Ka pai to our tamariki who celebrated their First Holy Communion last Sunday. Can you all keep them in your prayers that this spiritual gift will sustain them throughout their lives!

Congratulations to Paige, Alex, Charlie, Rebecca, Pippa and Olive

Here's what they thought of this special day. 

Paige Smith:

On Sunday I had the bread and the wine which is the body and blood of Christ. I was really really nervous because it was my first ever time to receive the bread and the wine. When I walked into the church I saw every girl was wearing a white dress and some of the boys were wearing navy blue suits. The reason why we eat the bread and drink the wine is that the day before Jesus died he snapped the bread and said this is my body and he drank the blood and then he said this is my blood do this in memory of me.  

Alexander Meech:

The communion was a very special occasion for me because I have waited more than 6 months of Christian learning and learning that God did very important things in his time just for us to be free. It was also very important because I want to follow Jesus’ path. I felt very confident because I was first to receive the body and blood of Jesus. We also made the bread and ate it but it was not the actual body of Christ.

Charlie Smith:

First Holy Communion is a special time where you receive the wine which is the blood of Christ and bread which is the body of Christ. The Wine has an extremely strong taste of grapes and the bread let's say it tastes like wafers. We were all gathered in St Patrick's church waiting for the mass to kick off. It started at 9:45, everyone was wearing beautiful white dresses and suits. There was a delicious feast downstairs after the mass, there were certificates and goody bags for each one of us. By the time we left we had received our First Communion. The priest explained to us what had happened at the Last Supper and why it’s a sacred time to receive the bread and wine.

Pippa Caudal:

On Sunday I received my first Holy Eucharist, with 21 others, 5 from St. Anthonys (not including me). I was scared because I had to read one of the Prayers of The Faithful. Rebecca and I got a little confused with it and came late. This is what communion means to me: 

-Celebrating communion marks the story of Jesus, how He gave Himself completely to give us a better life, a new start, and a fresh relationship with God.

-Communion celebrates the Gospel: Jesus was broken for us so that we can be fixed by Him.

We were called one by one, I was the last one to come up. After we had a feast downstairs.

(Fun Fact: did you know that Communion is a sacred time of fellowship with God, where believers remember Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. In this unique time of worship, believers commemorate the Lord's death through prayer and meditation. It is accompanied by partaking of a small piece of bread and sip of wine. (or grape juice).)

Rebecca Koepl:

On Sunday I had the bread and wine for the first time with 21 others at St Patrick's. What Communion does is it reminds us that Jesus died for us and that we should all come to the altar however old or young we are. What Communion means for me though is that  God is with us whatever we do and that when we receive Communion God is there watching over us and giving us strength. If you have ever been to  Communion (or indeed received it ) you will know that even with the dress rehearsal you can still feel nervous, (that is totally normal).  The thing is that  Your First Holy  Communion is a very important thing in life and you should refresh every  Sunday together with friends and family.

Olive Redmayne:

On Sunday, the twenty-fifth of August, twenty-two young people made their First Holy Communion, me being one of them. First Holy Communion is all about receiving Christ’s body and blood in a ritual first practised at the first supper called the Eucharist, and celebrates the real presence of Him.  We ate the bread, which is Jesus’ body, and drank the wine, his blood. First Holy Communion is the fourth Sacrament of Initiation, after Confirmation but before Marriage.

Discovery

During Discovery Time, we have been working collaboratively on making and decorating a playhouse made of cardboard boxes. We used trial and error to figure out the best way to keep the box standing, experimenting with paper mache to strengthen the inside edges of the box, and tape. We then painted the outside white so we had a solid colour base for the final step which was to decorate! Everyone in He Atawhai had a section to decorate but we ended up sharing space and creating our masterpiece! Watch this space to see what furniture we make to fill it…

John Parsons Speaker Event

On Tuesday we had a computer security person come in to talk to us. Ho told us that if we’re on a computer game where you can talk to other people, especially strangers, that if they're not very nice to you don’t answer back so they then get confused and you get the power, then tell an adult. If people online ask you something that’s in you boundary like “how old are you?”, “where do you live?”, or “where do you go to school?” tell an adult you love or trust. Never click on a link, if you do and suddenly something happens to your computer, disconnect it from the internet and close it down completely then take it to a technician. 

