Campion College Newsletter

Tēnā koutou parents, students and whānau

Today, Friday 17th March, marks the Feast Day of St Patrick, the Patron Saint of Ireland. His Feast Day is now recognised throughout much of the Western world as an occasion for whanau and friends to come together and share good times. We wish all those families with a connection to the Irish culture and everybody else who celebrates this occasion a very enjoyable day.

As a faith community, we often talk of the saints. Edmund Campion, Marcellin Champagnat and Mary MacKillop are three examples that are closely linked with our College. Saints are everyday people, like us, who have shared in similar or harsher life struggles than us, yet have managed to model their lives on the teachings of Christ. They become examples of lives well lived in the faith, who we can follow as we try on a daily basis to be more Christ-like.

This coming Monday, 20th March, we also recognise another very important saint, Saint Joseph, who was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and who was the legal father of Jesus. There is very little known about the life of Joseph in Scripture but his actions inspired Mary MacKillop to name her Order of Sisters after St Joseph because he was a man of faith who acted with courage and compassion, even when he didn’t fully understand what God was asking of him.

In the words of St Patrick…

“May Christ be with us!

May Christ be before us!

May Christ be in us,

May the Grace of God be always with us

This day and forevermore. Amen”

“May you live as long as you want, and never want as long as you live.”

Traditional Irish saying

Ngā mihi nui

Paul McGuinness

Principal

As I arise today,

may the strength of God pilot me,

the power of God uphold me,

the wisdom of God guide me.

May the eye of God look before me,

the ear of God hear me,

the word of God speak for me.

May the hand of God protect me,

the way of God lie before me,

the shield of God defend me,

the host of God save me.

May Christ shield me today.

Christ with me, Christ before me,

Christ behind me,

Christ in me, Christ beneath me,

Christ above me,

Christ on my right, Christ on my left,

Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit,

Christ when I stand,

Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,

Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,

Christ in every eye that sees me,

Christ in every ear that hears me.

Amen

If you wish your child to be Baptised, receive their First Communion or be Confirmed into the Catholic Church please contact Chris Goodwin (Director of Religious Studies) directly at gn@campioncollege.school.nz. An extensive programme will be run with these students in Term 2 in order to prepare them to receive the Sacraments.

Thank you so much to our brothers from St John's College, Hamilton. On Thursday, Mr Bormans (the DRS from St John's) drove from Hamilton to deliver food that the school had collected on our behalf. Alongside this, was a donation of over $1,500. The food has gone to the St Vincent DePaul society to distribute and the money will go into the pool to assist those who have been affected by Cyclone Gabrielle. Ngā mihi nui, SJC!

Recycling stations and composting have been running at Campion since last year. Recently, our Enviro team has set up recycling stations in the student centre and staff room. It's great to see so many in our school community engaging with the stations and being kaitiaki of our kura.

Today, senior students Aiden Mill, Izan Duckworth, James Searle and Arlo Stallmach gave back to our Campion College community by working in the great outdoors. These students worked on restoring our outdoor classroom to its former glory and got busy in the college garden. Thanks, lads!

Congratulations to the following students who were recognised at this week's Year 7 & 8 Celebration assembly. These students have demonstrated one or more of our 3 C's; Commitment, Community and Compassion and are well on the way to becoming Disciples of Christ.

Congratulations, team!

Left to right: Masha Clark, Stella Lovelock, Emma Ruelens, Charlotte Jones, Evie Strack, Anais Brodie

The battle for house supremacy is well underway! With the first of our long distance track events done and dusted, the current results are:

MacKillop ( Green) 66 Points

Hato Maria( Blue) 49 Points

Marcellin( Gold) 33 points

Gregory( Red) 34 points.

We had a whopping four records broken in this week's 3,000 m race on our track. Congratulations to the following students:

Hamish Swann: Senior Boys

Lily Heuser: Senior Girls

Bonnie Mason: Junior Girls

Sage Alexander : Year 7 Girls

Don't forget our athletics day in next week on Tuesday, 21 March. We invite all students to dress in their house colours for this epic day of athletic battle!

Verticals 1 - 5 Marcellin (Gold)

Verticals 6 - 10 Hato Maria (Blue)

Verticals 11 - 15 MacKillop (Green)

Verticals 16 - 20 Gregory (Red)

May the best house win!

Parents are, of course, welcome to join in the festivities.

Our Campion Challenge Cup team has made the final. The final will be played next Wednesday at Harry Barker Reserve starting at 3.30 pm. Let's get down to support them! Well done on making the finals, team!

With our main water pipeline still out of action, we continue to be in a water crisis. This is likely to continue for some time and the more awareness shared about water conservation, the better.

The Gisborne District Council has created ‘Wero Tiaki Wai’ – a challenge to reduce water use. They're encouraging schools and communities across the region to send through photos, poems, stories, tips, videos, and drawings – and we’re asking you to get involved!

We want to hear about everything and anything you think of when you hear water conservation.

Please see Mrs Sadler if you would like to make an entry or if you have any super ideas.

In support of the season of Lent, Caritas is again hosting the purple ribbon appeal. Lent leading up to Easter and the resurrection of Jesus is a time for us to reflect on aspects of ourselves. It is a time to make prayer, almsgiving and fasting a priority and wearing the ribbon can act as a reminder of this commitment. Purple was the colour of the robe Pilate placed on Jesus, and while it is associated with repentance or pain, it also represents ambition for growth and dignity.

This year's Caritas theme is John 8;12, “I am the light of the world”,

which is something we should all strive to uphold.

Ribbons will be available from verticals by a donation. We want everyone to get involved and there will be a mystery prize for the vertical that collectively sells the most ribbons. You can bring money to your vertical form teacher, use eftpos in the office, or donate via the KINDO APP here.

If you, or anyone you know, needs any support with food, bedding, furniture or clothing then please contact the Saint Vincent de Paul Society on 020 4171 8608. They are a local Catholic organisation who is able to provide for those in need. We thank the Vinnies for all the wonderful work they do for our community, quietly and humbly in the background.

Volunteer Teams: We continue to offer assistance to any families in need in our community. Please contact Paul McGuinness 027 226 7466 if you, or someone you know, requires assistance.

Staying connected is now more important than ever. Please keep up to date with all the wonderful things we are doing on our new Campion College Facebook Page. Head over to Facebook to check it out here.

If you haven't yet downloaded our College App, please do so . It's an easy way to stay on top of school admin.

Our church is St Mary, Star of the Sea. We are fortunate to have our church onsite. Our parish Mass times are:

Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 9.00 am

Friday 12.10 pm,

Saturday 9 am and Vigil Mass 6.00 pm

Sunday 9.00 am

Children’s liturgy at every Sunday 9.00 am

We love to hear about and celebrate our students' achievements.

Please share info and/or photos with karyn.sadler@campioncollege.school.nz