Blog

In 2015 the CEF achieved great success from its fundraising initiatives. The focus of the 2015 events program was on the inaugural fundraising Gala Dinner, the major fundraising event for the CEF in 2015. All stakeholders including CEF sponsors and donors, Sydney Catholic Schools staff, both office based and in Sydney Catholic school communities, as well as suppliers were greatly supportive of the foundation’s cause. The foundation achieved a significant result from fundraising initiatives in 2015, raising over $61,000 for the bursary fund thanks to our community of generous supporters.

• Staff Big Day Out Raffle/Chocolate Bags
  27 February
  Raffle tickets were available for $5 each or 3 for $10. Prizes included a Gold Class Cinemas gift voucher, a BridgeClimb gift voucher and premium liquor. Chocolate bags were also sold on the staff development day for $3 each. Both initiatives were a great success thanks to the generous support of staff.

• NRL Footy Tipping Competition
  March to October
  Sydney Catholic Schools office based staff were invited to participate in the annual NRL footy tipping competition. $10 from each entry was donated to the foundation bursary fund.

• ANZAC Biscuits
  24 April
  ANZAC biscuits handmade by in-house chef Tim Ryan were available to purchase for Sydney Catholic Schools office based staff for $5 a bag, a total of 700 biscuits and 100 bags were sold.

• Soup Kitchen – National Refugee Week
  18 June
  The annual soup kitchen was held during National Refugee Week to promote awareness of the Refugee Bursary. Sydney Catholic Schools office based staff enjoyed delicious handmade soup and bread for $5. The fundraiser was a wonderful success with all three soup options selling out!

• Inaugural Gala Dinner
  14 October
  The inaugural Gala event for the foundation, the fundraising Gala Dinner was held at the Albert Palais function centre in Leichhardt. Two hundred guests attended including Catholic Education Foundation sponsors as well as corporate supporters, many of whom have a relationship with Sydney Catholic Schools.

Albert Palais Leichhardt

Live Auction fundraising items

Dr Dan White, Executive Director Sydney Catholic Schools and Mark Vincent

Dr Dan White, Executive Director of Sydney Catholic Schools gave an inspiring speech and the event showcased an impressive lineup of entertainment, comprising both students and professionals. Mark Vincent, an ex-student of Sydney Catholic Schools and Australia’s number one tenor was the headline act of the evening. The night also showcased exceptional talent by students. David Zheng, a Year 8 student at Casimir Catholic College Marrickville played the violin as guests entered the ballroom and CaSPA students from the Showcase Ensemble Dance group performed with poise and grace. Guests also enjoyed the variety of popular music from Australia’s favourite party band, Jelly Bean Jam who sang and danced the night out!

Sponsors were acknowledged via a trophy presentation and individual photos with Dr Dan White.

The fundraising efforts on the night were an immense success; one thousand raffle tickets were sold on the evening raising $10,000! Many generous donations were also received in lieu of attendance. The event was a wonderful success, highly entertaining for guests and raised an exceptional amount of funds for the bursary fund. The Catholic Education Foundation would like to sincerely thank all those who supported the inaugural event and attended the evening.

The Catholic Education Foundation would also like to acknowledge and sincerely thank the following organisations for their generous support by providing monetary donations in lieu of attendance or for providing prizes for the evening’s fundraising.

• Bow Goold Architects Pty Ltd
• Clare Communications Co Pty Ltd
• Commonwealth Bank of Australia
• Cowan & Lewis Pty Ltd
• Delany Foundation Limited
• DOOLEYS Lidcombe Catholic Club
• Global Quality Foods Pty Ltd
• Kellys Office Furniture
• MAC1
• Marist College, Kogarah
• McCormack Employment Services
• Munns Sly Moore Architects Pty Ltd
• Sportspro
• Stanton Dahl Architects
• Star Of The Sea Luxury Apartments Terrigal
• Sydney Roosters

• Melbourne Cup Luncheon
  3 November
  Sydney Catholic Schools central office staff were invited to attend the office based Melbourne Cup luncheon. Staff enjoyed a delicious handmade lunch made by in-house chef Tim Ryan and drinks for $15. All proceeds were donated to the bursary fund.

• CEF Annual Appeal Day – school fundraiser
  Week commencing 16 November
  The inaugural Catholic Education Foundation Annual Appeal Day school fundraiser. Primary and Secondary school students were invited to participate in a mufti day to help raise money for families in need so their children can receive a foundation bursary. Students wore their favourite blue clothes for a gold coin donation.

The Catholic Education Foundation would like to acknowledge and sincerely thank the following school communities who participated, thank you so much for your generous support. Congratulations on raising a total of over $15,000 for the CEF Bursary Fund!

• All Hallows Catholic Primary School Five Dock
• All Saints Catholic Senior College Casula
• Aquinas Catholic College Menai
• Blessed Sacrament Catholic Primary School Clifton Gardens
• Christ the King Catholic School Bass Hill
• De La Salle Catholic College Caringbah
• De La Salle College Ashfield
• Holy Cross Catholic Primary School Woollahra
• Holy Spirit Catholic Primary School North Ryde
• La Salle Catholic College Bankstown
• Marist College Eastwood
• Mater Dei Catholic Primary School Blakehurst
• Mount St Joseph Milperra
• Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Primary School Caringbah
• Our Lady of The Annunciation Catholic Primary School Pagewood
• Our Lady of The Rosary Catholic Primary School Fairfield
• Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic School Miranda
• St Aloysius Catholic Primary School Cronulla
• St Andrew’s Catholic Primary School Malabar
• St Bernard’s Catholic Primary School Botany
• St Brendan’s Catholic Primary School Annandale
• St Catherine Laboure Catholic Primary School Gymea
• St Fiacre’s Catholic Primary School Leichhardt
• St Francis De Sales’ Catholic Primary School Woolooware
• St Gabriel’s Catholic School Bexley
• St Jerome’s Catholic Primary School Punchbowl
• St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School Como
• St Mary’s Catholic Primary School Concord
• St Michael’s Catholic Primary School Belfield
• St Patrick’s Catholic Primary School Kogarah
• St Peter Chanel Catholic Primary School Regents Park
• St Raphael’s Catholic Primary School South Hurstville

• Christmas Raffle
  15 December
  The annual CEF Christmas raffle was held for Sydney Catholic Schools office based staff. All proceeds from raffle tickets sold were donated to the foundation bursary fund. Thank you to those staff who generously supported this fundraising initiative.

• Book Fair
  18 December
  A new fundraiser trialled in 2015. Staff were invited to donate books, CDs and DVDs to the book fair held at the central office and the items were available for staff to purchase second hand. The event exceeded expectations and was a wonderful success thanks to the generosity and support of staff. Thank you to those staff who generously supported this fundraising initiative.

• Christmas Puddings
  Handmade Christmas puddings made by in-house chef Tim Ryan were available for staff to purchase with all proceeds raised donated to the foundation bursary fund. The annual fundraiser is immensely popular with staff, many of whom purchase multiple puddings!

• School Fundraising Initiatives
  Throughout 2015 selected schools held their own fundraising initiatives for the CEF, raising a total of over $3,000. Thank you to the following two schools for their generous support with fundraising:
  • Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Primary School Caringbah
  • Our Lady of The Rosary Catholic Primary School Kensington