-Olivier Desiles

On Tuesday, John came in and told us not to play online games unless you are old enough to play it. If you are playing, for example Roblox, you can talk to people that are playing the game but if someone you don’t know asks you where you live, your school and what your mum and dad do for work this is what you do;

Shut down the computer, then tell an adult. Take your computer to a technician if people send you a link. If someone says something mean to you, do not answer back because then they get confused and you get all the power. 

- Benedict Koepl

For the Bookworm Competition, the students were given the beginning of the story and had to come up with the middle and end. They specified that they didn't want the children to write about things they saw in the trailer, they wanted a brand new story different to the movie and Luna creatively succeeded! Here is her entry:-

The beginning...

Mildred is a super clever 11-year-old from New Zealand. She's an only-kid raised by her mum and loves diving into books to escape her everyday life. Her big dream is to find the Canterbury Panther, a legendary creature hardly ever seen by humans, and win a big old cash prize. But when her mum gets hurt and needs time in the hospital, Mildred’s dad, who she’s never really known, comes to take care of her. He's a magician from America who's seen better days. Mildred and her Dad decide to go camping together to look for the mysterious panther while her mum gets better… 

Dear Diary   8. 8. 2024

I feel like I’m in a massive snowstorm while the wind howls like a dozen packs of wolves. I can barely see what I’m writing through the thick snow, coated ski glasses as my trembling hand writes this. My Father and I walk across the crunching snow. We’ve told Mother that we’re going skiing in the harsh rocky mountains of Mount Cook, though secretly, we have come here for the Canterbury panther.

Dear Diary  11.8.2024

Sorry, I haven’t written for days, my father and I have stopped at a lodge since my fingertips were literally starting to turn to ice and I had such a cold I couldn’t walk another mile. My Father is … well strange is the only way I can describe it, he doesn’t want to talk with me at all, I feel like he’s hiding something. Like a dark secret that would absolutely tear him apart if he confessed. Anyway, I’m here nibbling gingerbread cookies and warmed up in a warm blanket toasting marshmallows next to the fireplace. I’m quite safe, away from the bitter cold and piling snow. A few nights here will be enough.

Dear Diary 14.8.2024

I’m back at the fireplace again but this time I’m reading Anne of Green Gables, it’s a classic and I love it though I thought, being very emotional, that the start was really very moving and tragic. My Father is still the same as ever, I miss Mother and her cooking and our dog and …. Everything really. There isn’t much to do here, it is quite enough to make me cry.

Dear Diary 15.8.2024

Sorry about getting you wet, I just couldn’t help it. Anyway, we’re back on the hunt for the panther. Stopping by at Lake Tekapo with its adorable ducks as they bob up and down on the deep blue sparkling lake that shines like diamonds. We sit down on the soft grass as my Father brings out a bag of marshmallows and a delicious packet of minced meat. Then he takes out his oily black saucepan and places it on a hard pile of pebbles while gesturing to me to fetch some sticks and wood. I run into the night using my torch to light the way but suddenly trip over a log and do rolly pollies over the mushy cold wet dirt screaming and hitting my head on sharp rocks and hard trees. 

Dear Diary 15.8.2024

I got knocked out. The hardwood hitting me in the head. It was so strange,  the last thing  I remember was a dark, furry face with yellow flashing eyes. It nudges me and I hear shouting from my Father an arrow whistling past my ear as the creature darts off leaving clouds of dirt. I woke up to find myself propped up against the wall. I slowly started to comprehend the events of last night and drew myself up in such a panic that the whole tree shook and an apple bonked on my head. Telling me I had to calm down. I grabbed the apple from the ground and stared at it. It was stabbed with an arrow, what's more, a hunters arrow because it smelled of meat and animal blood. I slowly pulled it out of the arrows. Poachers… we aren’t the only ones trying to find that panther.

