Dear Parents and Carers,

We continue to pray for our St Thomas More community, our state, our country and our world...

When we aren't sure, God,
help us be calm;
when information comes
from all sides, correct and not,
help us to discern;
when fear makes it hard to breathe,
and anxiety seems to be the portion of the day,
slow us down, God;
help us to reach out with our hearts,
when we can't touch with our hands;
help us to be socially connected,
when we have to be socially distant;
help us to love as perfectly as we can,
knowing that "perfect love casts out all fear."
For the doctors, we pray,
for the nurses, we pray,
for the technicians and the janitors and the
aides and the caregivers, we pray,
for the researchers and theorists,
the epidemiologists and investigators,
for those who are sick,
and those who are grieving, we pray,
for all who are affected,
all around the world...
we pray
for safety,
for health,
for wholeness.
May we feed the hungry,
give drink to the thirsty,
clothe the naked and house those without homes;
may we walk with those who feel they are alone,
and may we do all that we can to heal
the sick -
in spite of the epidemic,
in spite of the fear.
Help us, O God,
that we might help each other.
In the love of the Creator,
in the name of the Healer,
in the life of the Holy Spirit that is in all and with all,
we pray.
May it be so.

During this challenging time of lockdown I hope that you have found the opportunity to watch some of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Not only has the Olympics been an opportunity to see the world's best sportspeople on show but some wonderful inspiration can be taken from the life stories of many of the athletes around the world.   We can be inspired by their sporting performances and their strength of character whilst coping with life.  Resilience, courage, strength and gratitude are just some of the qualities evident in these amazing athletes.  In our daily lives we too can draw upon these qualities to help us get through the day.  Like the Olympic athletes who celebrate after a win or a personal best performance we too can celebrate our achievements and our successes.  Through determination, effort and courage we can achieve success.  Just like the elite athletes in Tokyo, the learners within the St Thomas More community can achieve reward for their efforts in their learning, particularly during these current challenging times.    Although we may not win a medal at the end of our efforts and hard work, our reward will be that we all know that we  stuck to the cause at hand, which is trying to do our best and be our best with our work.  Best wishes to everyone in our community as we continue with remote learning.

Some inspirational Olympic moments that caught my eye this past week include:

• The Australian women swimmers and their amazing performances and the support they received from their  families - in particular Emma McKeon, Kaylee McKeown and Ariarne Titmus.
• The joy and celebration of the Fijian Rugby 7s Mens team in winning gold.
• The two gold medallists in High Jump from Qatar (Mutaz Barshim) and Italy (Gianmarco Tamberi).  They were given the choice to continue on in the competition or to share the gold position.  They were prepared and overjoyed to share the honour and glory with each other.   
• Aussie Patrick Tiernan fell over three times in the 10000m final.  He was determined to complete the race and fulfil his Olympic dream, by crossing the finish line.

 We wish our olympians and paralympians all of the best in the coming weeks in their respective competitions.  

As remote learning continues there is so much happening around our community, in regards to children working hard and trying their best.  The document below is a snapshot of some of the learning activities that children have been engaged in over the past few weeks.  Thank you to the hard working staff for all that they are doing in providing these learning experiences for the students and a huge thank you to the parents and carers who are assisting and leading the remote learning at home.