| | Dear Parents: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. taught valuable lessons of equality, compassion, and understanding to people everywhere. King is perhaps best remembered for delivering his 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech in front of a quarter of a million people in the Mall in Washington, DC. His famous line, "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character," still resonates today. Dr. King continually encouraged everyone to make a difference. Let us all continue to become more active, concerned citizens who care for others and become involved in acts of charity and work towards a more just society for all. We can enjoy a three-day weekend this weekend thanks to the observance of Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday. RESPECT LIFE ESSAY CONTEST WINNER We are proud and pleased to announce that one of our students was recognized in the annual Respect Life contest, organized by the Archdiocese of San Francisco. Our congratulations go out to Antonio Roca, 8th grade, who was awarded honorable mention in the seventh and eighth grade category among San Francisco Catholic schools. Well done Antonio! | | OUTDOOR ED FUNDRAISER ROUND TABLE PIZZA! Tomorrow, January 12 from 4pm-9pm, please support this Outdoor Education fundraiser for the fifth and sixth graders. The school will receive 20% of all sales at the Round Table Pizza at 737 Portola Drive. Check out the flyer in today's envelope – you'll need to use it when you place your order! | | WARM COAT DRIVE Please look through your closets and see if you can locate a warm coat or jacket that is in really good condition, clean and ready to be worn by someone less fortunate. ALL types of coats are needed and will be distributed to needy people by St. Anthony's and the St. Vincent de Paul Society. You can also drop off your donations anytime between now and January 27 to the school office. | | | ADVENTURES IN THEATRE AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM Is your child the next Ryan Gosling or Emma Stone? Sign them up for our after school Children's Theatre Program! This program is open to students in kindergarten through 5th grade. You can download the registration form here. Please note that we need a minimum of 10 students in each class. | | SCRIP REQUIREMENT How's your scrip requirement going? It's not too late to sign up for Great Lakes Scrip, just click here and use our school enrollment code: 17L5C54E28365. Funds generated from scrip purchases are counted from May 1, 2016 through April 31, 2017 towards your $100 scrip requirement. | | | REPORT CARDS HONOR AWARDS Report cards will be sent home with your child on Friday, January 20. Make sure that your family's account is paid up. We would like to invite everyone to join us at the honor awards ceremony on Friday, January 20 immediately following the 8:30am mass. | | CHOICE LUNCH VOLUNTEERS Parent volunteers are needed to help with the lunch program. Are you free from 12-1pm on a regular basis, even once or twice a week? This is a great way to earn your parent hours! Let Judy Silva, jsilva@stmsf.org know if you are available. | | | CIOPPINO 2017 Please mark your calendars for our 25th Annual Cioppino Dinner Dance and Silent Auction on Saturday, February 25, 2017. The evening includes appetizers, antipasto, salad, garlic bread, cioppino (or chicken if you prefer), dessert, balloon prizes and a fabulous auction. Babysitting is also available on site! Make an ONLINE RESERVATION! UNWANTED CHRISTMAS GIFTS? The committees in charge are busy looking for raffle and silent auction items to use as part of this event. Many such items are received through the generosity of our parent community. Do you have items at home that you cannot use? Are you always thrilled by all your Christmas gifts? Well, one person's trash is another person's treasure. Send us your unwanted/unneeded gifts. We'll turn those lumps of coal into diamonds! The committee is now accepting donations of all kinds. Please drop all donations to the school office. | | | STEAM SHOWCASE Friday marks the last Fall STREAM class for the 6th, 7th and 8th graders. Please consider joining us on Friday afternoon in the gym from 1:00-2:00pm for the STREAM Showcase. STREAM students (6th, 7th and 8th grade) should wear dressy clothes to school on Friday as part of their presentation. NATIONAL CATHOLIC SCHOOLS WEEK This runs from January 29 through February 4. Please mark your calendars for our Family Mass, Performance Center Grand Opening, Open House, Book Fair, and other exciting events on Sunday, January 29. The schedule for the week is available here. Today you will find an invitation for grandparents and other special guests to participate in Grandparents Day on Thursday, February 2. Please RSVP by the January 26 deadline. STM TAP As we announced before Christmas vacation, we have again this year received a $25,000 grant from the Carl Gellert and Celia Berta Gellert Foundation to be used for tuition assistance. Funds will be distributed on the basis of those families who need the most help. To qualify for temporary tuition assistance, families will need to show proof of financial hardship and funds will be distributed on a discretionary basis by the school administration. Please click here to request an application. Requests will be accepted through next Wednesday, January 18 and applications will be sent home in next week's envelope. Thank you once again to the Carl Gellert and Celia Berta Gellert Foundation! STUDENT HOLIDAY Plan ahead - Please remember that the school, preschool through 8th grade, will be closed on Friday, February 3. This is the day set for the annual Archdiocese Professional Development for all Catholic school teachers and administrators. Sincerely, Marie Fitzpatrick Principal | | | | | | |