Dear Diary 16.8.2024

I am SO confused right now! I remember a dark, black furry face, a panther! But I heard my Father’s voice and poacher arrows. Something strange here is happening. I don't want to think he is a bad guy but I’m starting to have no choice. Is he a poacher? I wish you could talk... 

Dear Diary  17.8.2024

We‘re finally leaving Lake Tekapo and heading towards Ashwick flats, a place where only farmers live and sheep and cattle and horses and…well that's besides the point. I love it there and used to visit my grandparents there before they died. But to reach Ashwick flats there are several rivers to cross and I prepared for a half a week's journey. I love it here so much I don’t want to leave it but if I want to find the canterbury panther I have to. 

Dear Diary  ?.8.2024

We have paused in the middle of the woods and streams. And of course, it is  (once again) FREEZING. My breath is like fog in the crisp morning air. I know that is sounding normal and the same as any other winter morning, BUT it is not that, I have frost, that's right  FROST   stuck to my puffy coat. AND if I might add there is a pair of EYES staring at US from the bushes. I would start texting my loved ones if there was any wifi here, but as you can surely comprehend by my surroundings there is NOT.  Wait a second… yellow, flashing eyes with a dark furry face the same one I saw that night before. I look at my father, his eyes filled with wonder but no arrows or blood, maybe there is no poacher after all.

Dear Diary ?.8.2024

I was wrong wrong wrong. There is a poacher stalking us, not my father  (which is a relief) but a complete stranger lurking in the bushes (not such a relief!) we keep on finding tracks of arrows and the strangest thing is it's always dug viscously into an apple. I am not sure what it means but my Father takes one look at it and whispers Apple poachers. “What exactly is an apple poacher?” I ask. He told me that Apple poachers are a gang that poach their food by poisoning their prey with sleeping potion or something . I remember hearing the teachers telling us about them and how they mark their territory with stabbing an apple.  A cold shiver ran up my spine like a ghost’s finger. I had the feeling of not being alone…

Dear Diary  22.8.2024

First day in Ashwick flats so far so good. We’re only staying here for one day.  We figured that the panther was following us and we had enough time for a quick  snack and stop for the night .. Father and I  stop at a campsite building our tent while the rosy sun sets like a coin swallowed by water. Father roasts the chicken,  turning it on a stick while I pick up pebbles and throw them into the deep depths of  Lake  Opuha. We eat awkwardly trying to start a conversation and failing miserably, While he unzips our sleeping beds and shoves them in our bright orange tent.

Dear Diary 23.8.2024

I wake up to the sound of an arrow whistling past our tent like a falling star. I try to scream but I’m so scared that I don’t make a sound. I whirl around and shake the sleeping bag beside me but it's absolutely empty. I clamber out of the tent and find my Father right there shooting arrows at apples. I scream and this time it actually comes out an ear-splitting piercing shriek that gives me a headache. I run with my sleeping bag food and water away and away and away. The mud squelches and squeaks beneath my feet. My Father is a poacher after all and is leaving the track behind for his friends.

Dear Diary  ?.8.2024

I am in shock. I knew there was something wrong, a secret but I wasn’t expecting this. I don’t know what to write what to think. For the first time in my life I’m stuck. I wish I had never run away. I don't have a watch though I suppose I have a map. I’m cold, lonely and surviving on a few bags of chips and marshmallows and most of all I feel betrayed. I only have this diary now and it's the only thing stopping me from going mad. Suddenly my eyes close and I go into a deep sleep.

Dear Diary ?.?2024

I woke up and pucked a small sleeping dart from my back . I wonder who that was. I look at my surroundings and see a thick stone cave with a hard slab of stones and piled on the floor to make a bed. All of a sudden a shadow melts out of the dark as if it's wearing a dark cape. Then, those eyes the unmistakable yellow flashing eyes.

