View in browser Message from Gerry Bennett It’s been a tumultuous year, it’s been a challenging year but it’s also been a very fast year. Perhaps because many of the usual markers of a year – like the State exams, the Autumn GAA Championship matches, the Debs and graduations, or Halloween – either didn’t take place or were so changed or subdued, we seem to have sprinted almost to the end of 2020. All of us will take our memories from this year with us, probably for the rest of our lives. It has been a year of solidarity, huge caring and togetherness, and it has been a year of terrible loss, sacrifice and hardship for many. We all look forward to 2021, I’m sure. The news of the vaccine gives us great hope that we can return to the things we love, like sports and meeting with our friends and family. But I also hope that we can take with us some of the learning and experiences of pulling together, of looking out for neighbours and vulnerable relatives and friends as we move beyond the restrictions of the pandemic. It has also been an extraordinary year in our schools. Almost overnight in March, you all had to switch to on-line learning. Zoom or Teams or Whatsapp became the new normal. It was fantastic to be able to return to our school physically in September. This did not come about without enormous effort and dedication from the whole school community. At our network meetings of Edmund Rice school leaders, principals around the country continuously expressed their gratitude and huge appreciation for the wonderful work of their school staff in providing quality learning and educational experiences in very challenging conditions. They also praised students and families for the part they were playing in ensuring that schools could continue to stay open, even throughout the second lockdown period. This great spirit of partnership and the collective effort that went into creating caring school communities are two elements of our Edmund Rice Charter. It was great to see them playing out as lived experiences through difficult times. While the principals were quick to praise others, we cannot forget the work that they have all done – supported by their boards of management – firstly, throughout the summer in getting our schools re-opened, and then keeping them running safely since. We pray that the launch of a vaccination programme will bring this pandemic to an end but we need to protect ourselves and others in the meantime, particularly over the Christmas holiday. I hope you enjoy reading about the inspiring events and programmes that did take place in our schools over the past few months. I want to wish you all a safe and happy Christmas and great hope and joy in 2021. Gerry Bennett - Edmund Rice Schools Trust “And they came with haste, and f ound Mary, and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.” – Luke 2:16 May you f eel God’s presence in the candles, that sof tly spread their glow at Christmas and may you experience the wonder of His abiding love, as He guides you, through each day of the coming year. May God’s Blessings be with you and your f amily throughout the Christmas season and into 2021. Catholic Schools Week 2021 The January 2021 edition of E-Síol will be dedicated to illustrating the wide range of activities that take place in our Edmund Rice schools during Catholic Schools Week. Please select one of these activities and submit a short article and some photographs to show the celebration. We would love to see all our schools represented in this edition. Rice College Westport Missionaries f rom Home Last November Ms Ryan Jennings received a photo from Seamus Gill, a Mellon Educate Building Blitz volunteer, that brought joy to her heart, to her students and the Rice College, Westport School community. Seamus Gill presenting students in Cape town South Af rica with school supplies and tracksuits f rom Rice College Westport. It all began in September 2018 when class teacher Ms Ryan Jennings and her TYC Religion class decided to set up a project themselves. Inspired by a teaching colleague, Ms. Mannion, who had volunteered with Mellon Educate the previous July, the class decided to become “Missionaries from Home” - the title of their project. Deciding to base it on the Team Hope Shoe Box Appeal, they began to research their project by contacting the Mellon Educate office and interviewing local volunteers they knew. Their aim was to create supplies that were compact and reasonably light to travel with the Volunteers to Cape Town, South Africa. “After a lot of discussion and trying to figure a suitable, achievable task, an idea came to light,” Ms Ryan Jennings explains. A sandwich bag of school supplies was agreed on and a plan put in place. The class created a sample bag with markers/colouring pencils/crayons, 2 pencils, an eraser, pencil sharpener and pencil case. The students drafted a letter for local businesses in the town and set about spreading the word, explaining what was needed and establishing dates for collections. Students were placed into groups and each group took responsibility for a street of businesses in Westport town. Sample of sandwich bag of school supplies The task involved a lot of time- walking, talking and gathering, and my word did those students do a fantastic job. Local businesses in Westport town inundated the boys with supplies. Some businesses even placed special orders for stationery to donate to the cause. It truly was overwhelming. The task of packing the supplies took place during their free time, sometimes even getting help from other classes and staff. The final count was over 300 sandwich bags packed full of supplies with the students ensuring every bag looked similar. They also received school bags and, very generously, a set of over 50 tracksuits were donated from our Sports department in Rice College. TYC sorting supplies f or packing Due to such a huge response from the local community, Mellon Educate headquarters encouraged Ms Ryan Jennings and the TYC class to liaise with Seamus Gill a local volunteer with Mellon Educate Building Blitz. Seamus was very grateful and delighted with the donations collected and agreed to bring everything to Cape Town with his building volunteer comrades the following November. Patrick Kerrigan TYC, Seamus Gill Mellon Educate Volunteer & Class teacher Lorraine Ryan Jennings This would not have been possible without such a great community spirit. The guidance and encouragement from Ms Ryan Jennings, determination from the students of TYC to make it a success, the generous contributions from local businesses and, to complete the circle, having a local man hand deliver the supplies to the most grateful students in Cape Town, South Africa. What a wonderful fulfilling project the class of TYC 2018 with their teacher Ms Ryan Jennings made into a wonderful success. We wish the class of TYC, who are now our Leaving Cert Class of 20/21, the very best in their studies and also, we hold a little hope that their “Missionaries from Home” project sowed a seed that may encourage them to serve those most in need at a future stage in their lifetime. CBAs and the new Junior Cycle Course 2B Religion class worked very hard on their Classroom Based Assessments. Over a three-week period, they researched a specific Person of Commitment and prepared a presentation on their person of choice. Most chose a person with a religious commitment and the results were fantastic! One student made a website about St. Patrick, others made PowerPoints and presented their findings to the group. Some used a word document and images of their person of faith. At the end of each presentation there was a question & answers opportunity. Over all, a very informative and educating experience for the boys. Our Amber Flag Award f or Promoting Mental Health: “Think Positive- Be Positive” We were awarded our first Amber Flag in June 2020 for promoting positive mental health in our school. The committee organised various activities and events which helped us to secure this award. As part of our application we held a Positive Living Week for the whole school community and the theme was "Think Positive - Be Positive". During the week students participated in various workshops and attended talks which focused on empowering students to make small changes to their daily routines. Evan Regan (former Mayo football player) visited the school and gave a talk to senior students about the importance of good nutrition and the impact it has on mental health. Lianne McManamom from Mayo Mental Health Association held a "Breathe" workshop with our 2nd year students and 1st year students attended a drumming workshop with Antony McNamee. The week was vast and varied. The primary aim of applying for this award was to give our students the opportunity to focus on themselves, engage in some personal development and to highlight the importance of positive mental health. We would like to thank Ms. Ferguson for her tremendous work and effort in attaining this very special award for our school community. Past Students Wear the Mayo Colours with Pride Rice College, Westport is extremely proud of all our past students who were named in Mayo’s Senior team line-up on the 18th October, with past student Mark Moran making his debut & being named Man of the Match, scoring an impressive 1-2. Well done to all past students- Lee Keegan, Eoghan Mc Laughlin, Fionn McDonagh, Mark Moran and Rory Brickenden.