
From the Principal
Dear St Michael’s College Community,
Feast of the Assumption
Last Sunday, 15 August was the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, when according to Catholic faith, the Holy Mother, “having completed her course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory”. One of our most popular Catholic Prayers relates to Mary and starts with “Hail Mary, Full of Grace…”. Mary is a model to many and her human qualities are absolutely relatable today.
A recent Lasallian reflection asked this question: “Who do you know, whose presence fills you with so much happiness, that upon greeting them, you are immediately filled with a sense of awe and an awareness that you are with someone very special? Furthermore, how do we honour those special people in our own lives who are models to us of wisdom and care and grace?”
As we are well aware, recent events, including COVID and loss have reinforced with us all the importance of relationships and connections and the Feast of the Assumption serves to remind us that we ourselves are blessed to have among us and in our own lives people so full of grace that their lives and actions are a revelation of God’s living presence. Now is a good time to let them know how much their presence means to you.
Catholic Schools’ Music Festival
Students at St Michael’s are encouraged to build strong relationships, value each individual, explore their curiosities and take on challenges to fully realise their potential. The Arts is a wonderful way to achieve this, as it brings community together, lifelong friendships are formed, and creative risks are taken to develop confidence, skills and abilities.
The Catholic Schools Music Festival is an annual event that epitomises these aspirations and showcases the amazing depth and array of musical talent of students in Catholic schools across South Australia. St Michael’s has long been an integral contributor to the festival and will again be part of this year’s event at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre. In addition to the Primary Campus being part of the Festival Choir on Monday night 20 September, a number of Secondary Campus ensembles and soloists have auditioned successfully and will be performing as follows:
Big Band 1 (Monday 20 September); Max Pook-Kathriner (sax) and Harriet McClure (piano) (Tuesday 21 and Thursday 23 September); Senior Jazz Band (Tuesday 21 September); and the Combined Secondary Boys Vocal Ensemble, who will perform each night along with the Festival Choir (SMC has eight boys participating in this ensemble gathered from various Catholic schools).
Congratulations and best wishes to the student performers from all of our Catholic schools, as well as the many school staff who are helping to prepare them. We are particularly proud of the St Michael’s College contingent whose performances will be instrumental to the success of each evening. I hope that all those able to attend enjoy the festival as much as I do each year.
Trinity Intercol
Each year in August, St Michael’s and Trinity come together in a spirit of collegiality to compete in open sports for the final games of the season.
This week’s Intercol was a tremendous example of talent and dedication of our young people, with the approach to all matches being ‘hard, but fair’. I would like to thank the staff and coaches of both College’s and particularly the students for engaging with a spirit that they all should be immensely proud of.
Kind regards,
John Foley
Principal