Term 4 I Thursday 5 December 2019

It has been an honour and a privilege to lead the Junior School and to get to know you and your children. It has been an amazing journey watching the College grow from being a small K – 9 school when I started with about 400 students to the Prep to 12 College we have now with almost 1800 students. I have seen the growth of the area as well, originally we were a country school surrounded by paddocks, dams, goats, pigs and horses now we sit in the middle of suburbia. What an achievement, I am so proud of the College community.

Many people have asked me what I will have loved the most in my time at the College and I always say watching the children enter the College as 4 or 5 year olds, eager to learn and like sponges ready to soak up all their new experiences, supporting them through their journey at school and then seeing them graduate as outstanding young men and women as they leave Year 12. It has always been important to me that we prepare our students to enter the real world with more than just academic knowledge but that we prepare them to be part of a community that they can contribute to.

I have been privileged to go on life’s journeys with so many of you. I have celebrated milestones, laughed with you and in some cases cried. There have been some amazing successes as well as some real tragedies across my time here. The close Thomas Hassall community really shines in those most difficult times and I thank you all for how you have loved and supported me and the College through those times.

Preparing our students for life beyond the classroom is a team effort and if I was to leave you with one piece of wisdom it would be to work together with the College and the teachers, continue to trust and to talk through issues as they arise. I would also add to help us to give your children wings so that they can fly, encourage them to love challenges, face difficulties, solve problems and to support them but not rescue them.

Finally, I would like to say that I have loved praying and sharing the gospel with the families and children at the College. Christmas is a time where we remember Jesus’ birth and what that means for us. God sent his Son so that we could be forgiven and spend eternity with Him. What an amazing gift that we can all receive, we just have to trust in Him and take Jesus into our hearts to be our King.

Thank you all, I will miss so much about my working life but I am ready to look forward to the next chapter God has planned for me. I will continue to be praying for you all and I know that Mrs Wheeler will take up from where I have left off and the College will continue to go from strength to strength. Thank you for the many gifts, cards and words of encouragement, Thomas Hassall really is a special community that I have loved being a part of and I will definitely miss.

God Bless and have a wonderful Christmas and a relaxing break with family and friends.

Hoxton Park Anglican Church

Community Carols - Sunday 15 December 2019 at 6pm

Christmas Eve - 6pm 

Christmas Day - 9.30am 

St Luke's Liverpool

Christmas Eve Family Service - 5pm

Christmas Eve Late Service - 11pm

Christmas Morning Service - 9.30am

St Mark's Sadlier

The Christmas Xperience - 15 December at 4pm.

Carols Service - Sunday 22nd December at 6pm.

Christmas Eve Communion Service -  11pm (communion)

Christmas Day Service – 9am

Hope Anglican Church, Leppington

Leppington Community Carols - Saturday 7 December from 5.30pm with Colin Buchanan. Fireworks at 9.15

Christmas Eve Service - 5pm

Christmas Day Service - 9.30am

MBM (Multicultural Bible Ministry) – Meeting in Thomas Hassall Anglican College

Christmas Service - Sunday 22 December - 10am

Liverpool South Anglican Church

Carols in the Car-Park - Sunday 15 Dec from 5.30pm (BBQ & Carols)

Christmas Eve Service at 11 pm

Christmas Day Service at 9.30am 

New Years Eve Service (NYE) at 11pm
(All Services are Communion & family oriented)

Harrington Park Anglican Church

Harrington Park Community Carols event – from 6.00pm – Saturday 14 December

9.00am Christmas Day - at Harrington Park Public School
(2 Sir Warwick Fairfax Drive, Harrington Park)

Gregory Hills Anglican Church

9.30am Christmas Day
1/10 Bluett Drive, Smeaton Grange

Night Church at the Hub  - 1/10 Bluett Drive, Smeaton Grange

7.00pm Christmas Eve

St Barnabas Anglican Church
Family Christmas Carols - Saturday 7 December

Gates open at 6pm - Food stalls, face painting, jumping castle and more. Carols from 7.30pm

CodeCamp is back for the upcoming Summer holidays. Participants will have the most fun and epic journey learning the skills of the future! Each course is designed to empower your kids to design, code, and problem-solve, as they create their very own apps, games and websites. 

This camp is for children aged 7-13 and will be running at the College on Monday 20 January - Wednesday 22 January 2020.  

You are able to use the $100 creative kids rebate for this camp. Find out more here.

Creative Kids.png

To find out more information, download the flyer or visit the website to book.

 

Congratulations to Vansh M in Year 3 who is the 2019 Australian Champion in Martial Arts. 

He recently won 6 events at the competition held at the Whitlam Leisure Centre, Liverpool. Well done, Vansh!
 

One of the highlights for me has been to see the children grow and mature over the years from when they started as little people in Kindy or Prep. I will miss being here at the College, but I hope to visit from time to time.

