It was thirteen years ago when our family moved to Ballarat, and I took up a wonderful leadership opportunity at Damascus College at what was then the senior campus of the College. On my first day here at school, we also dropped our oldest two children for their first day at Emmaus Catholic Primary school, in Prep or Foundation and Grade One. At that time, Emmaus was located in two portable classrooms where the Jones Avenue car park is situated here on Damascus grounds. Our family experience that day, dropping off our child to start school, was mirrored by all the parents of our Year 12 cohort. Today we find ourselves at the other end of the school experience, sending our young people off for their final day at school. I am grateful today for all the educators and school staff who have nurtured our daughter, Grace, throughout her schooling. I am also grateful for the peers and families that have made up her educational experience, and I thank those Damascus families who today send a young person off for the last time. We are lucky to live in Australia - safe and free. The gift of education will hopefully enable our young people to embrace their life beyond school. As a community, we thank our graduating students and their families for their contribution to Damascus College. May the light of Christ shine upon you all forevermore.

We have some great events to celebrate the last day that have been adapted to meet the times. We are very proud of how the student cohort have worked with us regarding their final day. Families can join the final assembly from 2:15pm this afternoon via the link https://youtu.be/kBgqau2pZiU. Images of the student's departure from the College will be shared after the event via social media and in next weeks newsletter.

Year 12 written exams commence from next Wednesday, 27^th, in the Damascus Events Centre, and we keep those students undertaking exams in our prayers.

Last night we conducted the second and final webinar for families seeking a 2023 enrolment at Damascus. Opportunities still exist for guided virtual tours of the College, and information can be found under the enrolment tab on the College website.

As part of Enviroweek (19-26 October), we're asking Damascus families to give Nude Food a try. Here's a video from Our College Sustainability Committee to help get you started. Nude Food Video

I extend the welcome of the Damascus community to Craig Roberts. Craig commences this week as Finance Manager, joining us from the St Patrick's College community where he has had the equivalent role. We welcome Craig.

Joanne Lawrence commences long service leave for the rest of 2020, and we wish her all the best for a well-deserved break. Joanne's classes will be covered by Jane McKendrick and Karen Simpkin. Kristiana Whithers also has a period of leave. Her French classes will be covered by Maureen Myers and music classes covered by Deputy Principal, Chris Grant, Trish Delude and Yvonne Holly.

As I communicated yesterday, the return to onsite learning for all students has been brought forward to this Friday, 22^nd October. Tomorrow will hopefully be the last day of remote learning for Year 8&9 students. If there are any questions about the return to onsite learning, please direct them to info@damascus.vic.edu.au.

I congratulate our senior Arts students on the exhibition currently on display at the Damascus Events Centre. The quality of student work in Art, Media Studies, Visual Communication and Photography, developed largely at home, is excellent. I wish to thank the Arts team of Nick Yandell (Learning Area Leader and Media teacher), Anne Griffin (Photography and Visual Communication teacher), Sharon Wolfe (Art Teacher) and Simone Butler (Arts Technician) for curating a great display. The exhibition will be made available to families virtually in due course.

We keep in our prayers our graduating students and their families. We pray for all those who grieve or suffer and for those around the world who do not enjoy the peace and freedom that Australian society provides.

Until next week…

MATT

As the Pope’s international mission agency, Catholic Mission responds to the call to love God and to love our neighbour by forming individuals and communities as missionary disciples of Jesus who share their faith in action and through prayer. By supporting Catholic Mission we share in God’s mission to reach out, give life by sharing our personal and financial resources to: - proclaim the Gospel, - serve people in need, - act for peace, justice and creation; In partnership with local churches, so that all may have life in Christ.

Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. Jn 13:34

As Pope Francis has said

Every man and woman is a mission; that is the reason for our life on this earth. To be attracted and to be sent are two movements that our hearts, especially when we are young, feel as interior forces of love; they hold out promise for our future and they give direction to our lives. More than anyone else, young people feel the power of life breaking in upon us and attracting us. To live out joyfully our responsibility for the world is a great challenge.

Catholic Mission, as the Australian agency of the Pontifical Mission Society contributes funding and provides project support to critical church-run initiatives in Africa, Asia, Oceania and South America as well as remote dioceses within Australia. Catholic Mission creates opportunities for people to be formed in mission, and respond through prayer, fundraising and action, inspiring them to reach out, and give life—within Australia and around the world. All of us engage in mission when we proclaim our faith through our words, actions and lives.

Our Casual Day supports this work.

So on Friday October 29th please bring a donation, and show your support by wearing sporting colours.

2021 has been a year of interruptions and constant change due to COVID lockdowns and restrictions for our Damascus community, none more so than for the Class of 2021.

