PARENT BULLETIN
January 19, 2017
DAN'S BLOG

January is always one of the busiest months of the year at St. Louise. Not only are your children working hard in their classes as their teachers' curricula are approaching the halfway-point of the school calendar, but January is also the time things gear up outside the classroom for four crucial, annual events - our admissions process, Catholic Schools' Week, our Annual School Gift Campaign, and the Super Bowl. Oops! Make that THREE important events. Better luck next time, Hawks!
The admissions process for prospective parents interested in enrolling at St. Louise for the fall of 2017 is in full gear, as prospective school parents are visiting the school and filling out all the application paperwork. If you have a relative, co-worker, neighbor, or friend with school-age children, please let them know now is the time to call Lola Bazan or Mindy Morgan in our school office (425-746-4220), or email them, to get the admissions process started. Remember, if a new family enrolls in school and we confirm you were the one whose referral got them to look at and choose St. Louise, we'll reward you with one month's free tuition next year!
Along with referring a prospective family to us, it would be most helpful if you would accompany them to our Open House in two weeks - on Thursday, February 2, from 6:30-7:30PM. This evening is a time for families (both prospective and current school families) to tour the school and greet the teachers - who will be waiting in individual classrooms. There will be refreshments for the kids and a raffle that costs nothing to enter. If you have questions about the Open House, or about how the "new family referral reward" program works, please contact Cindy Wagner or Laura Leachin our development office.
As for you current school families RE-enrolling for school for the 2017-18 school year, you will be given all the information on this process on February 2. Note that a $75 re-enrollment fee will be due during the February 2-17 early enrollment period. (The fee increases to $200 after Feb. 17.) If as a current school family you have a child who is currently not attending St. Louise School, but will apply here for next fall (such as in Pre-K or kindergarten), please email Lola and Mindy in the school office to let them know your child's full name and the incoming grade level. That will help them prepare your necessary application paperwork for February 2.
Additionally, we are evaluating the possibility of offering an extended-day portion to our (4-year-olds) Pre-K program for next year, That would mean next year's preschoolers would have the option of attending the regular Pre-K day of 8:15-11:45AM, or for a doubled tuition price, of staying twice the length of the day - until 2:00PM on Mondays and until 3:00PM on Tuesdays through Thursdays. (There is no Pre-K on Fridays.) If you might be interested in choosing this extended-day option for your Pre-K child enrolling in St. Louise for 2017-18, please email me now.
            Moving on to more January events, Catholic Schools' Week officially begins next weekend (January 28-29) with celebrations & promotions of our school's success at all the St. Louise Parish Masses, but we're also doing some early celebrating & promoting at neighboring parish Masses this Sunday (January 22). We are encouraging all school families to attend any of the Masses as noted in the Catholic Schools' Week calendar below, with your children proudly wearing their school uniforms. (They'll be glad they did because they'll get a special reward. But note: they must be in a "complete" uniform, which includes the school fleece or traditional sweater.)
Catholic School's Week continues weeklong, with events such as a showcase of your children's beautiful art work on display throughout the school's main building on Sunday the 29th after the 7:30, 9:00, and 11:00 AM Masses. You know what else is happening in the main building at those times? Coffee and donuts will be served by our School Commission and Parents' Club Board. It makes for a full morning of liturgy, art, and treats if your family can attend one of those morning Masses here. (But again, there are many other Masses where we'd love for you to attend from January 22-29.) And of course, the special week ends with our February 2nd Open House night.
Finally, January is when our Annual School Gift Campaign begins - and you should have already received information about this required fund raiser in the Annual Report document we postal mailed you about 10 days ago. Thanks for fulfilling your commitment to the ASGC ASAP. The ASGC is a vital fund raiser that provides much needed revenue and requires the participation of every school family. What makes this fund raiser special is that the parish joins with us and hundreds of parishioners who don't have children in our school also pledge donations because they want to support you in helping to provide your children, our future Church, with a Catholic school education. And what makes this fund raiser extraordinary is 100% of the school teachers and staff have already donated to it!
We have something special here at St. Louise with such dedicated faculty, supportive parishioners, and involved parents! Thanks in advance for donating to the ASGC by no later this time next month, or at least by sending in an initial pledge if you'll be paying monthly or periodically through credit card or check/checking account.

Thanks for reading,
Mr. Fitz
 
p.s.
It's time for another Parent Survey, where all 200+ school families are given the opportunity to provide input to help our school and the Parents' Club make some future decisions. Please go HERE now to complete the survey, which takes a little more than 10 minutes. This survey closes next Thursday. Thank you for completing one survey per family.
 
p.p.s.
Auction attendees received an updated emailed receipt this week that corrected an earlier receipt with an incorrect "Dessert Dash" tax-donation amount. If you have questions, please email Auction@stlouiseschool.org.

