Dear Parents:
As Thanksgiving approaches we have
much for which we are thankful. It is a time of year when we think of others
less fortunate. Your generous response to our peanut butter collection is a
wonderful sign of your thoughtfulness and a great example for your children of
giving to the local community. As a reminder, we are collecting peanut butter for the St. Vincent
de Paul society. If we reach our goal of 500 jars of peanut butter by Friday,
December 13th, the student body will enjoy free dress on Friday,
December 20th. Keep these donations coming. We are well on our way
to our goal as we have already collected over 180 jars!
Next week’s schedule leaves us
with only two short days of school. Monday, November 25th, being the
4th Monday of the month, is a minimum day. A hot dog lunch will be
available for purchase by those attending extended care that day. Please
remember that next Tuesday, November 26th we begin our Thanksgiving
break with minimum day dismissal, 12:15/12:30. Extended Care will be available.
School will resume on Monday, December 2nd.
We won’t be here to do a Wednesday
newsletter next week, however, we will send home the relevant flyers we
receive for distribution on Tuesday.
SCHOOL TOURS: Today we were happy to meet with eight families for
another school tour. We are very grateful to our 8th
grade student ambassadors for doing such a stellar job by sharing information
about our wonderful school with prospective families. Our next tour is
scheduled for December 10th. Please use this link to reserve a
space. A reminder that kindergarten applications are available in the office or
can be downloaded from our website. Please share this information with your
family and friends. Don’t forget that Utopia families and siblings or current
students interested in kindergarten for the 2014-2015 school year must complete
an application form if you have not already done so.
STEM SHOWCASE:
Thank you to all who attended our STEM showcase this morning. Students were
thrilled to share their work and projects with their fellow STM students and
parents in a showcase that represented their hard work over the past six weeks.
Check out the school’s website for some examples of their wonderful work.
SANDWICHES-FOR-THE-NEEDY: This Friday, November
22nd, is our next collection of sandwiches-for-the-needy. All are
welcome to participate and the eighth graders and kindergarteners are charged
with taking the lead that day. In order to facilitate the distribution of
sandwiches, we have been asked to provide just one type of
sandwich: turkey on sliced white or brown bread. We thank you in advance
for what we hope will be another huge collection for those at the Martin de
Porres House of Hospitality.
HOOP-A-THON: The Athletic
Board’s Hoop-a-thon for the kindergarten through third graders
was very successful. The 4th through 8th grade hoop-a-thon will
be this Friday, November 22nd. Sign-ups are still being
accepted. Encourage your child to participate in this fun event! We’d love to
see you there to cheer on your children! As a reminder, all proceeds from this
event will be donated to the Philippine Red Cross.
SEE’S
CANDIES: Sue Sullivan has volunteered to
head up the See’s Candies Fall Fundraiser once again and reminds you
that the deadline for ordering is Monday, November 25th. If you are
interested in ordering, please return the form you previously received.
BUFFALO WILD WINGS NIGHT: Our first major
Outdoor Ed fundraiser of the year was very successful raising $417. It was
great to have so many families join us this past Monday night. We look forward
to another ‘fun’draiser in the spring.
DECEMBER 8th: Please mark December 8th on your
calendar as an exciting day here at STM. We will begin the day with the
presentation of our First Communion and Confirmation candidates at our 10:00am Family Mass, followed by a Pancake Breakfast presented by the 7th and 8th
grade dads, children’s activities and a visit with Santa in Carroll
Hall, all presented by the Parents’ Club. A BIG thank you to the 20+ seventh
and eighth grade dads who have volunteered to help in preparing the pancake
breakfast.
TOY DRIVE: As a reminder, please consider donating
new, unwrapped toy(s) for kids aged infant to 12 years old. Let’s continue
to “show a little kindness” to the less fortunate kids especially this time of
the year. We will be collecting the toys until December 18th.
CHRISTMAS PROGRAM: Please save Tuesday night, December 17th, for our
school's presentation of our Christmas
Program. We will begin at 7:00pm in the Church and all students,
preschool through 8th grade will have a part in this program.
COLD
WEATHER: During these cold and wintery days, please be sure to send your
child to school with a warm coat or jacket. While we understand that it may be
raining upon drop-off and pick-up, we strongly suggest your child does not
bring an umbrella to school. Often the strong winds and heavy rain make the
umbrellas difficult to use, especially for the younger children.
As we come to the day when we
recognize all for which we should be thankful, we are especially mindful of
you. You continue to support so many of our efforts by your presence and
participation. These efforts have continued for years. Thank you, thank you,
thank you and enjoy a great holiday with family and friends!
Sincerely,
Marie Fitzpatrick
Principal
