On October 21st we gathered together in the Halla for a special celebration to mark the retirement of Carol Ginnifer and Noreen Crowley from the Maria Assumpta Preschool. Family, staff members, friends and well-wishers were present to acknowledge the tremendous impact Carol and Noreen have made on the lives of so many of the children of Ballyphehane. Over a period of eighteen years they have shown exceptional dedication to their work. Carol and Noreen collaborated together to form a highly organised team and they were both so willing to embrace new initiatives which would benefit the little boys and girls in their care. Each September, the teachers in our Junior Infant classes would remark on how well prepared the girls were for ‘Big School’ by the time they had graduated from the Preschool. Our new Junior Infants got so excited whenever they saw Carol and Noreen in the corridor and they would greet their former teachers with great affection.
Our Principal, Mrs. Fitzsimons, presented each of our special guests with a lovely momento of their time in the Preschool and thanked them for their long years of service. We would all like to congratulate Carol and Noreen on their retirement. We wish them every happiness in the future and we hope that they will enjoy a very well deserved rest!
On the evening of October 27th a Halloween Disco was held for our senior pupils. The girls arrived to the Halla dressed in an amazing array of wild, weird and wonderful costumes to surprise their school-mates and teachers. They had a fantastic time dancing and singing along to their favourite tunes. Frank Carroll did an excellent job as DJ and he very kindly supplied the music, lighting and equipment for the event free of charge. Emmie’s dad was on hand again on Friday morning to organise a Junior Disco for the younger children. We are so grateful to Frank for providing such wonderful entertainment for all of our pupils and for getting the Halloween holiday off to a lively start. The school closed for the mid-term break on October 28th and it will reopen on November 7th 2016. Oíche Shamhna shona daoibh go léir!