The school community of St Therese’s took their first step to help end poverty on Ash Wednesday by launching CARITAS and providing each family with a Project Compassion box.
On Friday 9 March, students and staff were joined by parents and the wider community to celebrate a school assembly with Fr Stephen Hill to further raise awareness and support for CARITAS.
“In order to give our students greater insight into nations faced with famine and poverty we held a ‘Rice Lunch’ following our liturgy, so that our students can ‘walk in the shoes’ of others, even if only for a very short time.
“The school canteen was closed on this day so the students can focus on the simplicity of eating a ‘rice only’ meal, and classes will focus on being grateful for what we often take for granted.
“Our students of today are future leaders, so assisting them to help others may help to reduce the extreme poverty and injustice in our world, therefore creating a better tomorrow for all,” said Assistant Principal, Kaylene Maretich.
For the fourth year running, students at St Joseph’s College, Lochinvar, took part in their annual CARITAS rice lunch event. The lunch involves cancelling all food items available at the canteen and offering only rice and milk during recess and lunch. The hospitality students and canteen staff were involved with the preparation of the rice, along with the retail students who sold the rice.
“Each year, we sell around 30kg of rice to the school community to raise much needed funds to support CARITAS Australia, said Ministry Coordinator, Erin McCort.
“They say it takes a whole village to raise a child, well at St Joseph’s we say it takes a whole school to have a vision and work for action in supporting such a worthy cause.”
“The theme for Catholic Schools Week this year, ‘Catholic Schools: Faith in our Future’, is essentially asking something more of us, a different challenge, a commitment. Faith challenges us to live out the Gospel in our society both today and in the future.
“Through the work of CARITAS and our school community, we hope to provide a future where faith is truly lived, through restoring human dignity and standing in solidarity with the marginalised. We have faith in our future and faith in the future of Catholic schools.”