School Calendar
        Please subscribe to the school calendar. You may also subscribe to receiving updates from a teacher's individual webpage by choosing your teacher here, and then clicking on the +Subscribe link.

 
THIS WEEKEND

Sunday, January 22
  • St. Louise students in our Chorale choir will be singing at the 9:00AM Mass at St. Jude Church in Redmond; wearing their complete school uniforms (red fleece or sweater; no hoody or track jacket) these students will earn "Free Dress Bracelets" allowing them free dress on January 30
  • We are also promoting our school this Sunday at other neighboring parishes; St. Louise students who attend any of these Masses wearing a complete school uniform (red fleece or sweater; no hoody or track jacket) will also earn "Free Dress Bracelets" allowing them free dress on January 30: Mary, Queen of Peace Church in Sammamish - 9:00AM Mass; Holy Innocents Church in Duvall - 10:30AM Mass

NEXT WEEK

Friday, January 27
  • Free Dress ONLY for students with "window decal coupons"

SAVE THE DATE
Saturday, January 28
  • St. Louise students who attend the 5:00PM Mass at St. Louise Church, wearing their complete school uniforms (red fleece or sweater; no hoody or track jacket) will earn "Free Dress Bracelets" allowing them free dress on January 30.
  • We are also promoting our school at a neighboring parish; St. Louise students who attend the 5:00PM Mass at St. Teresa Church in Woodinville wearing their complete school uniform (red fleece or sweater; no hoody or track jacket) will receive "Free Dress Bracelets" allowing them free dress on January 30.
Sunday, January 29
  • St. Louise students who attend any of these Sunday Masses at St. Louise Church, wearing their complete school uniforms (red fleece or sweater; no hoody or track jacket) will earn "Free Dress Bracelets" allowing them free dress on January 30: 7:30AM, 9AM, 11AM, 1PM, 6PM.
  • Our Chorale choir will be singing at the 9AM Mass.
  • Coffee & Donuts will be served in the school lobby after the 7:30/9/11AM Masses, with lots of student art work on display for viewing.
Monday, January 30
  • Free Dress ONLY for those with bracelets from the weekend Masses  
Wednesday, February 1
  • Grade 6-8 Parents and Students go out to lunch from 11:15-1:00
  • Grade K-5 Parents supervise students' lunch/recess from 12:00-1:00 so teachers, school staff, and parish staff can enjoy a rare 1-hour lunch together 
Thursday, February 2
  • OPEN HOUSE from 6:30-7:30; ALL school families are invited; please encourage a neighbor, co-worker, friend to join you and check out our school!



Will You Be Enrolling a Child in St. Louise for the FIRST Time?
          If you have child who is currently not attending St. Louise School, but you plan to enroll him/her in our school for the upcoming school year (such as in Pre-K or kindergarten), please email Mindy in the school office (or call her at 425-746-4220)  to let her know your child's full name and the incoming grade level. That will help the office prepare your necessary enrollment paperwork.
          Additionally, we are evaluating the possibility of offering an extended-day Pre-K program for next year, That would mean the 4-year-olds would have the option of attending the regular Pre-K day of 8:15-11:45AM, or for an increased tuition price, staying until 2:00PM on Mondays and 3:00PM on Tuesdays through Thursdays. (There is no Pre-K on Fridays.)  If you might be interested in choosing this extended-day option for your Pre-K child enrolling in St. Louise for 2017-18, please email Dan.
Congratulations to the St. Louise Speech Team
         
Our 6th, 7th, and 8th grade Speech Team competed with 18 schools at the Seattle Prep High School Speech Tournament last Saturday, and many St. Louisers finished in top positions: 
 
Ellie Charles - Finalist in Junior Dramatic and Junior Editorial Commentary
Madeline Clinton - Finalist in Junior Dramatic
Ellie Pierce - Finalist in Junior Duo
Ellie Read - Finalist in Junior Duo and Junior Storybook
Elsa Kammereck - 2nd place in Junior Impromptu
Erin Tylutki - 2nd in Junior Expository
Frances Kowal - 1st place in Junior Impromptu
Natalie Nowak - 1st place in Senior Dramatic earning a $1,000 scholarship to Seattle Prep High School!
Alice Vimal - Finalist in Junior Expository
Savannah Wallis - 1st place in Senior Humorous earning a $1,000 scholarship to Seattle Prep High School!
 
