Newsletter

Dear Parents and Caregivers

Last Monday’s Inaugural Mass was a wonderful opportunity for our school community to gather, celebrate, and reflect. The tradition of clapping in and welcoming our new students to the AHSisterhood is always a special way to begin our school year. 

We were blessed that so many community members could join us at this special event, including members of the Sisters of Mercy Congregation Leadership Team, Sisters of Mercy, representatives from Mercy Partners, our School Board and Foundation Board, and past Principals. We were especially pleased to welcome such large numbers of parents, caregivers and family members. It is truly wonderful to be able to gather together as a community in the one space to celebrate together and mark the beginning of another wonderful year. We are also very grateful to Fr Peter Dillon, who celebrated Mass with us.

This event would not have been possible without the hard work of many, including our Dean of Mission, Mrs Claire Easton, Head of Mercy Charism, Ms Ashley Prisk, Acting Head of Culture, Ms Annabelle Kemish, our Community Relations and Development Team, the IT and Facilities Teams, Operations Manager, Ms Louise Hiscox, and the Operations Team. 

Our Inaugural Mass was also an opportunity to honour nine very special educators celebrating milestone anniversaries this year. Ms Mary Childs, Head of Department English; Mrs Cathy Clem, Archivist; Mrs Jill Goan, Admin Assistant Technology; Ms Karen Lewis, Curriculum Leader English; Ms Tina Pond, Year 5 Teacher; and Mrs Jill Volkman, Inclusive Learning Teacher Aide, are celebrating 20 years of dedicated service. We were also thrilled to recognise the remarkable 30 years of service to our AHS community by Ms Melissa Dineen, Director of Strings; Dr Kate Hall, Head of House Tighe; and Mr John Pembroke, Director of Information Services and Technology. 

We are truly blessed at All Hallows’ to benefit from such an exceptional staff dedicated to the education of our students and the enthusiastic applause and recognition of these staff members was a small indication of just how appreciated these staff members are.  

Respect at the Heart

Respect is core to all relationships and is a fundamental value taught by Jesus in the Gospels. In all of his interactions, he respected the dignity of those he encountered - whether they were tax collectors, rabbis or soldiers. Everyone is deserving of love and respect in his eyes.

At All Hallows', we speak often about respect. It's a word in our diaries, on the library staircase and on the terrace deck. The Year 9 Twilight Retreat with students from Villanova College took that word from the pages and brought it to the centre of the conversation at the annual gathering, 'Conversations of the Heart'. Facilitated by Br Damien Price and led by Year 12 students from both schools, the Year 9s engaged in open and honest conversations about instances where respect might not have been shown to them or even by them. 

From classroom interactions to the online space, our young people have the opportunity to live out the Gospel values and relate to others from a position of love and respect. In both large and small groups, the retreat participants explored examples of how uncomfortable situations might have been handled differently if our values had driven decisions. Capably guided by our Class of 2025 graduates, Genevieve Dodds and Georgia Murphy, and our Year 12 leaders, the Year 9s spoke about how they might navigate unsafe party situations, difficult interactions with their peers, as well as managing power imbalances in personal relationships.

The final liturgy was a beautiful reminder that we are each God's work of art and deserving of respect and dignified treatment by others.

The conversations of the heart were a powerful reminder of Pope Leo's 2026 Lenten message, where he says:

“Let us begin by disarming our language, avoiding harsh words and rash judgment, refraining from slander and speaking ill of those who are not present and cannot defend themselves,…Instead, let us strive to measure our words and cultivate kindness and respect in our families, among our friends, at work, on social media, in political debates, in the media and in Christian communities… In this way, words of hatred will give way to words of hope and peace.” (Pope Leo)

IWD at All Hallows' School 2026

On Tuesday, 10 March, the All Hallows’ community marked International Women’s Day (IWD), led by our student Human Rights Group. This year’s global theme, “#Give to Gain,” encouraged our community to reflect on how offering our voice, support, and compassion can help create a more just and equal world. 

Throughout the day, students participated in prayer, wore promotional stickers, and supported student-led initiatives that celebrated the achievements of women and raised awareness of the importance of gender equality. During our lunch break, we were also delighted to welcome All Hallows’ 2020 graduate Ada Lukin, an accomplished playwright and theatre director, who shared her journey since leaving AHS and inspired students to pursue their passions with gusto and celebrate creativity.

As part of our ongoing commitment to women's health and wellbeing, our staff and students once again supported the increasingly popular Mater IWD Fun Run event last weekend. We had over 200 participants in the run itself, but mention must be made of the 35-strong AHS Cheer Squad, which greeted the runners as they crossed the Story Bridge at the halfway mark.

Every member of the squad cheered, waved and communicated messages of support as the waves of participants approached. From 6.15am until 9.38am when the final walker crossed the bridge, our students' voices could be heard. They were tireless in their enthusiasm and motivated even the most exhausted runner. We brought a big smile to the faces of young and old!

One of the Mater Foundation event organisers, past pupil Georgia Campbell, took the time to send the following message of appreciation:

"Thank you so much for championing All Hallows’ involvement in the 2026 International Women’s Day Fun Run! We’ve been inundated with positive feedback from participants about the AHS x Brooks cheer squad. Many shared that it was their favourite activation of the day and that the energy from the students gave them the boost they needed for the final 2km.

Claire, thank you for giving up your Sunday to supervise the girls. Your ongoing support of the Mater Foundation is truly appreciated, and we absolutely love working with you and the wonderful AHS students." 

Project Compassion's 'Walk for Water'

Each year, we ask students to nominate one project or charity that we can support through a one-day Discretionary Fundraiser. This year, the project students chose to support was Project Compassion's 'Walk for Water' campaign.

In recognition that not everyone in the world can turn on a tap and get fresh, clean running water, our Social Justice Captains devised an activity that not only raised money and awareness but allowed a bit of that house competitive spirit to thrive.

For 3 days, each house collected money to be donated to Caritas' Project Compassion. The amount of money raised during that 3-day period determined the penalty applied in Monday's house "Walk for Water" relay. The more money raised, the emptier the two buckets that relay participants had to carry.

Each team consisted of one person from each year level and a staff member. The house that collected the most money was Loretto House, and they got to carry empty buckets. The house which eventually won the relay was, unsurprisingly, Loretto House - quickly followed by Whitty, who came second and McAuley, who came in third.

Overall, All Hallows' raised $4151.00 for Project Compassion.

As the Lenten days draw us closer to Easter, it is vital that we pause to consider that our decisions to refrain from eating chocolate or reducing our coffee intake during Lent, are minimal disruptions to our very blessed and privileged lives. Lent is a time where we stop to acknowledge that our "doing without" is minor compared to communities for whom that is a daily reality.

Our annual Easter Appeal is designed so that students can make a small contribution to organisations such as the Romero Centre and Vinnies who support people experiencing financial and social disadvantage. Every item donated is a reminder that someone is thinking of them and that they are not alone.

Please remember, food and toiletry items in your next grocery shop so that our donation boxes are overflowing. Students in Jane's Team and Kitty's Room will organise the hampers to be distributed to our partner ministries in Week 10.

Mrs Claire Easton (Dean of Mission)