It was a young 20-year-old, Blessed Frederic Ozanam, who started the St Vincent de Paul Society when he decided to do something about the poverty he saw in his community. Today, it is the young people in our Catholic primary and secondary schools who are a driving force behind the success of Vinnies’ good works in the Diocese of Wollongong. 

Read more about the Vinnies-CEDoW partnership, as published in the Winter 2019 edition of Journey Magazine.

Smiling in the face of adversity, the value of hard work and ‘doing the God stuff’ - these were some of the topics that delighted, educated and had guests in fits of laughter at the biennial Leading Inspirations Dinner held on 2 August 2019, an initiative of CEDoW's Workplace Gender Equality (WGE) Committee.

Since its inception, the dinner has become a significant networking event for CEDoW employees and their external colleagues, to inspire attendees to pursue their passions while maintaining a work-life balance. This year, we were fortunate to have Robyn Moore as the evening's keynote speaker, whose motivational talks have touched hundreds of thousands across Australia and internationally.

Vocational Education and Training (VET) students and staff at St John’s Nowra continue their success, with a number of the school’s Year 12 Hospitality students recognised at the annual Workplace Learning Shoalhaven Excellence in Vocational Education and Training Awards.

See which students won a Certificate of Excellence in Hospitality,  and who went on to win the Judges’ Award for Outstanding VET Student in the Shoalhaven.

A significant moment in the history of St Justin’s Oran Park – the school community has launched its new six-house colour system based on the Dharawal seasons of the year.

Using the beautifully crafted research by Aunty Fran Bodkin in her book, D’harawal Climate & Natural Resources, the school has renamed and expanded its four-house system to now include six new house names, colours and animals representative of each Dharawal season.

"Dear Friends,

"I write to convey to you, the news that Mr Peter Turner has advised me of his intention to retire from his position as the Director of Schools at the end of 2019...."

Read more from Bishop Brian inside. 

Students at St Joseph’s Catholic High School, Albion Park will now have the chance to train next to first-class athletes at the top of their game – the likes of Matildas star Caitlin Foord, UFC champion Alex Volkanovski, and the Illawarra Hawks. The school’s Aspiring/Elite Athlete Program will see students enjoy state-of-the-art facilities, resources, mentoring and support to be the best-equipped young athletes in the region. 

The exciting new program is aimed at providing aspiring athletes at St Joseph’s with the education, skills and support they need to reach their full potential – in their chosen sport, their academic studies and their life and career ahead.

In 2019, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Pope Benedict XV's Apostolic Letter Maximum Illud, Pope Francis announced that October would, from that point, be known as The Extraordinary Missionary Month - a worldwide occasion of prayer, stories of mission, formation and charity.

This year, the theme of the month is ‘Baptised and Sent: The Church of Christ on Mission in the World.’ As his Holiness Pope Francis shared in an open letter, “I have asked that the whole Church revive her missionary awareness and commitment. Celebrating this month will help us first to rediscover the missionary dimension of our faith in Jesus Christ, a faith graciously bestowed on us in baptism.” 

The Holy Cross Helensburgh school community recently celebrated National Tree Day with a "Tree Liturgy" that included a presentation of a plant to each class and the office staff to look after until the tree is ready to be presented back to the Gardening Club to plant into the school grounds. 

Students at St Paul’s Camden have enjoyed valuable opportunities to sharpen their artistic skills from those who have come before them, engaging in experiences with talented local artists – including a former student!

Year 4 students were excited to have Magdalene Catholic College, Narellan Year 12 student and gifted artist, Peter Cornett, visit the school to facilitate a manga art workshop with them. Meanwhile, Year 2 students enjoyed learning about perspective drawing from Camden artist, Roger Percy.

Congratulations to our CEDoW staff involved in promoting sustainable development projects and solutions to poverty in disadvantaged communities in the Pacific – our Diocese has been awarded the ‘Sustainable Relationships Award’ at Palms Australia’s Solidarity Awards 2019.

As a roomful of primary school children sat in their classroom engaged in a STEM activity, there wasn’t anything unusual about the scene – apart from the age of their ‘teachers’. On this day, a group of Corpus Christi Catholic High School, Oak Flats students took part in a role swap and became educators for the day in a unique immersion.

A group of students from Years 9 to 12 were tasked with teaching younger students from Nazareth Catholic Primary School in Shellharbour City to give them a glimpse of what it takes to be a teacher and whether it could be their future vocation.

Catholic Schools NSW's latest 'Teacher Feature' stars Mr Danny Sykes, principal of Stella Maris Catholic Primary School, Shellharbour. Stella Maris was founded by the Sisters of Charity in 1958. Seven Sisters of Charity have guided Stella Maris in faith, hope and love as educational leaders since the school's foundation, including Sr Colleen Mills, who retired in 2009 – the last Sister of Charity principal in the country. 

We spent #OneMinuteWith Danny to ask him about his hopes in Catholic education and returning as principal to the primary school he once attended himself...

Holy Spirit College, Bellambi invites you to their musical production of Disney's 'Beauty and the Beast'.

See inside to purchase tickets, and for performance dates and times.

“As a student, I am one of many who seem to almost lose themselves in the rush of schoolwork, extra-curricular activities and growing responsibilities,” shared Jaden from Mount Carmel Catholic College in Varroville.

“In this chaotic world, controlled by social media and influenced by the advancement of technology, it’s easy to not find time for reflection and engagement with faith, and to lose track of the important things in life.”

Forget making sandwiches on kitchen work placements – it’s all about the real experience of working in the hospitality industry for students at John Therry Rosemeadow. A team of more than 30 Year 12 Hospitality students have prepared, cooked and served a delicious three-course dinner to a packed dining room at the Campbelltown Catholic Club – with glowing reviews!

It started off as a short 20-second background video for the homepage of the Diocese of Wollongong’s new website. Six months and 23 separate film shoots later, the diocese has released its new 'It’s Who We Are' video.

The short sub-three-minute video clip narrated by Bishop Brian Mascord and shot by master filmmaker, Hugh Clark, showcases the wonderful people and works of the diocese that happen every day and often go unnoticed.

WATCH the diocese's new video inside.

What better way to practise your language skills than to speak to the experts! In a heartwarming intergenerational experience, students at Holy Spirit College, Bellambi have visited the Italian residents of Marco Polo Aged Care to get to know about life in Italy and put their beginner Italian to the test.

Kiwi fruit, pop art and landscapes – there was something for everyone on the walls of the Catholic Education Office, Marian Centre when the ground floor was transformed into an exhibition space, unveiling the annual Director’s Art Gallery Ceremony.

This year, the exhibition includes 19 students from four secondary schools and one K-12 school who have secured coveted positions in the showcase – with no shortage of talent.