This week I received a copy of a book I pre-ordered many months ago.  It was like receiving a surprise gift. It was a book by Charlie Mackesy, “The Boy, the Mole, The Fox, the Horse and the Storm”. There are many wonderful lines and illustrations but one I particularly resonated with reads:

“What’s the most precious thing you’ve been given?”

“Time,” said the horse.

As the year seems to be flying by, this is a great reminder for us that we are gifted with time, time to learn, time to celebrate and then eventually time to rest on the Christmas holidays.

Year 12 Retreat

In the last week of Term 4 I spent four days on Year 12 Retreat, celebrating the journey our Year 12’s have gone through to reach this pinnacle next step.  This time of reflection and fun reminds us all that the path of life is always twisting and turning and that it is important to stop and enjoy each moment with the people we surround ourselves with.  With only a few weeks to go until they complete their journey with us, we pray for these wonderful young people during this time.

Alumni guest speakers

It is great to build connections with young people who were once students at our College in all its forms, St Columba’s, St Mary’s and Our Lady of the Southern Cross College.  At Year 12 Retreat we welcomed two past students, Janah O’Shea and Charlie Nolan, graduates of 2012 to speak to our current Year 12’s about their paths beyond school.  Janah O’Shea enjoyed creative arts whilst at school building her confidence through subjects like drama.  After school while on a gap year she began her traineeship in social working and later went on to study a Bachelor of Social Work at University in Brisbane.  She has now been working for Child Protection for ten years and reminded the students it is important to love what you are doing for work.  Charlie Nolan went down a different pathway from Janah, beginning his SBA in plumbing whilst at school.  He enjoyed sports and Manual Arts at school and his passion for working with his hands and being outdoors made him well suited to his apprenticeship. After working in plumping for ten years he pursued another apprenticeship and now works as an electrical linesman for Ergon. Both stressed the importance of having goals and allowing these to be redefined as you travel through life. Their passion for their work, the importance of a balanced life and a love of their time at our College were strong messages in their presentation. If you would like to share your story since graduation please email me, Cate.brennan@twb.catholic.edu.au, as we love to have a variety of alumni available to support these types of sessions with our students.

Grandparent’s Day

On the last day of Term 3 we ended the week with Grandparent’s Day.  It truly is one of my favourite events of the school year (I have quite a few).  My grandparents and my own parents are such an important part of my family and I know that this is true for so many in our community.  To be able to celebrate these wonderful people today, to welcome them into our College, bless them and share our learning with them brings such joy.  Thanks to everyone who joined us for this wonderful occasion.

Catholic Mission – Children’s Mission Day Prayer Celebration

Today we joined with Catholic Mission to celebrate Children’s Mission Day.  As a community we are blessed to live in Dalby, have the support of our families and to live in a way that we have all of our basic needs met each day.  Many children throughout the world do not have these same blessings, so we look beyond our horizons to how we can support others throughout the world with Catholic Mission. We welcomed Bishop Ken Howell and Fr Jim Cronin who led us in prayer.  We also had special visitors from Toowoomba Catholic Schools; Executive Director, Dr Pat Coughlan, Angela Travers, Senior Leader: Mission and Identity and Lee Ann Weekes, Education Officer: Formation and Identity.  We were joined by Rev Martin Lewis, Province Director- Queensland, Catholic Mission who leads an amazing team working to reach out and give life to those who need our support.  We were privileged to host this event and look forward to our continued work togethering being missionaries of hope through our community to communities throughout the world.

College Excellence Awards

On the 19^th November at 9:15am, we will host our 2026 College Excellence Awards.  These awards are nominated and confirmed by staff at the College and encompass all four of our College Domains: Academic, Spiritual, Sport and Arts. We look forward to this occasion showcasing the great achievements of students at the College this year. Parents are notified via Sentral for Parents in Term 4 if their child/ren are recipients of an award.

Each newsletter in coming weeks I will showcase a different domain (or two) with the awards we present.

ACADEMIC

These categories focus on the Academic achievement of a student in their areas of learning.

Crutches

In our Senior Years we have several classrooms upstairs.  It is important for student safety that when students are on crutches, we relocate their classrooms to downstairs classrooms wherever possible.  If your child is in Year 9-12 or studying Drama in Year 7-8 and they have an injury that requires crutches, please let the College office know so we can make arrangements to move their classes downstairs for the duration of their recovery. Once they are off their crutches we will return their classrooms to their normal location.

Mrs Cate Brennan

Deputy Principal Mission and Identity