Dear Parents,
The month of October each year is dedicated to the Holy Rosary because the liturgical feast of Our Lady of the Rosary is celebrated annually on October the 7th. Praying the rosary is a way to help us get in touch with God and to develop a relationship with him. In prayer we not only talk with God, but God communicates with us. As we continue to pray, our relationship with God grows, and we are transformed more into the people we are meant to be.
As we enter into the Year of Faith, we invite you all to join together for a Rosary Rally on Saturday, October 13th at the U.N. Plaza in San Francisco. Please check out the flyer you are receiving in today’s envelope.
Each Wednesday throughout the month of October at morning assembly, the student body will say a decade of the rosary. Please join us on Wednesday mornings as we announce the Mystery and say an Our Father followed by ten Hail Mary’s. We will end the decade by saying the Glory Be to the Father. Consider saying a decade of the Rosary as a family during this month as a sign of dedication to Mary our Mother.
A very important occasion in for all of us in the San Francisco Archdiocese will take place tomorrow, Thursday, October 4th. Archbishop elect Salvatore J. Cordileone will be installed as the ninth Archbishop of the Archdiocese of San Francisco at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption. We extend our congratulations, and prayerful best wishes to him. This event will be streamed LIVE at 2 pm on http://www.ustream.tv/channel/archdiocese-of-sf.
BLESSING OF THE ANIMALS: Tomorrow is also the Feast of St. Francis. In honor of his feast day and his love of animals we will have the annual blessing of the animals. Please join us tomorrow in the schoolyard at 3:05pm. You are welcome to bring your pets, pictures of your pet, or anything else that represents your pet that you wish to have blessed.
Tomorrow evening, the Archbishop Riordan community is inviting all parents, teachers, administrators, coaches, friends, and families to a "Community Night," with guest speaker, Mr. Calvin Terrell. Mr. Terrell will be addressing a number of issues that affect school-aged students throughout the nation, such as bullying, race, violence, and how to overcome obstacles. The evening will begin at 6:00 pm and is tentatively scheduled to end at 7:30.
BUILDING INTO THE FUTURE ONE BRICK AT A TIME: At Back-to-School night, we were excited to share with you our plans for the completion of the Creative Arts Center in the gym. To kick off raising funds for this project, we are rolling out our ‘Buy a Brick’ fundraiser. We are hoping to raise at least $80,000 through this program. An order form for the first 100 bricks available for sale is enclosed in your envelope today. Get your order in early - this is your chance to leave a lasting remembrance of your family’s time at STM.
PARENTS’ CLUB: A HUGE thank you to Josie Jung (3rd and 6th grade parent); Jazmine Jung-3rd grader; Doba Villatore (kindergarten parent); Natasha Alvarado-7th grader; Gina Liston-Forrester (kindergarten parent); Shelley White (4th grade parent and teacher); Anarose Schelstrate (7th grade parent), for their help this past weekend at the STM Church Food Festival. Our ring-toss booth did well; we should have the exact amount this Thursday. Thank you also to Linda Shah (alumni) for working with the Church to have our school present at this event.
FALL FESTIVAL/HALLOWEEN CARNIVAL: The next big event is the Fall Festival/Halloween Carnival. That fun and popular event is set for Saturday, October 27th. Everyone will be there! The Parents’ Club will continue to keep you up-to-date with preparations. Keep those donations coming in. To sign up to volunteer for the festival, please click on the link on the STM homepage. If you have any questions, please contact the Parents’ Club at parentsclub@stthomasmoreschool.org.
Tomorrow evening, in Carroll Hall, the Parents’ Club will have their first-Thursday-of-the-month meeting at 7pm. This meeting is open to all parents to come and share thoughts, ideas and suggestions. See you there!
HIGH SCHOOL VISITS: It’s that time of year again when the seventh and eighth graders will be visited from representatives from several of the local Catholic high schools. Last Monday, St. Ignatius met with the students. Sacred Heart Preparatory, Mercy San Francisco and Archbishop Riordan will also make presentations later this month.
FIELD TRIPS: In today’s Envelope, the kindergarten students are receiving permission slips for their upcoming field trip to the Lemos Farm Pumpkin Patch. Please return the permission slip along with the fee by the due date. The First and Eighth graders are also receiving a permission slip for their upcoming visit to Pastorino Farms Pumpkin Patch on October 16th. Fourth graders have a field trip scheduled on October 16th to the San Mateo County History Museum and our seventh graders begin their Confirmation service hours by helping at the San Francisco Food Bank – look for those permission slip also.
FUNDRAISING: Christy Ramos, mother of Sean (8th grade) and Ethan (5th grade), has been busy tallying all the fundraising orders. We presume all orders have been turned in. She will be submitting the order shortly and we’ll let you know when to expect delivery of the items you ordered.
TUITION and EXTENDED CARE BILLING: Families who pay tuition on a monthly basis are reminded that the October payment is due to the school office now. Thank you to those who have already made a payment. The first bill of the school year for Afternoon Extended Care, which covers August and September, is going home today. If your child has attended Afternoon Extended Care this year and you do not receive a bill, please contact John Kavanagh at JKav@stmsf.org. Payments are due upon receipt of the monthly invoices and a late charge of $25 will be assessed if not paid by the date indicated. Payment should be directed to the office and not to Extended Care personnel. The fee is $4 per hour or any portion thereof for each child. If you have a question about your bill, please contact Mr. Kavanagh at the e-mail listed above. A copy of the monthly time summary can be provided upon request and the daily time sheets can be made available for your review.
$10,000 GRANT: Each of the last two years we have been the recipients of a $5,000 grant from the Outrageous Foundation. This week we were delighted to receive a $10,000 grant from this foundation. These funds will be put aside for tuition assistance. We are very grateful to Mr. and Mrs. Bob McGrath for their continuing support of St. Thomas More School!
DONATIONS: Thank you to Freddie Limjoco (dad of Ethan, 5th and Dylan, 4th) for donating two brand new HP LaserJet printers (a $2000 value). They will replace our hallway printers, which we have had for almost 10 years. Thank you to Rob Maldonado who donated 10 light bulbs (a $700 value) for the outside of the gym, just in time for the Food Festival. We would also like to thank those of you who continue to bring in paper, envelopes and other goodies. We appreciate all that you do for us.
Don’t forget that this coming Monday, October 8th is the school’s observation of Columbus Day. It is a school holiday. Enjoy the three-day weekend!
Sincerely,
Marie Fitzpatrick
Principal
