Churchill Avenue News

This term we have launched our annual MacKillop Family Services Christmas Appeal. This heartfelt endeavour involves collecting gifts for children and young people in the care of MacKillop Family Services. We partner with this local organisation because they support families directly within our community.

This Christmas, their mission is to provide gifts to over 760 children and young people under their care. You can find more information about the MacKillop Family Services Christmas Appeal by visiting their website: https://www.mackillop.org.au/get-involved/donate/christmas-gift-appeal-2022.

We would like to take this opportunity to ask for your support and contributions. We are seeking gift donations which can be placed beneath the Christmas trees at either the 204 site or Christ the King campus. Students may drop-off gifts at any time.

In previous years we have also sought food donations, while this is not the focus of this appeal food donations are also accepted as we will distribute them to families within our community who need it most.

Other news from the Faith and Mission team is the ongoing good work being done in the name of sustainability and ecological justice. Every year September and October are times of particular focus on ecological justice as it is the Season of Creation. Minh Trinh, a student in year 9, has reflected on his own participation in the local Friends of Kororoit Creek eco-group and his recent contribution to the spirit of letting justice and peace flow during the recently concluded Season of Creation for 2023.

"Whether it be enjoying the breathtaking vistas, taking on the Aussie heat, or putting in back-breaking hours of work; During the course of Semester 2, I have had the opportunity to be graced by the wondrous landscape and waterways of the local Kororoit Creek with the assistance of a local eco group ‘Friends of Kororoit Creek’, and it has been fulfilling to say the least. The primary goal of ‘FOKC’ is the major rehabilitation of the creek from areas ranging from Ardeer all the way through to Altona and beyond, brimming its length with plants and respecting the Wurundjeri people as the traditional custodians. During my first few periods of volunteering, I was intimidated by the amount of dedication and other people that had volunteered their free time, but gradually I started to build a friendliness with their community which only increased my urge to continue volunteering.

But what makes the experience more harmonic, and rewarding is the support from the organisers themselves who work week in and week out striving to maintain the creek. I would like to take this brief moment in the newsletter to thank two people, Jessica Gerger for spearheading each session and my dad for making the whole experience a memorable one."

I’d like to wrap this feature of the newsletter with the purpose of ‘Faith in Action’. It is essentially an acknowledgement system for students and staff who volunteer their own time to serving local communities. I’d encourage all prospective members of the college to think about how they could get involved. However, I would like to stress that the recognition that comes from volunteering should not be at the forefront of beginning your service, it is the enjoyment and experience offered that should be embraced and prioritized. These acknowledgements are earned, not given.