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The Parish consists of three marvellous communities in Urunga, Bellingen and Dorrigo. Mass is celebrated in Holy Name Church

Urunga, St Mary’s Church Bellingen and Sacred Heart Church Dorrigo.

The first Church in Bellingen was erected by Fr William Reade in Hyde Street in 1881, occupying part of the site of the Hammond and Wheatley building. This land was donated by the sons of Bernard McNally whose home, situated in Ford Street, by the river, was used till then for the celebration of Mass. The new Church was named St William’s.

In 1908, Bishop Doyle, the first Bishop of the Lismore Diocese, appointed Fr John Durney as the first Parish Priest of St William’s, Bellingen.

It was soon discovered that there was no room for expansion in Hyde Street, so the present site in Park Street was purchased. It was decided that the new Church would be dedicated to St Mary. This Church, built in 1911, was moved in 1919 to make way for the present Church. The old Church is now used as the Parish Hall.

In 1911 the first Sisters, Daughters of the Sacred Heart, arrived in Bellingen. In 1923 the Presentation Sisters came to Urunga to establish a school.

In 1950 a Church was built in Urunga and in 1973 a new one was built and the old Church is now the Hall.

In 1910 a Church was erected in Dorrigo. In 1912 Dorrigo was declared a Parish in its own right. In 1924 the Presentation Sisters arrived in Dorrigo to establish a school. In 1960 the original Church was demolished and a new one erected.

In the early 90’s Dorrigo once again became part of the Parish of St Mary’s, Bellingen.

One hundred years is a milestone and we can only imagine the sacrifices the early pioneers made to establish the Parish. It is with grateful thanks to them and by the Grace of God that we are able to enjoy the Parish we have today.

We were honoured to have the presence of the Bishop of Lismore, Most Rev Geoffrey Jarrett D.D. for the whole of the weekend.

Bishop Jarrett presided at the Confirmation of 8 children on Friday evening. He was a guest at the Centenary Dinner on Saturday evening when we had a very enjoyable dinner at the Bellingen Golf Club. Over 120 guests were able

to be present and some travelled long distances to be there, some even from interstate. A special cake was prepared and out two most senior graduates from St Mary’s, Les Lee and Irene Shipway, plus two junior graduates, Harriet Radford and Maggie Mills, were asked to cut the cake.

The following morning a combined Mass was celebrated by Bishop Jarrett at 11.00am. Many commented on the uplifting music provided by the choir.

Following Mass we enjoyed a luncheon in the Hall where the Staff and Students had placed memorabilia around for all to see.

Overall it was a great Centenary celebration.

Bellingen Parish Centenary

On the weekend of the 23rd and 24th August 2008, the Parish of Mary Immaculate Mother of God, Bellingen celebrated its one hundredth year.

Centenary Mass at St. Mary’s Catholic Church Bellingen

Outside Mass at St. Mary’s

Pupils at St. Mary’s School in days gone by

Catholic Life, December, 2008 21

This is a significant achievement and reflects many years of commitment, research and study.

Following are the abstracts of the two Doctoral theses submitted for examination.

Dr John GrahamJohn Graham’s research study explored the issue of

school community leadership in Catholic parish primary schools within the Diocese of Lismore. This study was important for many reasons, but especially because there is an enduring controversy regarding the ‘community’ dimension of schooling in Australia. Further, the Catholic Church teaches that community is central to the nature of its schools.

An analysis of the current literature found that leadership and community exist in a binary relationship for Catholic parish school principals. Yet, the model of leadership required for community remains elusive. Moreover, the literature stated that the principalship is in transition and many suggestions toward a new model were proposed. Based on these insights, following two research questions were pursued.

How do primary principals conceptualise the Catholic parish school as community?

How do principals describe their leadership role in building Catholic parish primary school as community?