Our Year 12 students have had an extremely challenging year, one where they have unfortunately missed out on many milestone events, as they did in 2020 as Year 11 students. Our group of Year 12 students is an inspiring bunch of young adults, and we are extremely proud of the resilience and fortitude they have developed over the last two challenging years.

On Wednesday 20 October, the community celebrated the Year 12s’ final day. What a wonderful start to the day we had, with all Year 12 students dressed up to the theme “What I want to be when I grow up”. The entire school community was treated to a video showcasing the Class of 2021, followed by a procession of Year 12 students wearing their graduation hats through the campus. Year 11 students and staff formed a socially distanced guard of honour to clap the students out one last time, culminating in the throwing of the graduation caps.

To the Class of 2021, good luck with life after Damascus College. The lessons you have learnt and the challenges you have overcome with such grace and determination will certainly hold you in good stead for whatever life has in store for each of you, next year and beyond. Good luck!

Please see the following in relation to the NapsSebas Cricket Club:-

This week students of VCE Drama concluded their formal practical assessment by presenting their Solo Performance exam pieces to external assessors. While the standard of work this year was impressive in standard sadly there was no opportunity to share these works with the school community. So much of these performances were developed in remote learning and it was a credit to our twelve graduating students to stay creative and stay resilient as they filmed segments of their intended pieces in bathrooms, bedrooms, and the odd garage for feedback.

The Solo Performance is one of the most active and challenging of exams. On direct show will be the individual themselves. Such is the nature of performance and why tasks such as this are so important to our student’s development as performers. The task requires students to create an original performance based on prescribed characters and stimulus. This is assessed in a live performance by a panel of external examiners using set criteria. Through extensive research, improvisation, scriptwriting, and rehearsal the finished product is formed. Further to this, students must demonstrate knowledge and skill in relation to selected performance styles, specified theatrical conventions and dramatic elements in the realisation of their performance.

As you can see, this is quite a difficult and complex task and the final results as they entered the examination centre was a credit to themselves and the strong and proud traditions, we have for performance studies at the College.

As they take to the stage each other and selected classes their efforts this week I am reminded of how much this extraordinary group of young people have contributed to the artistic and cultural life of our College over the past six years. I will miss them greatly.

ANDREW SEEARY -Performing Arts Coordinator—Drama

This year as part of Enviroweek, which will be celebrated between 22 – 28 October,the Damascus College Green Group are eager to show us some fun ways that we can use and develop our green fingers... and thumbs!

Green Thumb activities for Enviroweek challenge us to get our hands dirty and think about our local environment and biodiversity. We are encouraged to set up a garden in school, or at home, to grow some delicious vegetables, or grow a wild garden to help with the local biodiversity, or we could learn how to build a vertical garden to grow some herbs in a small indoor space.

We are very fortunate to have here on our campus Murnong or yam daisies. These were once found widely across Western Victoria but the Murnong has become rare since Europeans introduced domestic livestock, which grazed down to the fleshy roots. Those roots were cultivated by Wadawurrung women as a staple crop. Murnong also provides a food source for animals such as wombats and bandicoots.

If you would like to have a Murnong, now is your chance. The Green Group have nurtured Murnong Seedlings that are available for purchase until Wednesday 27 October. The cost is $5 per seedling, with proceeds going to support the Bright Futures Scholarship. Please purchase here https://www.trybooking.com/BUXRE

Please enjoy this video created by 2021 Green Group leaders Liana Canfield and Kaitlyn Handreck.

In this cautionary tale one Damascus student is confronted by the Guardian of the Murnong and is given a quest. Will our hero succeed or ...

Collection of your Murnong seedling will be on Friday 29 October, in the Courtyard at lunchtime.

Congratulations to Year 7 student Luka White as he was recently selected for the upcoming country U14 Gold Nugget Basketball Camp.

The best players will be picked for selection to the 2022 Country Metro Challenge.

A number of star Australian representatives including Dyson Daniels, Jack White, Tessa Lavey, Maddie Garrick, Jade Melbourne, Jaz Shelley and Matthew Dellavedova, have attended these camps as part of their Country pathway journeys.

These Basketball camps form the foundation for future success. All the best Luka in this next step in your basketball career.

Congratulations to Year 7 student Archie Jones for playing Lord Farquaad in the BCMA production of Shrek.

The cast and crew had some fun filming at Kryal Castle last weekend, looks like it will be a fabulous show.

Well done to Archie and all the students involved in this wonderful production of Shrek.

Photo courtesy of BCMA

Thinking of trying something new in 2022??

Looking for a new team??

Come and join the best Cheerleading and Dance Academy in Ballarat!!!