic Foundation Programs (AFPs). The award ceremonies are indeed a fitting way to finish the year as they highlight achievement and effort — but they do more than that. They acknowledge every student for their contribution to our College through the College colours system and I am thrilled at the numbers awarded this year. Congratulations to all students whose contribution and efforts were recognised. You can read more about the awards in this newsletter.
Staff farewells
With the end of another year, the College farewells a number of staff members who are moving on to new chapters in their lives:
Congratulations to Michael Slagtman (33 years) and Steve Palmer (29 years) who formally retire at the end of this year. We wish Michael and Steve the very best and hope they enjoy a long, healthy and happy retirement.
This year, we also farewell Anne Fenby, Sophia Kmiec, Ashley Gray, Maria Esnouf, Amanda Burchell, Kathryn Van Winden, Luke Deery, Gina Morra, Michelle Stone, Denise Taws, Ashleigh Clinton, Maeghan McKenzie and Fiona Lynch. We thank them for the contributions they have made to the College community while undertaking their replacement and contracted positions.
Congratulations also to Jessica Duff, who has completed her AFL traineeship.
And finally, Tanya Hutton, Deputy Principal – Learning and Teaching, is departing to take up the Principal position at Ave Maria College in Aberfeldie. We wish Tanya the very best in this important role.
Each of these staff members has contributed to the broad and rich life of our College and often their work and dedication to our students goes unseen. We thank them for their service and wish them well in their future endeavours.
Personal Pars
Members of our College community are in need of our support and prayers with the passing of loved ones. Let us remember and pray for:
Tracey Schparyk, grandmother to Tyson Fitzgerald (Year 7); Maureen Napier, grandmother to Hannah (Year 11), Thomas (Year 8) and Niamh (Class of 2018); and Gerard Sugrue, grandfather to Courtnei (Year 10) and Jemma (Year 12).
Let us pray for the repose of the souls of Tracey, Maureen and Gerard. May they, along with all the faithfully departed, rest in peace.
Merry Christmas
Lastly, I would like to thank every family within our community for their ongoing support throughout 2019. I wish each of you a happy, holy and peaceful family Christmas and look forward to your return in 2020. I hope you find the up and coming holiday season to be restful and that the summer heat and fire season does not provide issues.
God bless
Philip A Morison
Principal
