Stage one of the repainting of the church is now complete. This stage covers the altar area, the rear vestibule area, and the sides of the church up to picture rail height.

It is hoped to commence stage two of the repainting in 2008. This will encompass the roof vault and the high part of the walls at the sides and rear.

	Painting of the interior of the church has seen witness to changing fashions. In the 40's, the church was repainted in traditional style, and it was described "the finished product seemed to be perfect...instructive, inspirational, and a delight to the eye". This picture shows a convent centenary mass in 1964, where the paintwork behind the altar can be seen.
	In 1965, the decoration of the church was described as "altogether too sombre, too heavy in colour, and too crowded with decoration. Nowadays we want something lighter and more restrained". The following picture of Fr Noel Murphy, taken in the 60's, shows how the more plain paintwork can be seen.
	By 2005, the paintwork needed completely redoing, and the decision was made to repaint in the older style. The following pictures show some of the challenges in uncovering and redoing the original paintwork.
	Replacing some of the pressed metal ceiling.
	The scaffolding.
	Making the rose window watertight.
	Repairing cracks in the plaster work.
	Uncovering.
	Drawing the outline.
	Uncovering
	Detail of paintwork above rose window.
	Intricate hand painting.
	The floor at the main entrance had to be replaced before the painting of that area could be completed.
	The altar area completed.
	Some of the colour and detail high up in the altar area.

BRIEF BELL PROJECT PROPOSAL
(The project is conditional on Council Approval.)

On the 7th October, 1906, the foundation stone of the current St Augustine’s Church was laid by Cardinal Moran.  To mark the centenary of this event and to complete the bell tower, it is proposed to install a small peal of eight bells which will be run in the English style.

BELL FRAME LOCATION
The bells would be located in a steel frame at approximately half-way up the tower in the fourth chamber.  The bells would be all on one level and the frame attached to the walls by a steel ring beam with chemical anchor bolts.  The location of the frame and size of the bells have been designed by John Taylor Bell Founders, Loughborough, England, who inspected the tower in 2003.

Below the Bell Chamber is the Sound Chamber, this is where the sound of the bells is mixed at a controlled level for the bell ringers in the Ringing Room.  The Ringing Room is where the bells will be rung from.  The ropes will pass through the ceilings of both the Ringing Room and Sound Chamber to wheels fitted to the bells in the Bell Chamber.  The frame and bells will be hoisted up the tower through a series of trap doors in the respective floors.

SOUND CONTROL
The sound of the bells will not be exiting the tower by the windows but by a specially designed sound lantern located behind the small openings on the top the tower.  Between the bells and the sound lantern (which is approximately 5.5 metres) will be a series of shutters which will cut off the sound of the bells during practice times.  The extensive sound control was designed by a sound engineer, John Bassett.

THE BELLS
Unfortunately the bells are the most expensive items and usually come from England.  Second-hand bells can sometimes be located through a bell trust called the Keltek Trust.  So far the project has located five second hand bells.  One of them was a buoy bell in the North Sea used by Trinity House; this will be bell No. 4.

Bells are made of bronze cast to a particular size to obtain the approximate note.  They’re fine tuned by removing metal from inside the bell.  The proposed ring of bells will have the following diameters, weights and notes:

*These bells have been located and donated.*These bells have been located and donated.

	The external view of the church exterior from the east.
	The impressive tower is 125 feet tall, and is a landmark.
	This is the existing single bell in the tower.
	This is a new tenor bell which has been cast in the UK.
	Some of the new bells.

There are around 30 lead light windows in the church. Most of these windows need restoration to repair damage and wear and tear. Each window will cost approximately $17,500 to repair.

We are asking for donations towards the repair of windows.  Windows can be dedicated, in memoriam, the wording being of your choice,  eg May . . . be ever in God’s loving care; May the . . .  Family be one with the Lord in peace and harmony; Donated by . . . Family.  We are currently in the process of obtaining tax deductibility for this project and hope soon to have approval from the taxation office.