Newsletter 18 - 6th November 2025

Sausage Sizzle Fundraiser for Mason

Last week, our wonderful Parents & Friends Committee organised a Sausage Sizzle lunch to raise funds for the Mayne family and little Mason who is currently receiving treatment for Neuroblastoma. Thanks to the incredible generosity of our school community as well as our building contractors, Mead Con, and landscapers, Scape Form, who also participated. We were able to raise much-needed funds to support the family during this challenging time.

It was heartwarming to see students and staff come together to show their care and support. The Mayne family have expressed their deep gratitude for the kindness, compassion, and encouragement shown by everyone involved.

A huge thank you to our volunteers on the Parents & Friends Committee who gave their time, donated supplies, and helped make the day such a success. Your generosity truly reflects the spirit of our school community.

Our New Gaga Pit!

Over the long weekend, work began on an exciting new addition to our playground — a Gaga Pit! A big thank you to Lucas Rodman, who has been preparing the ground ready for installation.

The Gaga Pit will provide our students with a fun, active, and inclusive way to play together during break times. This wonderful project has been fully funded by our Parents & Friends Committee, and we are so grateful for their ongoing support in helping to enhance our school grounds and student experiences.

We can’t wait to see our students enjoying their new Gaga Pit soon!

Mercy Tree – Sharing the Spirit of Giving

The Consultative Committee recently met to discuss plans for student Kris Kringle (KK) this year. With the current cost of living pressures in mind, we’ve decided not to hold student KK, so students will not be buying gifts for other classmates this Christmas.

Instead, we’d love to invite families to take part in our new initiative, the Mercy Tree. This is a wonderful opportunity to share the joy of giving by donating a Christmas gift for local families in need.

St Vincent de Paul Society is running a Vinnies Tasmania Toy Drive, helping bring joy to children and families in need this Christmas. Families are invited to donate a new, unwrapped toy or gift (around $25 value) for children aged 0–16 years.

Gift ideas:

 0–2 yrs: soft toys, picture books

3–9 yrs: puzzles, LEGO, craft sets

10–16 yrs: books, sports gear, gift cards

Let’s come together as a school community to help make Christmas brighter for every child!

Honouring Our Mercy Heritage – A New Emblem for St Patrick’s Latrobe

As a school community, we have been reflecting on our story, where we have come from, who we are today, and what values continue to guide us into the future. Symbols play an important part in telling that story, and this year, with our new building and refurbishments underway, we are excited to share the next step in that journey with the introduction of a new school emblem for St Patrick’s Latrobe.

Since 2018, the idea of a new school emblem has been on the agenda, with various designs explored over the years. After consultation with a local design group since 2023, a final design has now been approved by the Sisters of Mercy. We felt that with our new building works and refurbishments, now is the perfect time to unveil the emblem so that it can be incorporated into the new spaces, a visible sign that we are both honouring our past and moving forward as a progressive and faith-filled school community.

At St Patrick’s Latrobe, we are proud to be a Mercy school, a community inspired by the life and work of Catherine McAuley, the foundress of the Sisters of Mercy. Catherine dedicated her life to compassion, dignity, and service to others, especially those most in need. Her vision was simple yet powerful: to be the hands and heart of God’s mercy in the world.

The Mercy charism continues to shape who we are today. It calls us to live with kindness, courage, and generosity, to look for the good in others and to act with love. Every day, we see this spirit alive in our classrooms, playgrounds, and wider community: in the way our students care for one another, support those in need, and strive to make a difference.

As we continue to grow as a faith-filled learning community, we are delighted to announce that St Patrick’s Latrobe is now unveiling the new school emblem. This emblem will reflect our Mercy heritage, our Catholic faith, and our commitment to learning and service by incorporating the Mercy Cross. Importantly, it will also retain the shamrock, a cherished symbol of St Patrick and a reminder of the strong foundations on which our school was built.

Our new emblem will honour the past while looking confidently to the future, reminding us that, like Catherine McAuley, we are called to “do ordinary things extraordinarily well.”

We are excited to share the new design with you, celebrating together this next chapter in our school’s story.

* Please note: At this stage, there has been no decision to change the embroidery on the uniforms.

Have a great week

Carmen Aylott

Principal.

2025

Term 1 - Friday 7th February - Thursday 10th April 

Term 2 - Monday 28th April - Friday 4th July 

Term 3 - Tuesday 22nd July - Friday 26th September 

Term 4 - Tuesday 14th October - Wednesday 17th December (New Date)

*Student Free Days: Friday 11th April, Monday 26th May, Monday 21st July, Monday 13th October. 

