| | | |  | | Having fun and playing games at the 2014 International Food Festival | | | Dear Parents, All Saints Day is celebrated on Saturday, November 1st and on the following day, November 2nd, we celebrate All Souls Day. The vigil or eve of All Saints Day, October 31, is Halloween. The purpose of Halloween is to prepare us for All Saints Day by remembering and celebrating those saints.
All Saints' Day honors all the saints, particularly those who do not have their own special feast day, on November 1. All Souls' Day is a day of prayer for deceased souls. Many Christians visit cemeteries where their loved ones are buried. The Catholic Church remembers deceased members of the congregation on this day and often throughout the month of November. Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is celebrated in many parts of the United States, particularly where there are large Latin American communities. Day of the Dead events, which come in the form of festivals, parades and group celebrations, are held on November 1-2 to coincide with All Souls' Day and All Saints' Day. During these celebrations some people wear masks, carry signs, or put up elaborate decorations to honor the dead. Some community centers invite people to commemorate their deceased loved ones with ofrendas (offerings) through alters that include food, symbols, flowers, candles, photos and other mementos. Altars in memory of the dead are also made in people's homes. Congratulations to all who helped with or worked on last weekend's International Food Festival! What a great effort and great success. A special thank you to the 2014 festival co-chairs, Ivon Van Mechelen and Michaela Munda, who have tirelessly worked over the past year to make it such a success. More information will come from the Parents' Club, but a big thank you to all for a job well done! | | | HALLOWEEN: Please consider joining us for our annual K-8 Halloween parade, which begins at 11:00 in the schoolyard on Friday, October 31st. When purchasing costumes for wearing to school on Friday, please consider the following: Age appropriate
Bathroom accessible
Make up must be applied at home
Shoes must be comfortable for walking
No weapons of any kind
Also, a reminder that this Friday, October 31st is a minimum day with 12:15/12:30 dismissal. Extended care will be until 6pm.
| | | | PENNY BUCKET CHALLENGE: Today marked the last day of the Student Council's "Penny Bucket" challenge. The class who collected the most pennies, weighing in at 129 lbs, and the winners of PINK free dress next Wednesday is 3rd grade. Congratulations also to the 4th graders for collecting 100 lbs. As a school, we collected a total of 537 lbs of pennies (which is almost $1000) to be donated to the Breast Cancer Emergency Fund. A BIG thank you to everyone who participated in donating pennies for this great cause. | | | | REPORT CARDS: Report cards are going home this Friday, October 31st. Please check your FACTS account to make sure both tuition and extended care, are up to date so that you may receive your child's report card and conference appointment. | | ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE and CITIZENSHIP AWARDS: We would like to invite everyone to join us at the 8:30am mass, followed by the awards ceremony on Friday, October 31st. We will present 1st quarter honors and citizenship awards at this time.
| | | FUNDRAISING CATALOG: We expect the catalog items to arrive tomorrow. We will send an email once items have been delivered to facilitate early pickup for those who have ordered frozen goods. We do not have any facilities at school to store your perishable items overnight. Please check your order thoroughly and notify us immediately if you are missing anything. Call the office and check with Melody if you have questions. She has a complete list of those items.
2015-2016 PRESCHOOL APPLICATION FORMS: Our preschool class for next year is filling up fast. If you have a younger child who you would like to have attend Utopia, please make an appointment to visit with Michelle Ovando, our preschool director. Preference will be given to our current families only if applications are completed on time.
STEAM ELECTIVES: We are in the home stretch of our STEAM classes, and the 6th, 7th and 8th graders are enthusiastically engaging in some wonderful learning experiences. Please consider joining us next Thursday, November 6th in the gym from 10:45-11:45 for the STEAM Showcase. This year, grades earned in STEAM will be incorporated into 10% of the calculation of core subjects grades: Religion, Math, Reading/Literature, English, Science, and Social Studies.
LABELS FOR EDUCATION: Please continue to collect and send in Labels For Education. Check out their website for what labels fall under the guidelines of being a "label for education". If you have any questions, please contact our Labels for Education coordinator, Shelley White, at swhite@stmsf.org.
NOVEMBER CALENDAR: In your Envelope today you are receiving the Hot Lunch Menu and Calendar of Events for the month of November. With all the minimum days for conferences, etc., it will be a helpful reminder throughout the month. Please take note that both Tuesday November 25th is a minimum day and yes, extended care will be available that evening until 6pm.
Happy Halloween! Happy All Saints Day! | | Sincerely,
Marie Fitzpatrick
Principal | | | | | | | |
