Catherine McAuley Westmead eNewsletter

News from the Principal

Yesterday we welcomed all students back to school for Term 2. The usual beginning-of-term buzz of anticipation and the joy of reuniting with friends filled the playground, and it was lovely to see your daughters well-rested and well-prepared for another term of school.

School Chapel
Over the break we had a series of stained glass windows installed in the school chapel. The window design is the result of the involvement of two teachers (Ms Smith and Ms Lowrencev, both have since left the school) who were involved in the Mercy Staff Formation Project in 2023. The teachers involved did the preliminary research and prepared a brief for the design, and then passed it onto Ms Fernandes and a group of students who completed the design for the project.

You will see that the stained glass window design represents the Mercy symbols we use in our sacred spaces, and each House colour is represented in the ribbons flowing through the panes.

Later in May we will also receive the gift of a statue of Our Lady of Mercy from the Parramatta Sisters of Mercy. Originally the statue was gifted to the Sisters of Mercy at Holy Cross Convent, Woollahra, in 1954 by the Parish Priest. When Holy Cross College was closed in 2001, the statue was moved to the Marymount Mercy Centre in Castle Hill where it has held pride of place in the chapel lobby. And now its pilgrimage continues to Westmead, where it will furnish our chapel for the years to come.

We are very pleased with these enhancements to the chapel space; as a space for prayer and reflection located in Mercy Square, it is well-used by students and is enjoyed by many of them. We will have an official blessing of the windows and statue once the statue has arrived and is in place.

Staff Formation Day
Yesterday all staff attended the CSPD Staff Formation Day at West HQ, Rooty Hill. Throughout the day we heard from theologians Prof. Br David Hall, Dr Paul Sharkey, Sr Patty Andrew, Fr Richard Leonard and others. The theme of the day was ‘hope’, and it was contextualised in Pope Francis’ call for a Jubilee Year, Pilgrims of Hope. Prof. Br David Hall talked about the importance of both hope and faith. He said that faith and hope enhance the flourishing of humanity; they give us a framework within which we can look forward with joy, a reason for us to look after one another with mutual love and respect, and a way to make the world better.

Coincidentally, yesterday morning I was listening to a radio broadcast in which the presenter referred to the Dalai Lama, who also preaches about the importance of hope and optimism in making our world a better and more positive place to be.

On that note, if we look at hope and faith as gifts to accept and use, we can contribute to a more joyful and loving world.

I wish you and your daughters a very successful term: one that is filled with laughter, learning, attendance and participation in school activities.

Mary Refalo
Principal

Pray With Us

A Prayer of Thanksgiving for the Life of Pope Francis

Need To Know

Upcoming Fortnight

Term 2 Week 2

The Big Science Competition
PDSSSC Cross Country
CSDA Debating Competition Round 4

Term 2 Week 3

CSDA Debating Competition Round 5
Parent and Carers Group Meeting

Link to Parent Calendar

News Articles

Our School on Social Media

Follow Catherine McAuley Westmead on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn for regular updates. A recent post is shown below:

STEM CLUB - Students in the McAuley STEM Club had a unique opportunity at the end of last term as they took part in workshops run by Engineers Without Borders (EWB). Ex-student Liya Nagawkar, Class of 2023, is an Engineering student involved with EWB and she joined with her colleagues to run the workshops.

Students were given the challenge of making both a prosthetic leg and a floating house. Mr Hall, Assistant Principal said that the students were fully engaged and spoke favourably about the workshops.