Dear Diary ?.?.2024

“You saved me?” I called out to the panther in the dark. She obviously didn’t understand me but wasn’t attacking me either. I’m quite sure that's a good sign? I slowly walked up to her and gasped awestruck it was a real Canterbury panther!  Then I heard her whimper. She had cut on her paw. I reached out and she placed her furry black hand on mine and allowed me to pour water on it and rip off a shred of my sleeve to act as a bandage. She stood up and looked at her leg with satisfaction. She hopped and leaped a bit before sitting and allowing me to climb her soft back as she sped off at the speed of lighting out of the cave into the jungle. “SLOW DOWN!” I shrieked but she kept running faster and faster into a poacher trap.

Dear Diary ?.?.2024

Two gruff voices talk outside, chuckling. They look at us evilly and punch the air, exclaiming over the panther. Luckily I was able to leap off at the right moment and escape but she hadn’t. And I HAD NOT come here to lose my panther. I quickly took the switchblade from my pocket that I nicked from the food supplies. Then secretly hid behind the panther in the hanging trap where they couldn’t see me and started to cut the ropes one by one, setting her free.

Dear Diary  ?.?.2024

We did it. I found my panther and I’m never going back. I love life here and my panther. Her name’s  Midnight and she’s my best friend. I am never going back but I think that with you, diary I am too easy to track. I am leaving you here. I'm sorry bye.

12.11.2049

That was the last diary entry of Mildred and she was never seen again. 

Dear Diary ?.?.2049

Who said that was my last entry? Yes, I‘m back but I’m back for revenge …

To be continued…..

By Luna Benigna

As you may have read in previous newsletters we have two skilled netball players who have joined with Holy Cross to play in the winter netball competition. And we are delighted to let you know that the Holy Cross Thunder Player of the Day for this past weekend was the wonderful Olive!

With a teammate injured during the game the team had to keep playing without a full team. In the midst of this Olive showed absolute poise and played an all-round awesome game at Goal Defence. Despite being down one player she put lots of pressure on the opposing Goal Attacks and made some excellent intercepts!

Together they managed to pull off a win.

The final score was 19-11 vs Newtown Toa.

Well done Olive!

Bookings for our student-led conferences on Monday 9 September are now open in Hero.

In the Hero app go to school bookings and choose the slot you would like.  If for any reason you need to change your slot you can go back into the bookings site and manage your booking to make the time change.

Checking measles immunity

Aotearoa is at very high risk of a measles outbreak and not enough of us are immune.
 
To be immune, you must have had measles before OR at least two doses of a measles vaccine after the age of 12 months. 
 
Local childhood immunisation rates are declining. Low immunity and the close contact nature of education settings means one infected person could quickly expose and spread measles to many others, starting an outbreak that could be hard to control.  
 
People can be infectious before they develop measles symptoms and know they’re sick. Being immune is important for everyone’s safety – it’s the only way to make sure you won’t get or spread measles, even if you’ve been exposed.  
 
It’s a good idea for all to check their immunity to measles. See information on checking immunity here:
 
Measles immunity – Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora
My Health Record – Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora
 
If you aren’t immune, or you’re not sure, two doses of the measles mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine is your best protection. You can book a vaccine online: 
 
Home – Book my vaccine
 
Multilingual videos to raise awareness about measles and MMR vaccine

The Ministry for Ethnic Communities, with the support of Te Whatu Ora, has released a series of three animated videos to explain what measles is, how to protect yourself from the disease and where you can access reliable health information.
 
The videos are translated and voiced over into 20 different languages, including:

• Chinese (simplified) with voiceover in Mandarin
• Arabic
• Spanish.

 Check out the videos at:
 
Health videos for ethnic communities – Ministry for Ethnic Communities
 
Feel free to share these resources widely with your communities.

We need your help!  Get the word out! Let your friends know!

We have 3 international students that we need to find  long-term homestays for starting in October for Term 4.  While we would love to find them a long term family immediately, we would appreciate a homestay taking them for Term 4 until we can find them a permanent home for 2025. Please consider this option.

1 Thai student

2 Chinese students

All three boys are long term students, returning for the 2025 school year. 

St Patrick's offers a homestay fee of $340.00 per week for 2024, and $360.00 per week for 2025. If you would like to host one of these young men please email Meg Szulinski, the International Student Coordinator at St. Patrick's College, at meg.szulinski@stpats.school.nz