Dear Parents:
Our 2nd grade students, along with their parents, will be celebrating the sacrament of Reconciliation at 10:00am tomorrow. Their journey as young Catholics will continue when they receive the sacrament of First Communion at 2:00pm on Saturday, May 3rd.
Preparing to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation (also known as
penance) for the first time is an exciting event in a child’s life.
It is a time for focus on God’s mercy, how we forgive among our family,
friends, and community, and how we celebrate forgiveness. According to Sandra DeGidio, O.S.M.,
the Parable of the Prodigal Son is perhaps the most strikingly powerful
illustration of the human process of reconciliation. Many of us find
it difficult to believe the story. The father welcomes the son back
instantly—doesn't even wait for him to get to the house. This is not the
way we Catholics have viewed the Sacrament of Reconciliation in the
past. Most of us tend to view this sacrament with the attitude of the
older son in the story: Forgiveness comes only after you recite your
list of sins and agree to suffer a bit for them. But God really is like
the merciful parent in this parable: not out to catch us in our sin but
intent on reaching out and hanging on to us in spite of our sin.
Reconciliation is not just a matter of getting rid of sin. The important
point is what God does in, with and through us. God is love.
The seventh graders will be receiving Confirmation on Friday, May 2nd,
and over the next few months they will perform a number of service
hours and attend an all day retreat to prepare them for this important
and special occasion. Please keep both classes in your prayers during
this important time as they continue on their spiritual journey over the
next few months.
National Catholic Schools Week at St. Thomas
More School was a wonderful success. We have accomplished so much here
by working together. Thank you for all the positive comments made to the
teachers and staff this past week. It is great to be recognized for a
job well done.
Thank you to Becky Wong, John Kavanagh and Heidi Haas who organized a great Grandparents and Special Friends Day and
to everyone who made it such a success! The children were so happy to
have over 200 special guests join us for this fun event. A HUGE thank
you goes out to Jeffrey and Maria Spiegel and our awesome 8th grade cooks for their help in preparing over 500 pasta lunches for all to enjoy. Thanks also to the many other parent volunteers who pitched in to make the day run so smooth.
A HUGE thank you once again this year to Joan Cuddihy, Judy Silva, and their competent committee of booksellers for the great job they did all last week with this year’s Book Fair.
Thanks to all of you who bought books to enrich your children’s lives
and to donate to the classroom libraries. While we don’t yet have a
complete accounting of the proceeds of the sale, we do know that
approximately 10% more books were purchased this year than at previous
Book Fairs.
Spelling Bee: Another thrilling
Spelling Bee, complete with a nail-biting ending was enjoyed by all on
the last day of Catholic Schools Week! Defending his title was this
year's winner, 8th grader Tony D'Aura, and runner-up, 5th grader Jordan
Mak. Congratulations also to third place winner, 6th grader Dylan
Limjoco. Other school participants included: 8th graders Melina Diaz
and Tianna Ramos, 7th graders Shivaya Urcuyo, Dylan Rojo-Cagadoc,
and Michelle Auyeung, 6th graders Justin Santos and Chloe Sladewski, 5th
graders Clark Kelly and Lorenzo Mutuc, and 4th graders Christian
Bustos, Isabella Brenes, and Nicoli Panelo. Conratulations to all our
participants! You are ALL winners!
L♥VE THY NEIGHBOR CAMPAIGN: Our twice-monthly
sandwich collection serves the needs of clients at St. Martin de Porres
House of Hospitality. They are currently in need of some specific items
for their mostly male clients. The items they are requesting are
blankets, men's socks, travel sized toothpaste, toothbrushes, shaving
cream, and razors. We will be collecting these items through the month
of February. Please send them with your child or drop them off in the
bins at the front office. Your acts of kindness do not go unnoticed.
PARENT HOURS: As we mentioned last week, the
Parents' Club is currently doing an audit of the hours that still need
to be done by some families and will be opening up further volunteer
opportunities in the near future. Note that yard duty service does not
substitute for parent club hours. Please consider attending our next PC
meeting tomorrow night at 7:00pm in Carroll Hall to provide your input with regards to scheduling of hours in the future.
Cioppino 2014 and FREE DRESS: Work continues in preparation for our BIG fundraiser on Saturday, February 22nd.
Thank you for the many donations that have come through the school
office for our Cioppino baskets and auction items – keep them coming!
Ticket sales have really picked up for the event. Reservation forms are
included in your envelopes again today – tell your friends! This event
is a lot of fun. Remember, childcare is available for $25 and includes a
pizza dinner and snacks. Please respond as soon as possible so that we
can begin work on our seating plan. Remember, as an added bonus every
school parent who buys a ticket for Cioppino will receive a FREE DRESS PASS for their child/ren to be used on Monday, February 24th.
School Holiday: This Friday, February 7th is a school holiday
for the students. Teachers and administrators from all the Catholic
Schools in the Archdiocese will be attending an all day professional
development in-service at Archbishop Riordan High School.
SPELL-A-THON: Please remember that all monies pledged are due back by Thursday, February 13th. We are very happy with the way this fundraiser went and look forward to having another Spell-a-thon next year.
Field Trips: Taking a field trip on Tuesday, February 18th, are the fourth graders.
They will be traveling to the San Francisco Transfer Station to observe
how recycled material is collected and organized. Permission slips for
this trip are going home today.
Scrip: Just a reminder that all
families are required to generate a minimum of $100 profit by
participating in the electronic scrip programs authorized by the school.
Scrip purchased between May 1st, 2013 and April 30th,
2014 will be credited to this requirement. Families who do not wish to
participate in the scrip program will have the option of buying out at
$150. This Valentine’s Day, we remind you to think Scrip when you’re
shopping for flowers, candy, and the perfect date night for your
sweetheart.
Candy Grams: The Student Council has extended the deadline to order Candy Grams to tomorrow, Thursday, February 6th. The Student Council will send home the candy grams your have ordered for you to complete on Friday. Please send back the completed candy grams to the office by dismissal on Wednesday, February 12th. The Student Council will then attach candy to the cards and deliver them on Valentine’s Day.
Afternoon Extended Care: Do you need a
2013 payment summary from Afternoon Extended Care for your
flexible spending account or your 2013 tax return? Please contact John
Kavanagh at JKav@stmsf.org and he will provide it.
Thank you to two very generous STM parents for their time and support of
our tech program! Mr. Limjoco, father of Ethan (5), Dylan (6) and Ian
(K) recently donated 6 Cisco wireless access points to our school. Mr.
Colom, father of Carlos (8) and Noah (1) has worked diligently on
installing and upgrading our network devices in the last month. These
network upgrades are significant and important to the successful
integration of technology in all of our classrooms and our 1:1 iPad
program. Both parents' contribution have ensured that our internet
access has been extremely fast and reliable.
Sincerely,
Marie Fitzpatrick
Principal