The results of this study suggest that the community leadership role of the principal is in transition between competing leadership models and building school community is burdensome. Yet, the data also appears to indicate a range of positive ways to take forward a new model of community leadership, namely, peer support, coaching and theological education.

Dr Jake Madden Jake Madden’s thesis predominately focuses on the

relationship between principal and teacher in nurturing student learning. In doing so it leans heavily on the role of the principalship in fostering the growing emphasis on the promotion of distributed leadership throughout the school. This notion of teacher leadership empowers teachers to exercise professional responsibility for student learning and promotes a focus on classroom pedagogy.

The study was conducted within the Diocese of Rockhampton and illuminated several key themes including school improvement, encouragement of learning communities, teacher commitment and motivation, changing roles of principals and promotion of teacher leadership.

The study provides insight into how successful principals impact upon student learning. Findings from the study indicated a strong commitment by principals to developing leadership skills amongst the staff. With this as the predominate focus for principals, particular work conditions prevailed. Furthermore, this discussion concludes that successful teachers were supportive of the measures put into place by principals to enhance their own and their students’ learning.

Celebrating Doctoral Graduations by Dr Anne Wenham – Director of Catholic Schools

Parishioners Gather for Mass

The Diocese of Lismore has celebrated the Doctoral graduations of John Graham, Assistant Director, Religious Education and Faith Services at Lismore Catholic Education

Office and Jake Madden, Principal of St Augustine’s Primary School, Coffs Harbour. Dr Graham and Dr Madden both graduated from Australian Catholic University (ACU)

as Doctors of Education.

Members of the St John of the Cross Church, Copmanhurst, who lost their

church to fire earlier in the year, gathered recently with Parish Priest, Fr Rex Hackett to celebrate Mass together. At the gathering,

parishioners Larry and Therese Adams were congratulated on celebrating their

thirtieth wedding anniversary.

Visit the Lismore Diocese website:

www.lismorediocese.org

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From inside the grounds of the Saint Joseph Chaldean Catholic Church in the Karrada district of Baghdad, Iraq, three children stand outside their church looking through the iron guard. They can’t get in because there is a demonstration going on... Islamists won’t let the christians in to use their church.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki vowed to punish armed groups which have attacked and killed Christians in Mosul, triggering the flight of more than 2,000 families of the minority group. Around 800,000 Christians lived in Iraq at the time of the invasion, but the number has since shrunk by around a third as members of the minority community have fled the country, according to Christian leaders.

AFP PHOTO / ALI AL-SAADI

WORLD VIEW

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A wonderful night was held at the recent Wine and cheese and Parent Information Evening for the new Kindergarten intake. Staff at Mary Help of Christians School Sawtell prepared a very comprehensive but enjoyable and relaxing evening, with parents rotating through workstations, sharing refreshments and mixing with each other as they discovered what makes the school a place of excellence. Welcomed by the Principal, Tony Watts, the parents were affirmed in their role as educators and the privilege we all have of working together in the best interest of the students. One of the parents commented, “this evening is fantastic. I have learnt so much about the school and feel like I am already a part of it.”

The orientation and transition process is extensive with several opportunities for students, both as a whole, in small groups and as individuals. With the observations by teachers, learning support teachers and ancillary specialist staff the needs of all children are ascertained and programs are developed specific to their needs. This allows for a smooth transition to school with a wonderful parent – school relationship in process. The general comment for the evening was that the process was excellent and “don’t throw this initiative out.”

Mary Help of Christians School, Sawtell

Welcoming and counting down to 2009

The Rosary UnravelledThe Rosary is alive and thriving at St Joseph’s Primary School

Tweed Heads.Parishioner, Mr Frank Hawkins guided the students from Kinder

to Year 6 in praying the Rosary and offering devotions to Mary, in this October, the Month of the Rosary.

Every student at St Joseph’s School received their own set of Rosary Beads and the school have diligently prayed the Rosary in class

for this special month of Mary.

