MacKillop Day 2026 – Thank You

What a day. On Friday 7 August 2026 the whole College — all 1,480 students and our staff — celebrated the Feast of St Mary of the Cross MacKillop, our patron, with Mass, a festival and a great deal of laughter. Thank you to every family who sent a child in with coins for the stalls, to the parents who joined us in the church and on the Oval, and to the staff and students who gave up lunchtimes for weeks to prepare. More about our patron: Catholic Identity.

Mass

Our whole-school Mass at 9:15am in St Mary of the Cross Church was celebrated by Fr Michael Dwyer, with Sr Bernadette Long rsj reflecting on Mary MacKillop's words, "Never see a need without doing something about it." The Senior Chamber Choir and Junior Choir led the music, and Year 6 and Year 12 students shared the readings and prayers. It was standing room only — thank you for your patience with the crowd.

Festival

From 11:30am to 2:30pm the Main Oval became a fairground:

• Stalls run by Year 12 and Year 6 (the doughnut stall sold out by 12:15pm — sorry!).
• Stage Band on the back of the ute stage.
• The House tug-of-war, won convincingly by Romero, who now lead the tug-of-war tally 2–1 for the year.
• Face painting, giant games and the ever-popular staff dunk tank (Mr Brennan, you were very brave).

Money raised

Together we raised $6,842 for Mary MacKillop Today, supporting Josephite education and health programs in Timor-Leste. Every dollar came from student stall takings and gold-coin entry. This is our biggest MacKillop Day total yet. Read about the causes we support at Social Justice and Service.

Lost property

A large number of jumpers, drink bottles and one very good hat were left on the Oval. They are outside the Junior and Senior offices until Friday 21 August 2026, after which unnamed items are donated.