Thursday 17th August - P and F Meeting - 7:45am

Friday 18th August - National Day Against Bullying

Monday 21st - Friday 25th August - Book Week

Thursday 24th August - Townsville Schools Cricket Blast Cup - Yr 6

Friday 25th August - Book Week Parade - 8:45am

Saturday 26th August - P and F Joey's at Sunset - 4-7pm

Wednesday 30th August - P and F Father's Day Stall

Thursday 31st August - TCE Festival of Sport Day - Year 6

Friday 1st September - P and F - Dads of Joey's Golf Day

Friday 1st September - PUPIL FREE DAY

Sunday 3rd September - Sunday 9th September - Child Protection Week

Monday 4th September - Father's Day Liturgy at Joey's

Thursday 7th September - Walla Challenge Final

Monday 11th September - Friday 15th September - Townsville Eisteddfod

Wednesday 13th September - Ugly Bug Ball - Year 1

Friday 15th September - Last day of Term 3

Dear Parents and Carers

What a busy few weeks it has been for our school. Recently our school completed Validation, an external review of our school and the last stage of the school renewal process. Our review was very successful and I am grateful for the support and input of our whole school community in this process. The surveys you complete, the feedback you provide and the support of our school that occurs on a regular basis all form a picture for the validation team. Thank you for this and for your ongoing support of St Joseph's.

The next step is to finalise our school improvement plan and communicate this to the school community. This plan provides operational goals for the next 5 years. Work has already begun on many of our goals and we look forward to communicating this progress to families. Once again, thank you for your support.

This week our interschool athletics team competed against other 'C' schools (schools with a similar enrolment) with amazing success. This was our first foray into the 'C' schools category and as always our students performed brilliantly. After leading the overall points for most of the day we were narrowly defeated by the smallest of margins at the end. An amazing effort from our students, with some courageous and incredible individual performances. Congratulations again to all involved and many thanks to our sporting coordinators, Mr Meekin and Ms O'Connor.

A reminder regarding school uniforms and dress standards for students. Over the last few weeks it has been noted that a number of students are wearing incorrect uniforms, jewellery, shoes. There has also been a number of students with hair not tied back and/or inappropriate haircuts. I would encourage all families to check the uniform policy on our school website, or via the link provided. Your cooperation is greatly appreciated.

https://www.sjnwtsv.catholic.edu.au/our-school/school-policy/

Have a great week.

Tim

Beachathon News from Vinnies

Earlier this month, Stephen Gasparini, Townsville Vinnies Youth Engagement and Development Officer emailed to update our school community on the good works happening with the Beachathon donation.

Vinnies Youth has organised a holiday camp on Magnetic Island for underprivileged youth in Townsville during the Christmas school holiday break. The group will continue to work with other Townsville businesses to provide fun and exciting activities for the children who attend.

As a school community, we look forward to another update from Stephen. Thank you to the students, Joey's P and F and other supporters of Beachathon 2023. Your generosity is helping to create a positive and happy holiday for many Townsville kids.

Vinnies Homeless Sleep Out

Next Friday, 18th August, members of our Year 6 Faith and Service group will join with Year 6 students from Marion Catholic School and St Joseph's Mundingburra to spend the night experiencing some of the impacts of homelessness.

During the evening, students will eat a bland meal of rice and bread, sleep on only a cardboard box with limited bedding and learn from Vinnies volunteers about homelessness in the community of Townsville and ways they can help.

One of the activities of the evening is creating self-care packs for those less fortunate. We are seeking donations of the following items;

*soap/body wash

*toothbrushes/toothpaste

*shampoo

*tissues

*hand sanitiser

If you are able to donate, please place your donations in the blue tub on the lost property shelf by Friday, 18th August.

Thank you for your generosity.

Sacramental Program

Congratulations to our Joey's students who completed their Sacramental Journey on Sunday, 30th July with their First Holy Communion Mass.

Thank you to the staff and parish members who prepared our students to be initiated into the Catholic church.

FATHER'S DAY BREAKFAST and LITURGY

Monday, 4th September

Our Year 1 students will lead a special celebration for Father's Day.

Muffins and juice from 8am

Liturgy from 8:45am

Hope you are able to join us.

Hope all have a wonderful few weeks,

Trina

FRIDAY 1st SEPTEMBER

is

PUPIL FREE DAY

During Catholic Education Week, we recognised students in our Joey's community who espouse the Mercy Values of Love, Community and Excellence and seek ways to make Joey's a better place to be each day.

Congratulations to all!