St Joseph’s Primary School, Tweed Heads

Mr Frank Hawkins, parishioner with Yr 3 students from St Joseph’s Primary School

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Our Lady Help of Christians School, Sth LismoreA New Era in ICT

There is an exciting time ahead for students, teachers and the school community at Our Lady Help of Christians School. During 2009 and 2010 the school will be involved in a pilot project in computer technology.

The pilot will involve teachers, students, parents, members of the Catholic Education computer support team and Southern Cross University.

The pilot will focus on building teacher capacity in ICT. Students in Grades 5 and 6 will each be supplied with an ultra small

notebook computer to support their learning into the digital age. Other grades will trial the use of small numbers of computers for group work in various key learning areas. These two models will be monitored and educational outcomes for students will be assessed.

Students are excited about the project and eager to commence the new year. To quote one eager student: ‘This is a really cool idea. I think we will learn lots.’

The Assistant Principal andrew Maslen who has developed the project sees it as ‘entering a new era in teaching.’ An exciting year ahead for all involved in the school community as we grow and learn together at OLHC.

St Joseph’s College could not have prayed for better weather on Friday 7 November. The biennial special event that is the ‘ B e a c h a t h o n ’ was held at

Kingscliff beach for the day and students and teachers enjoyed a day out of the school environment to participate in a ten kilometre walk along the beautiful strip of beach, as well as organised activities and a tasty barbeque. The walk is aimed at raising funds for the school that goes towards benefiting the students, teachers and school community whether it’s new equipment, technology or furniture. At the start of the term students were encouraged to put themselves out of their comfort

zones and invite members of the community to spare change and become sponsors for the students.

The 10km walk became extremely enjoyable as students and teachers laughed, talked and played games along the way. For some students and teachers the heat proved to be no match for them as they decided to run the entire way which was a great achievement. Arriving back from the walk, everyone involved received a burger, drink and an iceblock. Water was also provided and greatly appreciated. The students then divided up into year groups and participated in interactive activities including beach touch, beach volleyball and swimming in Cudgen Ck which was enjoyed by all. It is now time for the sponsorship money to be collected. The ‘Beachathon’ could not have been held without the help of the very dedicated staff as well as all parents and caregivers who offered their services on the day and everyone who helped with the sponsorships. We are hoping to raise $20,000 dollars from the event.

Daniella De Azevedo & Jacob Bush – (College Captains)

St Joseph’s College, Banora Point

Beachathon Day

Teacher Felicity Wilde with some of the students

St James School, Yamba

Multicultural DayLast Term, on Friday, 19th September St James

School, Yamba had theirMulticultural Day where all students were

encouraged to dress up in their favourite country’s national dress or costume!

The students paraded at the 9am Assembly and then participated in the various workshops, such as, Tuk Tuk Ride (Asian type taxi), Indonesian Cooking, Angklung (bamboo instruments), Indonesian Culture & Language Class and Indonesian Bingo. Multicultural food, such as

Fried Rice, Fried Noodles, Garlic Bread Roll, Spring Rolls, Sticky Rice ,Pasta & Pizza was available from the canteen on that day also.

Parents were invited to join in the day and a wonderful cultural experience was had by all!!

By Christine Jeffrey

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Mt St Patrick Primary – Murwillumbah

EIGHT YEARS STRAIGHT!!Students from Mt St Patrick Primary School recently competed in

the Murwillumbah Show Inter School Relay Race.

This relay is an event open to all primary Schools in the district. Mt St Pat’s has a very proud history in the event and this was continued this year when the students won the event for the eighth consecutive year.

Pictured are the victorious team of 2008;

St Carthage’s School, Lismore

Focusing on ValuesThe Wellbeing Committee at St Carthage’s School has been working towards

introducing a programme to teach, practise and reward the values of responsibility, respect, tolerance, compassion, honesty, inclusion and trustworthiness.