 
 
Many thanks to the parents who served as coaches and to the following people who judged at the tournament: Alessandro Catorcini, Margie Clinton, Tami Kowal, Frank Vanris, Shannon Wallis, and Mr. Gallant & Mrs. Patterson. The Speech Team's final tournament is at Archbishop Murphy HS on February 11.

 
Thank You for Participating in the ASGC
         
As school parents, you commit to participate in the Annual School Gift Campaign (ASGC) when you annually sign your Parent Tuition Contract. In the postal mail last week you received a mailing from St. Louise with your ASGC pledge envelope enclosed. (If you didn't receive this, please contact Cindy Wagner  in our development office.) We ask that you please honor your commitment to the 2017 Annual School Gift Campaign by no later than early-February by sending in your donation or at least sending in your initial pledge, if it's easier on your family budget to donate in small portions.

Thanks for praying about what financial level you can stretch your giving to, and for considering jumping a giving-level compared to what you donated last year.
 
We created this annual fund raiser as a way to offer school parents a tax deductible way to help us fund the school, instead of simply raising tuition by another couple hundred dollars per student. Besides sending your tax deductible ASGC donation to the school, please take advantage of your company's matching gift program if applicable. Again, matching gifts would not be able to be utilized if we simply raised tuition in lieu of running the ASGC, since companies will not match tuition payments.
          
For your convenience, we offer many avenues through which you may donate to the Annual School Gift Campaign. If going the avenue of paying your ASGC donation by check, you may turn in a one-time gift paid in full. Or, as many families choose to do, a larger donation by way of a check is achieved by dividing your gift into four quarterly payments. Simply send in the first of four checks now, followed by three checks sent in April, July, and October. If going this avenue helps you give more, then by all means we will accommodate a gift in four-parts. And if it's been a while since you used checks, our online giving process allows you to have ASGC payments taken electronically from your bank account, similarly to how you pay tuition each month.
           
More popular than checks or bank accounts for most school families is to use a credit card for an online donation by going to our school website here. With a credit card, you can similarly give in one lump payment or break this up into quarterly or monthly payments. Who knows... perhaps you can earn airline-mile rewards this way, and thus this whole donation-thing ends up a win-win. You win miles, and we win revenue.
 
If you have any questions about the best way for your family to give (or want to explain a special circumstance such as giving via stocks), please contact Cindy Wagner.

Thanks for your financial support of your children's school!

Slap on a Free Decal & Receive Free Dress

New St. Louise Parish School car decals are available (see design below) - and we are giving one to every school family at no charge! These vinyl decals with our updated school logo have removable adhesive and are completely safe and easy to apply to your car window - and will leave absolutely no residue. Even more special, families displaying decals on their vehicles will get free dress coupons for their kids!
We are in the midst of our school's admissions season for 2017-18 - and to promote our school  we need your help! We are distributing these car decals and asking you to please stick them on your back windows now - as our Open House is just a couple of weeks away! We anticipate you'll be proud enough St. Louisers to keep on the decal for months and years to come!
  • If you were unable last week to pick up your car decal at our give-away-days, please stop by the Development Office or email Laura Leach and ask her to please send home a decal through the school mail.
  • If you were unable to drive through the carpool line last week to show us either your new or old decal applied, and then be handed free dress coupons, please email Laura Leach and attach a photo of your car with the decal attached. She will then send home free dress coupons through the school mail.
The free dress day for decal-promoters is NEXT Friday, January 27. 
 
 Thank you for noting we have just one decal per family. If you have an older decal on your car and it's working just fine, no need to apply a new one. Also, the free dress coupon applies only to the children in one family. If multiple families are carpooling, you'll want to make sure each family's car has its own decal.

Our sincere thanks for helping spread the word about our wonderful school!
Opportunities to Volunteer in the Coming School Year

There are a few committee/programs who will have outgoing chairs/leaders this spring and will need fellow parents to step up and take over. Please consider being a chair/leader or co-chair/co-leader for one of the following in 2017-18:

  • Interested in earning volunteer hours while leading a group of talented, willing volunteer cooks and bakers? We're looking for HOSPITALITY COMMITTEE co-chairs to take over next school year. You'd help organize menus and committee members through "SignUpGenius" and oversee the food, beverages, and service for approximately 12 school events throughout the year. Many of these events simply need some desserts and coffee, while a few are more along the line of lunches to feed teachers for special events. As co-chairs, you may take turns to attend these events and help with set-up, service, and clean-up. If this sounds like something you and a friend can handle, or if you're willing to throw your chef's hat in the ring and wait for another parent to do the same so you can be teamed together, please contact current co-chairs Kristy Charles or Victoria Bermel. 