So it’s goodbye for now and I wish you all God’s blessings for the future and thank you for your partnership in the journey of learning over the 20 years I’ve worked at the College.

Mrs Sue Hewson
Early Stage 1 Coordinator

Many of these students have received exceptional results for their efforts. Congratulations to these students and their tutors for guiding them through their musical development. These students are:

• Elaine W (Yr 6)  - Grade 3 - A
• Stratos D (Yr 6)  - Grade 2 - A
• Paul D (Yr 4) - Grade 1 - B+
• Hannah H (Yr 4)  - Preliminary - B+
• Abigail R (Yr 4) - Preliminary - B+
• Anne B (Yr 6) - Grade 2 - B
• Menelaos D (Yr 2) - Preliminary - B
• Tim W (Yr 6)  - Grade 2 - A
• Matthew P (Yr 7)  -  Grade 2 - B+
• Chelsea S (Yr 5)  - Grade 1 - B+
• Argun N (Yr 6)  - Grade 3 - A
• Elizabeth S (Yr 2)  - Preliminary - A

Mr Byron Mark
Director of Ensembles

The Summer IPSSO Finals Day was held on Wednesday 20 November, with 7 of our 10 teams placing 1st or 2nd in our Northern pool and advancing to the Finals Day.  The results at the end of the rounds were:

At the end of the Finals day we took out 2 of the 10 competitions - Junior Basketball and Senior Softball

Congratulations to all teams on a fantastic Summer IPSSO Season!

GIRLS SOCCER

What a great season for our Junior and Senior Primary Girls Soccer teams. The girls trained tirelessly throughout the year and produced some amazing results, due to all of their hard work and dedication. Both teams finished the competition first in our pool, with the Junior team even ending the season undefeated. An amazing achievement! The girls faced some very tough competition at the IPSSO finals but put in their absolute best effort and showed great sportsmanship throughout the day. We are extremely proud of their performance this year. Well done girls!

Miss A Tobar - Assistant Coach.  Mr S Makko - Coach

BASKETBALL

Both the Junior and Senior Basketball teams had a fantastic day at the IPPSO Finals at Mount Annan Christian College. The Junior team was successful in the semi-final against Oran Park Anglican College and advanced to the Grand Final. They were victorious against Mount Annan, receiving first place in the competition. Well done Juniors!

The seniors played an excellent game against Oran Park Anglican College, unfortunately, just missing out on a win. However, they were victorious in their match against Wollondilly Anglican College, where they went on to take third place.

Both the junior and senior teams played extremely well and showed excellent sportsmanship. Well done to both teams, what a fantastic season!

Mrs L Brown and Mr M McKenna - Coach

TEEBALL and SOFTBALL

Junior Tee-ball - It has been a wonderful season for our tee-ballers, making it to the grand final! There has been incredible improvement and an increase in confidence throughout the year from a number of players. The team persevered though the wet weather in Term 1 which was admirable. With a few team members away and a tough team to play, we got off to a decent start in the grand final. We fielded well, keeping William Carey to only two runs. Our final innings was tough and we got a bit shaky. While we did not take home the win, it was a great performance and all players can be proud of their efforts and sportsmanship!

Senior Softball - The Senior softball team had an impeccable season, coming up against William Carey in the grand final. Our team was highly dedicated to their training sessions, working diligently to improve their skills with the help of our knowledgeable coach, Daniel Mahoney. They demonstrated good leadership qualities in their interaction with the juniors and cheered them on wholeheartedly in their match. In the grand final, we had five players cross the plate in the first innings and our fielding was second to none! A fire alarm mid-match had us tight for time, but did not stop the seniors from playing their best! We took home the victory with a 5-2 match win.

Well done to both of our teams for a great season and thank you to everyone who came along to encourage us each week!

Miss Cherie Luckman and Mr D Mahoney - Coach

OZ TAG

Both the Junior and Senior Oztag teams had a great season. They played well, learnt a lot and enjoyed themselves. Unfortunately, the Seniors didn’t make the finals. Our Junior team travelled to St Gregory’s College to compete against the host school in our semi-final match. St Greg’s were a very strong side, and after an entertaining game, came away with the victory. We then played William Carey in a playoff match and won convincingly.

It was a pleasure to coach both teams this year, and all students can be proud of the way they conducted themselves both on, and off the field.

Mr R Sheahan - Coach

BOYS CRICKET

The IPSSO cricket team this year displayed a high level of teamwork and resilience in each of their games. The Junior team was comprised of a large number of students who were new to the sport. It was encouraging to see their willingness to learn new skills and their dedication to the team. The Senior team further developed specific skills in fielding and communication. The strengthening of these areas has made a significant impact on their overall game. It has also been a delight to see some of the older students come alongside the younger students this year to help them grow in their ability. Although we did not make the finals, the IPSSO cricket team’s willingness and hard work have created a much stronger team for next year.

Mr J Howard - Coach