Love	Leo Sinanan	Leo has gone out of his way to welcome our newest class member to 1B. He has helped our new friend find where everything belongs and was very happy to show him around the school and how we do things at Joey’s. Leo is always happy to help out others around him and share his knowledge with them. Thank you Leo for living out the Mercy Value of Love.
	Reggie Cooper	Reggie has made our newest class member feel very welcome at Joey’s. He has been happy to offer help and show him around the school. Reggie is always kind and loves to help those around him whenever he can. Thank you Reggie for living out the Mercy Value of Love.
Community	Kynan Gee	Kynan is a true Joey’s kid, who lives our school motto of ‘Love God, Love Each Other’. He is always on the lookout for anyone who is needing help and guidance. Kynan has a wonderful welcoming smile and makes others feel at ease in his company. Our school is blessed to have him as a school captain and he is a true leader. Kynan serves our school community well and he can always be counted on. Thank you for the energy and kindness that you bring to our school community.
	Mackenzie Flanders	We can always count on Mackenzie to help out in Year 6. She adds to our wonderful community by completing tasks around the school without hesitation. She uses her initiative to help staff and will offer assistance to anyone who needs it. Thank you Mackenzie for being such a valuable asset to our Joey’s community.
Excellence	Violet Knapton	Violet is new to Joey's this year and we are so grateful to have her with us in 4B. She role models such an outstanding approach to learning. She is a quiet student with a conscientious attitude in all learning areas. She aims to do her best by being very attentive in class and working hard on all tasks. Violet’s perseverance in Maths this year is paying off with some wonderful results. Violet’s desire for learning is a wonderful example for her peers. Well done Violet!
	Piper Christopher	Piper brings a bright and friendly personality to our classroom, always striving to achieve her best. She is an enthusiastic learner who is always willing to attempt unfamiliar maths problems. Piper actively takes on feedback to improve her work, continually questioning new strategies and skills. Keep striving to do your best always Piper!
	Zavier Dodds	Zavier has been making an excellent effort with his behaviour and school work. He came back from the holidays with an impressive attitude and a great level of determination. Zavier is listening well, staying focused and trying to do his best every day. Well done for your excellent start to Term 3 Zavier!
	Florence Parsons	Florence is a student who always strives to do her best. She participates in group discussions and listens to and respects her peers’ thoughts and ideas. Florence takes on feedback in a positive manner which is reflected through her work. Congratulations Florence. You are a shining star!
	Sofia Di Giacomo	Sofia is a quiet achiever who has shown great motivation with her learning this year. She is an excellent listener and always tries her best in everything she does. Sofia sets an excellent example not only with her school work but with her behaviour. She is a caring friend who will go out of her way to help others. Thank you for making our classroom such a lovely place to be, Sofia!
	Georgia Fletchett	Georgia is a happy and friendly member of our class and works hard every day. She has made an excellent effort across all subject areas this year. Georgia is always ready to learn and participates fully in all lessons. She can be relied on to support her peers in their learning and happily shared her thoughts and ideas during Science experiments. Keep up the great work Georgia!

2023 Interschool Athletics

Congratulations to our mighty Putney Athletics Team who competed in the annual Townsville Primary Schools Athletics Carnival at the Townsville Sports Precinct. Our team acquitted themselves again with great pride and enthusiasm, demonstrating tremendous school spirit.

Despite being up against larger schools in 2023, St. Joey’s managed to secure 1st place with the Average Shield, which is calculated on school size. Overall, we were in second place, behind Cathedral (1st) and Cranbrook State School (3rd). Joey’s competitors never gave up throughout the day and showed much school spirit and a willingness to do our very best. Whilst our team performed strongly overall, there were some memorable achievements with some students winning their A Division event. A special mention to Cameron Dobbins and Amelie Vincent (800m), Rocco Donovan, Willow Humphries, Lucas Kepper (High Jump) and Aurelio Bonato Shot Put. Luca Pietrobon managed the rare feat of winning in High Jump, Shot Put and Long Jump (breaking the 9 Years record). Whilst we are proud of these achievements, it is a whole team effort to be able to achieve what we have. The entire team is to be commended for their effort on the day.

We have a record breaking eleven (11) students selected to attend the North Queensland Athletics trials this year. Our representatives are: Luca Pietrobon, Aurelio Bonato, Quinlan Bowtel, Aaron Njau, Sofia Orsini, Willow Humphries, Trixie Hambly, Ivy Ryan, Oliver Wolanski, Cameron Dobbins and Amelie Vincent. We wish them well on their journey.

As is Joey's tradition, our athletes have represented our school in a courageous and spirited manner. A special thanks to our assistants on the day Miss O’Connor, Miss Lisa (prep) and our school officers Miss Karissa and Miss Lisa. We also thank Mrs Thomson who officiated on the day. It would appear that Miss O’Connor’s wonderful efforts in PE have paid off. We certainly had another big day out and look forward to 2024.