 

  • The CHARGER CARDS' current co-chairs, Darlene Kraft and Kathy Hueffed, are ready to train their replacements to run the program in 2017-18. Charger Cards requires a commitment of a few hours for one day a week to lead an established committee of volunteers in filling orders and distributing cards. Much work may be done on your own time and from your own computer at home. Contact Darlene and Kathy to learn more, including to hear about how partial tuition-stipends come along with the job!

 

  • The ST. NICHOLAS BREAKFAST was run this year by Karen and Ryan Reed, who have a well-documented plan to hand over to new co-chairs for the December, 2017 event. What a fun way to earn volunteer hours! Contact Karen if you have an interest. Additionally, the sub-committee chair for the BAZAAR-portion of the event is Regina Aiello, and with 2017 being her last bazaar, she is looking for co-chair to join her next year to learn the ropes as the overseer of the craft tables. Please email Regina if interested.  

 

  • The PARENTS' CLUB BOARD is losing three parents who finish up their 3-year terms of office this May. The Board will be looking for a Treasurer, President-Elect, and Committee Liaison to be trained in these positions by this coming summer. There are no more than a half-dozen evening meetings expected of Board members during the school year, along with work to be done on your own time. Serving on the Board is a great way to meet more parents while helping the school raise revenue and generate school spirit. To find out more about each position, please contact Mari Sullivan (for Treasurer), Jen Sharp (for President-Elect), and Joni Hoffman (for Committee Liaison).
     
Volleyball Sign-Ups End Tomorrow

CYO Volleyball registration is open until tomorrow, January 20, to all St. Louise students in grades 4 through 8. To sign up, please go to: http://www.stlouise.org/122. The registration fee is $95. In some cases, late registrations can be permitted (subject to the size of existing rosters), but a $15 late registration fee is added for any sign ups past tomorrow. For more information, contact St. Louise volleyball coordinator, Tony Calacat.
Save the Date for the Annual Father/Daughter Dance
          This year's Father/Daughter Dance is Saturday, February 25th. Your Parents' Club Social Committee Chairs - Teresa Brosche and Rebecca Ort - wanted to remind families to save the date for this annual dance.  It will be on a Saturday this year, from 6:30-9:00 p.m. in the Parish Hall.  The theme will be revealed in an upcoming Bulletin, but you may already register to attend the dance online HERE. The event is $65 per family if you register by February 15.  Late registrations will be accepted but will include a late fee of $10.  
          If you have any questions or are interested in helping with the planning for this fun event, please contact Teresa or Rebecca.  
How You Thought About This?
Parents' Club is looking for 2 new Charger Cards co-chairs for a minimum commitment of two years (the 2017-18 and 2018-19 school years). Attention to detail, strength in working with numbers are a plus (e.g. know Excel and QuickBooks), as are organizational skills. These chair positions earns a partial scholarship for tuition, and is a great way to interact with our St. Louise community and make a positive impact in an important school program. Shadowing of current co-chairs would take place this spring so that you are well prepared to step in to the role of co-chair this fall. If you are interested or have any questions, please contact current chairs, Darlene Kraft and Kathy Hueffed.
 
 
Attention, Kohl's Shoppers
Do you have a Kohl's card? If you use a Kohl's credit card, a friendly reminder that you can purchase Kohl's gift cards (from the Charger Card office) to pay off your credit card balance. This is an offer unique to Kohl's and only works with cards purchased from Charger Cards (does not work with gift cards purchased at Fred Meyer, Safeway, etc.)
 
 
Use Cards for Gas & Groceries and Help Your Budget
January is a great month to organize and budget for the coming year. Use Charger Cards as part of your plan!  Many families have found Charger Cards helpful in sticking to budgets. If you use an "envelope or cash" system, consider buying a grocery or gas gift card for each week.
 
Did you know if every school family bought gas and groceries with Charger Cards, St. Louise could earn $100K each year in rebates for just those two categories?! Charger Cards would like to encourage every family to start using our cards for their everyday purchases.
  


Office Hours
+ Charger Card office hours are from 8:15-8:45 on every Friday school morning.
          + Available for online purchases 24/7 at www.shopwithscrip.com.
                    +For questions or more information on Charger Cards, please email      
                      chargercards@stlouiseschool.org or visit the school website.




Fourth graders Justin and Ben dissected and learned the parts of a preserved cow's eye during science class.

 
 
 
 
 
If you have a photo of your kids in a school or community event and/or at a CYO game, send it to Dan Fitzpatrick for possible publishing in an upcoming Parent Bulletin and/or to Catherine Saffel for possible inclusion in the end-of-year School Yearbook.