Every three weeks we introduce a new value. Posters are displayed in highly visible spots around the school and we learn raps, jingles and poems, made up by or introduced by different grades to reinforce the concept. Teachers reward children found to be practising the values. At the end of the three-week period children who have really made an exceptional effort receive a Values Award, a bright certificate featuring the symbol of the rainbow with one colour for each value.

The raps and jingles are proving to be popular and can often be heard about the playground.

Respect is good, Respect is cool.Show respect In THIS school.Bullies are nasty, bullies are mean.Bullies at school should never be seen.

During October each year Grafton celebrates the Jacaranda festival, the oldest floral festival in Australia. This is a great community event. The jacaranda trees which line the streets of the town are ablaze with their blossoms. Indeed there truly is a “Purple Haze” which hovers above, eventually falling to create a beautiful purple carpet on the ground. St Mary’s school prides itself on its involvement in community events such as the Jacaranda Festival. Everyone in the school community works together to make a banner for the March of Youth. All the schools in the Grafton area are involved and one Saturday morning in late October the children gather behind their banner and march through the streets of the town to Market Square. This year’s banner theme was “My Favourite Old Building”. Our school chose St Mary’s church as the focus for the banner. On the final Saturday of the festival the whole school community gathers to decorate a float for the grand parade. This year the banner of St Mary’s Church took pride of place on the front of the truck. Many children were excited to be on the float waving to the crowds which gather to watch the parade. The Jacaranda festival is a unique event for the community of Grafton and St Mary’s school children enjoy the opportunity to be involved.

St Mary’s, Grafton

Community involvement

The banner of St Mary’s Church in Grafton made by the children of St Mary’s school takes pride

of place on the front of the truck entered in the grand parade during Jacaranda Festival in

Grafton

St Francis Xavier, BallinaMaking Jesus Real

Year 6 students from St Francis Xavier Primary School recently had the opportunity to work with Peter Mitchell on the Making Jesus Real (MJR) program. MJR is centred around the belief that we are the image of Jesus to the people around us. As representatives of Jesus, our actions should reflect His values. MJR is based on four pillars: Welcoming, Encouraging, Saying sorry and Thanking people – W.E.S.T. Peter spoke to the Year 6 students about the importance of being a W.E.S.T person rather than living like an E.A.S.T person: Exclude, Argue, Sulk, Talkback. Another important aspect of MJR is looking for ‘God Moments’. A God Moment is an act of goodness where we see Jesus in another person. Year 6 have been active in looking for God Moments throughout the school. They have started an award at our whole school assemblies for children they notice throughout the week having God Moments on the playground. Each class in the school has a poster in their room where they can record the God Moments they see each day. It shows the name of the person who had the God Moment, what it was that they did and the Gospel message. This is a great reminder to us to live out Jesus’ simple message: Love One Another. Year 6 students celebrating a MJR day

St. Augustine’s Primary School, Coff Harbour

St. Augustine’s Feast DayThursday the 28th August St. Augustine’s Primary School united all grades to

celebrate their Patron Saint, Saint Augustine of Hippo and to learn more him. The day commenced with a prayer lead by Fr. Paul. Staff, students and parents prayed to St. Augustine to guide everyone through this day of celebration and enjoy the games and learning activities. All students took part in workshops involving prayer, making of mandalas, playing and singing music and used technology to demonstrate the many positive elements that formulate our wonderful school. A collation of students’ ideas and work was formulated together to generate an impressive banner for the school’s foyer. A school mass was celebrated by Fr. Paul in St. Augustine’s Church followed by a picnic with parents in the school grounds. This was a truly wonderful day to celebrate St. Augustine.

Lachlan KellySt. Augustine’s students with the Banner created by all of the 623 students

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They make life unhappy, they make life tough,

Of bullies at school we’ve had enough. (A Lowrey)

It’s fantastic to see these very important values being practised in our school.

