From the Assistant Principal
Dear Parents, Carers, Boys and Girls,
At St Mary’s we are incredibly proud of our connection to the first custodians of this land, the Yuin people. We are committed to developing and maintaining genuine, collaborative and respectful relationships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander parents, families, local community members, service providers and agencies. Next term our school will celebrate NAIDOC week.
The acronym NAIDOC stands for National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee. NAIDOC week celebrates Aboriginal people’s history, culture and achievements and is a great opportunity to learn about their rich culture. It is a time of celebration and connection between all peoples. We are passionate about developing all staff and students’ understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories, cultures, languages and knowledge systems.
Get up! Stand up! Show up! - is the National NAIDOC Theme for 2022. Schools and local communities, in partnership with local Aboriginal Elders and Aboriginal community members, will celebrate people in our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities who have championed change, equal rights, and fundamental human rights throughout generations.
Each year we celebrate NAIDOC week at St Mary's to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. We will begin our celebration with the Regional NAIDOC Mass being held in our Church and all classes will complete a variety of activities related to the theme Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up! Our Year 3 class have already begun having conversations about what this theme means with their student teacher Miss Mihalyka.
We are very fortunate to have Mr Kirby Hodgson, our Aboriginal Education Worker, as part of our St Mary’s community to help support all our Aboriginal students and families.
NAIDOC Mass
On Friday 22 July (Week 1) St Mary’s will be hosting the South Coast Schools Regional NAIDOC Mass which will be celebrated in our Parish church. All Aboriginal students from Kindergarten to Year 6, along with their families, our school leaders and some staff will be attending this special Mass. Students and teachers from our partner schools, St Bernards Batemans Bay and Carroll College Broulee, will also be joining us. Following the Mass we will have a BBQ lunch on the oval. We are looking forward to gathering together to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in our community.
Sue Heffernan
Assistant Principal