(Easter - Good Friday 18th April, Easter Monday 21st April, Easter Tuesday 22nd April)

2026

Term 1 - Friday 6th February - Thursday 16th April 

Term 2 - Monday 4th May - Friday 10th July 

Term 3 - Tuesday 28th July - Friday 2nd October

Term 4 - Monday 19th October - Friday 18th December (TBC)

*Student Free Days: Friday 17th April, Monday 27th July, Friday 23rd October. 

(Easter - Good Friday 3rd April, Easter Monday 6th April, Easter Tuesday 7th April)

What a pleasure it was to take the Year 5 & 6’s, using the theme ‘Changing HOPE into Reality’. Apart from a lot of fun, magic and conversations, it was enlightening to see and hear the students' dreams & HOPES for the future – not just for themselves but for their friends and family.

We discussed their worries, plus concentrated on finding ‘Words that help Hope’. Hopefully they bring home and to the classroom ideas, suggestions and actions that help give hope. We spoke about ‘BACKCHATTING’ at home and the students listened to teachers’ feelings, when this bad habit creeps into the classroom. 

One student said he was going to go home and discuss ways to stop his back chatting after hearing from teachers how back chatting makes them feel – we discussed the word “EMPATHY” – walking in someone else’s shoes. Please talk to your children about these issues and maybe, just maybe some of the students came home trying to find ways to be better people around the home.

I also had a session with the year 5’s about Leadership on 2026 and discussed high school with the year 6’s. The Year 5’s designed the following charter around words they felt would help them with the concept of leadership.

We discussed how Jesus has given us HOPE. Again, it was an absolute pleasure to work with the students and staff from St Patrick’s and getting them to share their hopes was enlightening. The students were so welcoming and very honest in their answers – I hope parents/carers can ask them about their sessions with me. 

Live Jesus in your Heart & Actions 

Marty Ogle

We’re excited to announce that Christmas raffle tickets will be going home with students shortly. This is one of our biggest fundraising events of the year, and we couldn’t do it without the incredible support of our community!

Tickets are $2.00 each or 3 for $5.00 and will be drawn on 5th December at our Soirée - extra ticket books are available from the school office! 

A full list of our generous sponsors and amazing prizes will be shared soon, but here’s a sneak peek at what’s already up for grabs:

• BBQ
• Trailer load of firewood
• $250 Woolworths voucher
• $100 Astrid Simone voucher
  …and much, much more still to come!

Thank you to everyone who has contributed so far – your generosity makes this event possible. Stay tuned for more details and let’s make this Christmas raffle our best yet!

Calling All Sewers!

The Mersey Leven Parish and our Catholic Schools are seeking volunteers to help sew costumes for the upcoming Christmas Eve Nativity Play at Our Lady of Lourdes Church.

The children from our schools and parish will be performing in the play, and many of our existing costumes are worn out or insufficient in number. We would be incredibly grateful for your assistance in creating simple gown-style costumes to bring this special event to life.

If you’re able to help, please contact Catherine Dunn via email at catherine.dunn@catholic.tas.edu.au, call 0400 766 311, or let the school office know.

Thank you so much for your support!

Warm regards,
Catherine Dunn

Latrobe Council is proud to support the Child and Youth Safe journey in our community. We value the voices of children and young people in creating a safe, caring, and inclusive place for everyone.

We invite students to take part in an exciting Art Collaboration that celebrates what it means to feel safe, cared for, and supported in our community.

How to Participate:

• Primary Schools: Create a class or individual A3 poster on the theme
  “What does feeling safe and cared for look like in our community?”
  (Please include the Australian, Aboriginal, and Torres Strait Islander flags.)

Selected artworks will be proudly displayed on the Council’s Child and Youth Safe webpage and across Council facilities.

• Entries close Thursday, 18 December 2025
   Deliver to Latrobe Council or School Office.
• For more information, reach out to your class
  teacher or contact Council on (03) 6426 4444.

Let’s celebrate creativity and the voices of young people in building a safer, stronger community!

Mersey Leven Catholic Parish 

Mersey Leven Catholic Parish is a Catholic community of many people who seek together to live and share the joy of the Gospel. 

Parish Office: 90 Stewart St Devonport

Wednesday - Friday 9am - 2pm

Phone: 036424 2783 

Email: merseyleven@aohtas.org.au

See the Parish website for more information

https://www.merseylevencatholicparish.com/