On 6-7 November sixty Year 9 students from all parish secondary schools attended this year’s Festa Christi which was held at Yarrawarra Aboriginal Cultural Centre, Corindi Beach. The theme for the gathering was; ‘You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses.’ Acts 1:8. The WYD theme allowed the students to explore this scripture quote by looking at power, the Holy Spirit and being a witness in the world today.

The structure of the gathering was large groups, small faith sharing groups and individual reflection time. It is a great opportunity for core Catholic students to meet together and form new friendships. The students were into the activities from the beginning and a wonderful testament to their families and parish school communities. One of the highlights was celebrating Eucharist with Fr Paul Winter and one of the students noted in their evaluation form that it was the ‘best homily ever’. The students were very involved with organising the Mass and worth particular mention were the well written prayers of the faithful, the music and the Cross made out of natural materials.

It was wonderful seeing students using their gifts to bring the liturgy together. To finish with the words of two students: “In all an enjoyable couple of days sharing my faith and meeting new people who share the same faith.” And “It was fun; we met great new people, learnt more about the Holy Spirit, God and ourselves.”

Thank you to the teachers who attended Festa Christi because without their support these kinds of programs would be unable to continue.

Festa Christi

Pet Blessing CeremonyEvery year, each grade level at St. Augustine’s

has the opportunity to celebrate a Liturgy with their families and friends. Thursday 13th November

was no exception. However, the students from Year 1 definitely experienced their Liturgy with a twist!

The overjoyed children had the opportunity to have their pets blessed as a part of their Creation unit at this

special Liturgy. The sacred occasion attracted various forms of furry and feathered friends including dogs, cats,

rabbits, fish, snails and birds. St Augustine’s Parish Priest, Fr Paul Winter lead the ceremony accompanied by his rather large spotted Dalmatian, Leena. Miraculously, the Liturgy unfolded very calmly and all animals were blessed peacefully.

St. Augustine’s Primary School, Coff Harbour

Grace Beech and Levi Jones celebrating the occasion with family

Cross made by students out of natural material The Group

Fr Paul with his dog, Leena

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‘React’ proved a special opportunity for our young people to reconnect, relive and share their experiences of World Youth Day, as well as initiating important future direction in the establishment of youth ministry across our diocese.

Through the support of Fr Chris Ryan, who coordinated the national ‘WYD Journey of the Cross and Icon’, a team of presenters and musicians from Brisbane’s ‘Emmanuel Community’, our young people enjoyed the opportunity to share and celebrate their faith. Our own ‘React Youth Team’ made up of youth representatives from across the diocese played a valuable role in planning and running various events throughout the weekend.

Some of the main highlights from ‘React’ included presentations by Fr Chris Ryan on his experiences in travelling with the Cross and Icon and Luke Plant from Emmanuel Community, focusing on continuing our faith journey post-WYD. Our ‘React’ youth mass celebrated

by Bishop Geoffrey Jarrett on the Saturday evening, opportunities for individual reconciliation throughout the evening, as well as Adoration supported by the Emmanuel Worship band were just some of the spiritual highlights of the gathering.

‘React’ also included the option of attending various practical workshops. These integrated workshops on music ministry training, for both instrumental and vocal development as well as a separate session focusing on the direction for future youth ministry leadership. This leadership session attended by over 60 young people provided valuable discussion and feedback supporting the future course of our diocesan youth ministry development.

React: Diocesan Youth Gathering November 29-30, 2008

Nearly 170 young people from the Diocese of Lismore came together to celebrate at ‘React’, a major diocesan youth gathering held in Coffs Harbour on the weekend of November 29th and 30th.

Bishops and Clergy meeting in Lismore – (standing) at left: Father Dalton of Murwillumbah Parish. Other clergy not identified.(seated) left to right: Bishop O’Connor, Bishop of Armidale and

Bishop Doyle, Bishop of Lismore.

As It Was

Catholic Life, December, 2008